After the past 3 weeks, the Washington Redskins found themselves still in the thick of the playoff race. Going into Sunday’s action they were the 6th seed. Could they keep pace in the NFC? A win would help. Here are 3 observations from Sunday’s victory over the Vikings.
Rob Kelley is a legit NFL Running Back
The Redskins have had their struggles with the running game. However, it has not been with the scheme or blocking. The issues have been with the running backs that the Redskins have used. Since 2012 the Redskins had Alfred Morris. However, he did not fit into the Redskins plans moving forward so they moved on. The feeling was Matt Jones, the second-year back out of Florida would be the guy. His tendency to turn the ball over has cost him his job. He was a healthy scratch against the Vikings. This paved the way for Robert Kelley. With Kelley’s performance the past 2 weeks, it is now his job to lose.
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Defense stepped up
The Redskins defense has had more than their fair share of issues in 2016. They have had issues with tackling, stopping the run, and pass coverage. Today it all came together. I know they gave up their fair share of yardage in the last 2 minutes, but that was in prevent coverage. When the Redskins play together as a defense, they can stop any offense in the league. They must continue to put forward the strong effort they put together today. If they do that they should be able to play with anyone in the league.
The offense does need DeSean Jackson
Yes, DeSean Jackson help blow the top off of defenses. However, the Redskins have enough on the offensive side of the ball that they do not need him. They now, in my opinion, have a running game, Jamison Crowder is emerging as a solid option for Kirk Cousins, and of course you have Jordan Reed and Pierre Garcon. The Redskins offense has plenty of weapons that they could afford to lose Jackson. By the way, I totally expect this to happen at the end of the season.
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The Washington Redskins went 6-2 in their final 8 games of 2015. If they are able to repeat that performance in 2016 they should make the playoffs easily. They took a giant step in that direction with a victory on Sunday. Next up the Green Bay Packers, a team in dire straits but a game that the Washington Redskins cannot afford to look past.