5 Commanders reality checks for Week 12 against the Falcons

In the NFL, if you want to have a successful season, you have to beat the bad teams. In most NFL seasons, there are a couple elite teams that are truly superior to the majority of the league, but very little distinguishes teams 3-22. Simply beating the bad teams goes a long way toward elevating a team from the squishy middle of the league up into the playoffs by season end.

The Washington Commanders got one such win on Sunday, soundly beating the woeful Houston Texans. They have another opportunity for that same type of win this week as Atlanta comes to town. The Falcons are a bad team that is lucky to have the record they do this season. DJ Moore’s improperly flagged helmet removal gave them one win, and they barely squeaked out wins against the woeful Bears and Browns.

The Commanders have similar results in several games, so it’s not as if this is a matchup of David vs. Goliath, but it’s very unlikely the Falcons beat a single playoff team this season when it’s all said and done.

Could the Commanders lose to Atlanta and still make the playoffs? Sure. But a loss Sunday would call into question the legitimacy of their current “surge”. With that backdrop in mind, here are five reality checks for this week’s Commanders game against the Falcons.

5 Commanders reality checks for Week 12 vs the Falcons

5. The Reality Is, the offensive line still has a long way to go.

While not having quite the percentage of complete busts as they had early in the season, this offensive line has at least stabilized over the last few weeks, with the emphasis on the running game helping to protect their deficiencies in pass coverage. But make no mistake, this is FAR from a dominant (or even adequate) unit.

According to Football Outsiders, Washington’s run blocking as a unit  is even WORSE than their pass blocking. If the Offensive Line doesn’t start to improve, dramatically, and soon, this win-streak could be extremely short-lived.