The Takeaways, week 13: Washington at Pittsburgh

December 8, 2020

by Steve Thomas

Against all odds, the Washington Redskins WFT The Team the Football Team Washington was able to go into Heinz Field and get a victory over a team that has dominated Washington for many years, the Pittsburgh Steelers.  This was a total team effort that did not come cheaply or via gimmick: Washington played well in all phases of the game and made fewer mistakes than did Pittsburgh and earned the win.  Washington, now 5 – 7, is somehow right in the middle of the race for the NFC East title.  Plenty of good things happened in this game, which leaves lots of opportunities for takeaways this week.  This column is our weekly effort to give you the “around the water cooler” talking points after Washington’s game, so let’s get started.

Ron Rivera is making a significant impact

I doubted Ron Rivera early this season.  He made some decisions that I strongly disagreed with and gave some media quotes that seemingly made little sense.  It’s obvious, though, that Rivera has motivated his players and got them to coalesce over the course of the season.  I don’t think Washington would’ve won this game if it had been played early in the season.  These players seemed to believe in themselves in this game and in their head coach, and Rivera deserves an immense amount of credit for this accomplishment.  Cam Sims alluded to this in his postgame comments, stating, “Coach Rivera, he was just putting it in our head that we can do this, like, we just went out there and practiced all week, had great practices, and we just executed today.”  This game was Washington’s most complete effort of the season, by far, against the toughest competition they’ve faced so far.  This team has been slowly getting better and making me a believer week by week.  Rivera’s role in this victory should not be understated.

Alex Smith is the biggest reason for this victory

Smith was unflappable against Pittsburgh despite being under significant pressure all night and suffering multiple big hits, going 31 for 46 for 296 yards, 1 touchdown, and a quarterback rating of 92.3.  Most importantly, he didn’t throw an interception, which is something that Pittsburgh has made a living off of this season.  Smith played like the experienced vet that he is on Monday evening.  He was the guy holding everyone together despite some big-time challenges like injuries to the team’s starting running back and in the offensive line.  Smith is now 9 – 5 as a starter for Washington, which is a quality record by the low standards set by this franchise.  Smith has been a winner since he arrived in DC, and the performance we witnessed against Pittsburgh was one of his finest moments with this team.  The value of quality veteran leadership at quarterback cannot be understated.  He looks more and more like the team’s 2021 starter no matter what happens in next year’s draft.

Washington’s secondary comes through

Washington’s defensive backs were saddled with a very tough assignment this week, facing one of the best quarterbacks in football as well as one of the most capable receiving groups in the league.  Pittsburgh repeatedly challenged both Ronald Darby and Kendall Fuller, particularly Darby.  The two corners weren’t perfect, of course, but they didn’t make too many glaring mistakes that sunk the team.  Darby didn’t bite on the double moves attempted by the Steelers receivers despite being repeatedly targeted.  There were a few missed tackles and one big play surrendered, and Ben Roethlisberger did pass for 305 yards, but considering the circumstances, Fuller, Darby, and company did a pretty darn good job.  It could’ve been much worse.  Washington should make an effort to re-sign Darby to a multiyear deal during the offseason.

Logan Thomas and Cam Sims have career days

I think almost everyone, including me, doubted Logan Thomas when he was signed.  I thought the team relied on him way too much in the early portion of the season.  Thomas has grown as a player, though, and gotten better as the year has gone on, and played a key role in Washington’s big victory yesterday.  Most importantly, Thomas caught all 9 passes thrown his way for 98 yards and a touchdown.  Cam Sims had a similarly big day, with 92 yards on 5 receptions.  Sims continues to make the most of his recent opportunity at real playing time in recent weeks, impressing not only with his hands (his one big drop on Monday aside; I can give him a break once), but his ability to both use his body in contested situations and to get significant yards after catch.  He has repeatedly evaded tackles to gain big yardage after other receivers probably would’ve been brought down.  Sims is making Dontrelle Inman irrelevant on the team.  Both Thomas and Sims are making strides towards earning new multi-year contracts next year and permanent starting roles in the future.

The defensive front was better than the numbers indicated

The defensive front seven barely even touched Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger all day, getting no sacks and only 2 hits.  However, what they did do is provide consistent pressure, routinely collapsing the pocket against a talented and quality Pittsburg offensive line.  Montez Sweat, in particular, continues to improve, demonstrating why he was a first round pick last year.  He is getting better and better at using his athletic ability, and has improved his pass rushing technique quite a bit over last season.  He is clearly Washington’s best pass rusher right now.  I suspect that a quarterback of lesser talent than Big Ben may have had problems against Washington’s defensive line, but Roethlisberger is an experienced Super Bowl champion with a lightning-quick release.  They also totally shut down what very little is left of the Steeler’s pathetic running game.  It wasn’t a perfect effort, by any means, but they did as good of a job against an undefeated elite NFL team as could be expected.

Bonus: Dustin Hopkins tracker

Dustin went 5 for 5 this week, with 2 extra points and field goals of 49, 45, and 45 yards in a stadium known to be tough on kickers.  Hopkins is now 19 for 25 on the season, which is 76%.  He is progressing nicely from his slow start to the season.

That’s it for The Takeaways this week.  Washington travels to San Francisco . . . err . . . Arizona (thanks to the moronic, braindead nincompoops who pretend to be political leaders in the state of California) to face the 49ers in a 4:25 pm start next Sunday.  I’ll be back with another edition after that contest.