The NFL Team in Washington Might Be On To Something

Well, week 7 is over of the NFL. This is starting to become embarrassing. I have had to write a blog posting that put the Oakland Raiders in a good light and now, I have to do the same for the Washington NFL Team. How is it that the Tampa Bay Buccaneers can give away such a big lead to Washington with Kirk Cousins at QB? How is it that the Washington team is still in the NFC East race? My hypothesis: The talent of the team is overcoming the lack of leadership from the Owner on down.



I might be in the minority, but I think that Jay Gruden might have found his butt without the aid of a flashlight when he made Kirk Cousins the starting QB in the preseason. I understand that Cousins has now played in 21 games and has 27 TDs and 27 INTs. Nothing that would make you say that he is a top notch QB, at least not yet. But in 2015, his QBR is above average, his rating is at 85, and he is starting to play way better at Fed Ex Field. Now if he was in his second season with his stats, then you would have the so-called experts on ESPN, NFL Network, Fox, CBS, and other stations telling you that this kid is one to watch. And as much as RGIII, was the toast of the NFL in his rookie year, he has regressed and needs to leave this team to try and resurrect his career, while Cousins has shown that he can be the leader of this franchise.

But one player does not an offense make. The Offensive Line is looking like it could become the next rendition of the Hogs. They need to get a little bit more seasoning and improve their run blocking, but the talent appears to be there. And the nice thing is that the line is young. They can improve. It seems like the team can find running backs. That is a good thing. The coaching staff needs to figure out how to get the running game going this year though.  At receiver, I like the corps that they have, but they need that one Superstar that defenses need to key on. Desean Jackson isn't that player in my opinion. I would have Andre Brown on the field before Pierre Garcon, but that is just me.

The defense is the unit that needs to be looked at. There is too much talent there for this defense to be in the bottom half of the league. The team has only 13 sacks for the year. They are 5th in the league for interceptions. They are 2nd in the league for defensive TDs. But their opponents have had success running the ball on this year's version of the defense. They are giving up almost 130 yds per game on the ground which in turn causes the time of possession to tilt the opponents way.

In short, the Washington team has an offense that is learning and growing together. They need to get rid of the RG III distraction, but I can see this offense being a possible Top 5 unit in a couple of years if injuries don't derail it. The veterans on the defense need to get the young players on that side of the ball to understand the concepts that the team is trying to use and get the run defense to tighten up. I don't think that the playoffs are in the future this year for the team, but they can bite any team that takes them lightly and in a few years, I can see this team as the Beast of the NFC East if they can find a couple more defensive studs and have the coaching staff improve. Because right now, the coaches and the front office are the people holding back what should be the team in first place of the NFC East.