Burgundy & Gold Reaction: Legend of Heinicke Grows

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September 21, 2021

by David Earl

Overreaction or No!

While I try to solely focus on fan reactions and opinions, JP Finlay may actually sum up how most of this fan base feels about Taylor Heinicke when he said, “I see it, I get as there’s something there.” Sure it’s hard to look past his undrafted status and his prevalent injury history, but the bottom line is that Heinicke (when given the opportunity) just continues to make plays. His ability to make off-schedule plays accompanied by his mobility has not only given Scott Turner a viable weapon but also has revived this fan base. As the fanbase has been given very few years of even moderate success, Taylor has drawn in similar energy from the fans like RGIII‘s rookie season when most truly thought we finally had our guy (yeah I was one of those fans).

Of course, it’s exciting to witness him just continue to captivate us all as the chants of “Heinicke” flood the stadium, the actual player has been very good thus far. In his time with Washington (including 2 starts) Taylor has completed 67% of his passes while amassing 900 yards, 4 touchdowns, and 2 interceptions. Here is a quarterback whose career in the NFL has seen him released on an injury settlement in 2015, suffered a concussion on Christmas day 2017, and a less than impressive outing in his only start for Carolina in 2018 in which he threw 3 interceptions to now as a potential savior. While many will surely jump the gun to call him the next Kurt Warner, Taylor has (at the very least) played well enough to earn him the opportunity to become the franchise quarterback. Over this next stretch of games, he will certainly have the chance to not only prove his worth but potentially solidify his role at least for the remainder of the 2021 season when Fitzpatrick returns from injury.

Defensive Concerns

Lake Lewis is 100% right here as the talent of this defensive front has yet to play anywhere near its talent level. Even with the Giants make-shift offensive line, Daniel Jones had relatively no pressure as he carved up Washington’s defense like he was Peyton Manning, completing 69% of his passes and ending the game with a 102 rating.  Although Washington’s 3rd down defense did improve from week 1, Daniel Jones‘ wide receivers dropped 4 crucial passes with one being a sure-fire TD by Slayton. Looking at the overall performance against an opponent with a makeshift offensive line and a mistake-prone quarterback, Jack Del Rio has some work to do before the team’s trip to Buffalo week 3. If he cannot figure out a scheme with the right stunts and blitz packages to slow down Josh Allen and that offense, then Washington’s defense will be in for a very long day.

 

I understand wanting to bring Jamin Davis along slowly but if Bostic continues to drop back in coverage teams will continue to exploit him every time. This defense has continued to allow wide receivers to get open in between the hash marks, and when the front does not generate pressure opposing quarterbacks will continue to dissect that area of the field. While Davis played less than 50% of the defensive snaps, his impact in coverage was certainly felt. A prime example is the 3rd down play on Washington’s 11 yard line where Jamin established a good position and played the route against Sterling Shepard very well to force a 4th down. It’s a play Bostic most likely would not have made and Shepard would have, at the least, advanced the Giants to a potential 1st and goal situation. It’s not just the passing game – Jamin’s stick on Barkley in the 4th quarter up by 1, with the time just north of 2 minutes remaining, was strong and encouraging. While his inconsistency on shedding blocks from opposing offensive lineman is a factor, Jamin’s ability to drop back in coverage plus the range he covers is something this defense sorely needs especially in week 3 against Buffalo.

Final Thoughts

This defense is about to enter a stretch in which they face some explosive offenses, starting with Buffalo week 3, so it’s do or die for Jack Del Rio, and I personally have faith he will adjust accordingly going forward. From the talent on this defensive line, the raw ability in Jamin Davis and William Jackson III being as advertised (accompanied with St Juce’s promising development), Jack is just too good of a coordinator to not get this unit playing at a higher level. I also fully expect Scott Turner to be more creative with an athletic and accurate Taylor Heinicke at the helm while getting Antonio Gibson much more involved in the passing game. In turn, Scott can scheme more attention away from McLaurin, which makes this offense and team better going forward. The talent is here for Washington to be competitive in this stretch. They can absolutely steal one of these games against an elite team like Buffalo or Kansas City as we head into the back half of the schedule. With the likes of Philadelphia showing much more than we all expected and a healthy Cowboy offense, Ron and this staff need to build as much momentum heading into that crucial and ridiculous 5 game divisional stretch to close out the season.

Now to close out this column I’d like to share a well done Heinicke hype video by HOFMedia_9. He does great work on his videos and is a much follow on all platforms. [Editor’s note: you’ll have to click through to watch because of NFL copyright requirements.]