The Redskins are Better Than You Think

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The Redskins made the struggling Cowboys look great. It was both surprising and not surprising. While this year might seem like just another disappointing season, this year was different from previous ones mainly because the team is a lot more talented than former teams. In this article, I’ll break down the Redskins and why there is hope for the future.

Offensively, this season has been disappointing. Their starting receiver this year, Josh Doctson, has been injury prone and inconsistent. The other starting receiver is Terrelle Pryor, who is out for the season with an injury and didn’t play well when he was on the field.  Their starting slot receiver, Jamison Crowder, has gone MIA this season. Many Redskins fans didn’t expect these struggles, but there are some points they should have. You can’t plug in new players and expect everything to run smoothly. Jordan Reed and the offensive line have had a lot of injuries, which is why they have been struggling. Fortunately, Kirk Cousins is playing well––he continues to put up great stats (3289 passing yards, 21 touchdowns, and a 99.6 passer rating) and carry the offense. Also, the Redskins have had to play a lot of good defense, and this combined with the injuries has led to the offense underperforming.

While the offense has been disappointing, the defense hasn’t. Greg Manusky, the new defensive coordinator, deserves a lot of credit. This year, the front seven puts pressure and plays well against the run. Their secondary, while having given up a lot of yards, has shown potential. New safety DJ Swearinger has been exceptional in making plays. Other standouts have been linebacker Zach Brown and underrated linebacker Ryan Kerrigan. The defense would be better if not for injuries. That is the biggest problem with this team, but despite their poor health, the team has competed.

Injuries and a hard schedule have been the main factors in this disappointing season. If they were uninjured and healthy, they would’ve been a top team. They have found a good running back in Samaje Perine and the offensive line should be healthy next year. Drafting another receiver should fix some of the problems offensively. As for defense, there aren’t really any weaknesses. This team has the potential to really take off next season.