Game Recap: Redskins Defeat Falcons
August 22, 2019
by Steve Thomas
The Washington Redskins earned their first win of the 2019 preseason tonight in a 19 – 7 defeat of the Atlanta Falcons at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Neither the starting offense nor defense performed at peak efficiency, but the team got out of Georgia with a couple solid drives, a win, and ***maybe*** no injuries, and that’s a success by any measure.
The game started out on a fairly negative note, as the Falcons, led by former NFL MVP, quarterback Matt Ryan, marched straight down the field on the Redskins starting defense on a drive featuring mostly a short passing attack from Ryan and a critical first down courtesy of a direct snap to the up-man out of a punt formation on fourth down. Despite eating 6:45 minutes of gametime, the drive eventually stalled on Washington’s 21 yard line, however, after which Atlanta then missed a 39 yard field goal.
The Redskins’ prized second year running back, Derrius Guice, saw his first action in over 12 months, as he started the game and got three carries for a total of 15 yards. Quarterback Case Keenum drove the team down to Atlanta’s 30 yard line, where Dustin Hopkins was able to connect on a 48 yard field goal to put Washington up by a score of 3 – 0.
Atlanta’s next drive also stalled on the Falcons’ 44 yard line shortly after the start of the second quarter. The teams then traded punts on short drives for the next two possessions before Keenum committed a turnover in what appeared to be a short interception but was eventually ruled a fumble recovery by Takkarist McKinley, who returned the fumble to the Redskins 33. Atlanta scored a touchdown on a 5 yard Ito Smith rush five plays later to take the lead 3 – 7.
The Redskins starting offense then put together their best drive of the game, marching down to the Atlanta one yard line, with an assist by a defensive pass interference penalty. However, the drive stalled when the Redskins offensive line could not help punch Guice into the end zone on two plays in a row. A holding call on left guard Ereck Flowers then nullified a Guice touchdown on try number 3 from the one. The Redskins were then forced to settle for a field goal following an incomplete pass to rookie receiver Steven Sims on third down. The half ended with the Redskins leading by a score of 7 – 6.
Keenum finished his day at halftime with 9 completions on 14 attempts for 101 yards, one fumble, and a quarterback rating of 85.7. Guice had 11 rushes for 44 yards. For the Falcons, Ryan went 9 for 14 for 74 yards and a rating of 77.7 when his night ended at halftime as well.
Washington’s 2019 first round pick, Dwayne Haskins, took over for Keenum in the third quarter. The first drive stalled after just three plays, but Redskins safety Troy Apke recovered a fumble on the Falcons’ 17 yard line courtesy of a muffed catch by the Atlanta punt returner. The Redskins punched the ball into the endzone three plays later on three straight runs by running back Samaje Perine to take the lead 13 – 7.
The Redskins defense held the Falcons scoreless in the second half, with two punts, yet another fumble on a punt, and a turnover on downs late in the game. Haskins and the Redskins added two more field goals on drives of 6 and 11 plays, respectively, to make the score 19 – 7.
Haskins played the entire second half and finished with 7 completions in 13 attempts, 74 yards, no turnovers, and a rating of 70.7. The Redskins’ principal third down back, Chris Thompson, had 20 yards on 3 carries. For his part, Perine earned 16 yards on 4 carries. Undrafted free agent rookie running back Craig Reynolds had 19 yards on 5 carries.
Second year receiver Cam Sims was the team’s leading receiver on the night with 3 receptions on 5 targets for 48 yards, including an outstanding one-handed grab from Haskins. Rookie Kelvin Harmon had 2 catches for 37 yards.
Defensively, Jon Bostic, JoJo Mcintosh, Ryan Bee, and BJ Blunt all had 5 total tackles. Cassanova McKinzy had 2 sacks.
The only injuries were to tight end Jordan Reed, who is in the concussion protocol after an illegal helmet to helmet blow to the head by Falcons’ safety Keanu Neal, and tight end Matt Flanagan, who suffered a hand injury.
The Redskins will complete their preseason slate next Thursday night at home at Fed Ex Field against the Baltimore Ravens.