Riggo's Rag
FanSided

3 winnable non-divisional games for Washington in 2022

By Jerry Trotta

LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - DECEMBER 05: Head coach Ron Rivera of the Washington Football Team and his players prepare to take the field before the game against the Las Vegas Raiders at Allegiant Stadium on December 05, 2021 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - DECEMBER 05: Head coach Ron Rivera of the Washington Football Team and his players prepare to take the field before the game against the Las Vegas Raiders at Allegiant Stadium on December 05, 2021 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
1 of 3
Next
(Photo by Nic Antaya/Getty Images)
(Photo by Nic Antaya/Getty Images) /

The Washington Football Team‘s 2021 schedule was a gauntlet.

In fact, according to Football Outsiders DVOA metric, Washington played the hardest schedule in the league this campaign. Going by the same metric, the club had the fifth-easiest schedule in 2020, which isn’t all that surprising.

At the end of the day, going 7-10 while playing the league’s toughest schedule is quite impressive given all the adversity they had to overcome, like losing their quarterback in Week 1, a separate mountain of injuries and COVID.

Just in terms of non-NFC East games, Washington had to play squads like the Buccaneers, Chiefs, Packers, Bills (on the road) and Chargers. The Raiders, Saints, Broncos and Seahawks are no slouches, either.

Luckily for Washington, 2022 will be much softer.

They’ll play a third-place schedule next campaign, which allows plenty of room for improvement. While we know what lies ahead in the NFC East, let’s highlight some out-of-division matchups that Ron Rivera’s group should take advantage of.

3 winnable non-divisional games for Washington

3. Away at Lions

If we’re being honest, this spot was a toss-up between away at Detroit, await at Chicago and home vs Atlanta. By process of elimination — playing in Chicago is never “easy” given the weather and atmosphere at Soldier Field and Washington needed a miracle to beat Atlanta this year — away at Detroit got the vote.

What the Lions lacked in talent this season, they more than made up for in grit and determination. The roster has clearly bought into head coach Dan Campbell and they have a bright future with foundational pieces like TJ Hockenson, D’Andre Swift, Penei Sewell, Amon-Ra St. Brown and Jeff Okudah.

But let’s not put lipstick on a pig. An NFL roster comprises of 53 players and the Lions, for all their young talent, have a bottom-barrel roster. They finished 3-13 and were a train wreck down the stretch of close games.

In addition to that, Jared Goff leaves a lot to be desired under center and Detroit’s defense ranked 31st in points and 29th in yards allowed.

While the Lions are seemingly on the right path, there’s only so much work that can be done in one offseason. Even in a hostile atmosphere at Ford Field, this is easily one of the most winnable non-divisional games on Washington’s 2022 slate.

Home/Commanders News