Week 14 Reality Checks: Dallas at Washington

3. The Reality Is, the trenches will be where this game is won.

I’m nearly certain the original Hogs are less than pleased when Washington fans are quick to dub more recent iterations of Washington’s offensive line “Hogs 2.0” or something similar. There truly may never be an offensive line as consistent, as dominant, or as successful as that storied group, so you can’t blame them if they don’t think this current group, or any group since ’91 deserves the moniker.

But, if you take it as simply shorthand for an OL group that is dominating in Washington, then this current group qualifies. Even with all the moving parts throughout the season, the unit has continued to impress.

To a lesser extent, the defensive line has held up their end of the bargain as well. Prior to this win streak, the defensive line was not playing well. But in the last four games, with expectations brought down closer to reality, the DL has delivered four straight impressive performances. Jon Allen has been consistently dominant all season. And the rest of the unit is catching their stride.

On the season, Washington is in the top three of overall “Trenches” team, between their offensive and defensive line win-rates.

For the winning to continue, their lines have to continue performing at this level.