Miami Beats Washington, 16 – 17
“The season’s saved!” said clueless talking heads around the country, as the Redskins somehow held off a surging Miami team to win by a single point on Sunday. The Redskins punted 10 times against New England in week 5 and 7 times against Miami in week 6, including 3 straight to close out the game. I certainly don’t want to rain on the victory parade, but as I read headlines like “Redskins More ‘Uptempo’ after Coaching Change” and “Adrian Peterson Inspired by New Coach, Puts up 118 Yards” I have to will the vomit back into my stomach.
Miami scored 16 points against the Redskins. That equals their point total through the other 4 games this season. They had their second-to-best day offensively, putting up 271 yards, and their best day defensively, allowing 311. In fact, had the Dolphins not bungled the 2 pt. conversion attempt at the end of their sub 2-minute, 75 yard final drive, they ‘d have won the game.
But they didn’t! Miami beat themselves and the Redskins got a notch in the win column. Why no excitement? Why were planes flying over Hard Rock Stadium trailing “Fire Bruce Allen” banners ahead of Callahan’s debut? I could have sworn a very honest man told me our culture here was great. What gives?
What gives is a journeyman QB with a 166-yard day against the worst defense in the league. Speaking of which, Callahan’s on the record as saying he sees “just enough to keep Keenum at QB.” This is, of course, what’s most important, right? We don’t want to see raw 1st round talent get playing time. We don’t want to see anyone with boom-or-bust potential. We want to see just enough. Just enough to beat the league’s worst team. Culture = fixed.
Keenum tossed two TDs on Sunday, both to Terry McLaurin. It was McLaurin’s 2nd 100-yard day this year; he’s projected for over 100 targets and 1000 yards this year. I love the potential we have in him. Adrian Peterson showed up as well, rushing for 118 yards. Peterson will not be a mainstay on the Redskins for long, but if Callahan can utilize him better than Gruden ever did, we could secure a few more wins his year.
The first McLaurin TD occurred just before the end of the first quarter. Neither team had sustained a 20-yard drive to that point, but the Redskins broke the silence with a 25-yard TD score. The Dolphins kicked a field goal after that, but there would be no more scores until the second half, when the Redskins tossed another TD to McLaurin. After a Miami INT, Washington kicked a field goal of their own. 17 – 3 Washington; about what everyone expected would happen. But not so fast. The Redskins chose early retirement with 4 minutes left in the 3rd. Miami would go on to score two more TDs, then fail a very suspicious looking 2-pt conversion attempt. Receiver Kenyon Drake turns to receive the screen, then inexplicably drops it despite the pass being right on the numbers. Oblivious Redskins triumphantly raised fists to the air.
So, Miami gets one step closer to Tua Tagovailoa. It’s a stupid, disrespectful plan for Dolphin fans, but that said, at least there is a plan in Miami. The Redskins get one step closer to…what exactly? We have 2 journeyman QBs, and one rumored to be an “owner’s choice” pick. We have an aging RB, no TEs, and a ramshackle o-line rife with injuries, poor performances, and contract holdouts. We have a defense playing far below the pedigree of its personnel, an apathetic fan base, and too many needs to address in a single offseason. This is why it feels like Miami is trending up in a loss, while Washington trends down in a win. But hey, at least we have the culture.