Studs and duds from Week 13 as Washington’s winning streak reaches four games

The Washington Football Team loves a late-season winning streak under Ron Rivera, right? After Sunday’s thrilling road win over the Las Vegas Raiders, Washington is now just one win away from topping their four-game win streak from 2020.

Imagine making that prediction eight games in? You would’ve needed a police escort to the nearest insane asylum.

Either way, what matters is that Washington made another jump in the NFC playoff picture, as they now own the No. 6 seed. If the season ended today, they’d head to Tampa Bay for a rematch of last year’s Wild Card Game.

But enough about the playoffs. We’ll cross that bridge when the time comes. For now, let’s delve into the studs and duds from Week 13.

Washington Football Team: Studs and duds from Week 13

Stud: Antonio Gibson

Not gonna lie, we jumped out of our seats when Gibson scored in the fourth quarter. Not only did the touchdown put Washington up 14-6, but Gibson deserved it more than anyone on the offense not named Logan Thomas. He grinded all afternoon despite not having much room to work with up the middle.

Gibson’s efficiency stats won’t move the needle, but the second-year pro is showing just how good he can be when he has a clean bill of health.

If not for the stress fracture in his shin, which hampered him for several weeks, he’d garner more consideration as a top 10 running back in the NFL…though we’d argue he’s knocking on the door, if not already there.

Dud: Jamin Davis

We’ll go easy on the rookie a little bit, but man, Twitter was taking no prisoners in regard to Jamin Davis’ performance on Sunday. In his defense, it looked like he got banged up on the joint tackle that saw Kenyan Drake carted off, so maybe he was hobbled.

If that’s the case, then Davis deserves a little slack. If not, well, he needs to go back to the drawing board, because he had a rough go of it on open field tackles. The first-rounder was also vulnerable in coverage, giving up a few first downs on underneath routes, and looked slow on a Derek Carr scramble.

Again, we really hope he was dealing with a knock.

Stud: Logan Thomas

Thomas made his presence from the opening drive, coming down with a beautiful one-handed grab in the end zone to put Washington up 7-0. The star tight end, who was activated off injured reserve just last week, finished the game with four catches for 48 yards, but didn’t get to play down the stretch, as a cut-block to his knee (that should’ve been flagged) left him writhing in pain.

(Update: The belief is Thomas tore his ACL. His season will be over if tests confirm)

Prayers up for No. 82.

Dud: Brandon Scherff

It kind of feels like Scherff is called for a penalty at least once per game, whether it be a false start or offensive holding. Either way, the veteran guard had a costly penalty on a 3rd and 4 that resulted in a punt a few plays later.

Beyond the penalties, the Raiders front seven had their way with Scherff in pass protection. He’s never been a great blocker on screens, but that was another area in which the four-time Pro Bowler struggled in this one.

Scherff has largely been solid this year, but performances like this won’t help his case to get a big-time contract from Washington in the offseason.

Stud: Brian Johnson

Is an explanation really needed? Appearing in only the fifth NFL game of his career, Brian Johnson’s number was called — ice cold off the bench, mind you, as he hadn’t attempted a field goal all game — to go out and win the game for a team he signed for as an injury replacement just days prior.

Honestly, we didn’t know what to expect. If he drilled it down the middle or shanked it in stomach-busting fashion, we wouldn’t have been surprised. Making that kick took guts and should have fans feeling confident that Johnson can be a reliable fill-in for Slye, who’s on the shelf with a strained hammy.

Dud: Yannick Ngakoue

Dud. Just a flat-out bad guy. Whatever you want to call him, Yannick Ngakoue pulled a dirty move in the game with a violent chop-block aimed at Thomas’ knee, which resulted in a likely season-ending injury the 30-year-old). Replay made it seem like Ngakoue intentionally went after Thomas’ knee.

It was a cheap shot move. Period.

Stud: Bobby McCain

Largely involved in communication breakdowns that have preceded big plays for opposing offenses, McCain flipped the script on Sunday.

He finished with four tackles (three solo) and a pass breakup, but he contributed beyond the box score. On top of setting the tone by flying to the football on running plays, McCain was in coverage on a Derek Carr deep ball to Zay Jones that, if completed, likely would’ve resulted in a TD to put the Raiders up 21-17 in the final minute.

Did McCain get away with tug of Jones’ jersey? Maybe, but the contact was far from blatant. Let’s just say there would’ve been a much bigger uproar had a flag been thrown. Right now, it’s hardly a controversy, which suggests the refs made the right call.

Nevertheless, McCain’s stock is on the rise after this performance.

Stud: Cole Holcomb

Yes, Holcomb had a poor drive (which featured a penalty) that culminated in a Raiders touchdown, but he made some HUGE plays for Washington against Las Vegas He recorded a team-high 10 tackles and two pass breakups, both of which were of the eye-popping variety. He missed a couple tackles, too, but what defender didn’t?

Washington doesn’t win this game without Holcomb. Plain and simple.

A quick honorary stud mention goes out to Charles Leno Jr., who, unlike most of Washington’s offensive line, held his own against the Raiders’ vaunted pass rush.

If we’re being honest, Casey Toohill deserves a dud, too. His roughing the passer penalty was a total boneheaded move and it came with the game on the line in the fourth quarter. Luckily, it didn’t come back to haunt Washington.

As for Heinicke, he was very much up and down. He missed high on a handful of throws and probably should’ve finished with two interceptions, the second of which would’ve effectively ended the game. But sometimes luck is the deciding factor.

To his credit, Heinicke showed up when it mattered most, proving the fourth quarter interception and near game-ender didn’t rattle him mentally. Mental make up is a must for franchise quarterbacks and Heinicke has more than enough to go around.