How will Washington respond against winless Rams?
They greeted adversity in the first two games and responded the same way: with a clutch drive, defensive stop or turnover. They also won. The Redskins pointed to their resiliency, toughness and resolve as reasons why.
Now that they lost, they’ll need to rely on those traits once again, even against an 0-3 St. Louis team Sunday. That’s what an 18-16 loss in Dallas will do for a team.
“You find out what type of team you got,” Redskins coach Mike Shanahan told reporters after the game. He was not available Tuesday. “It hurts.”
The Redskins (2-1) didn’t lose just because of a failed blitz on third-and-21 in the fourth quarter or because of a quarterback having a tough night. They lost because this is who they are: a flawed team, slowly marching to respectability.
And they surrendered big plays because that’s what they’ve done all season, and in 2010 as well. And their quarterback had a tough night because that’s who he is: a passer capable of big moments and an equal amount of down times.
In six starts with Washington, Rex Grossman has turned the ball over 13 times — seven interceptions and six fumbles. Monday, he threw one interception that led to a Dallas field goal and lost a fumble that ended the game. In terms of turnovers, it was an average game for him. Those turnovers are why those close to Mike Shanahan predicted John Beck would win the job this summer. But Beck’s own decision making doomed him.
But Grossman’s also thrown 13 touchdown passes in his six starts, including one Monday.
Grossman will both thrill and frustrate in the same game. On his last scramble, Grossman failed to protect the ball as he ran.
“I thought I could find a soft spot and make a big play,” Grossman said.
The Redskins have a rushing attack that is inconsistent. They’re averaging 3.7 yards per carry and in two games they’ve averaged three yards or less. Because it’s not always working, they then must rely on a quarterback prone to turnovers.
Defensively, the failed blitz on third-and-21 highlighted a difference between the teams. Quarterback Tony Romo adjusted the protection after the Redskins brought heavy pressure two straight times. When they had eight men on the line for a third straight time, Romo had the line slide to its left, with two backs in the backfield helping on the right.
Given time, he waved to receiver Dez Bryant to turn what was going to be a short route into a deep one over the middle. It worked, helping set up the game-winning field goal. It also led to an expletive-filled rant by corner DeAngelo Hall, who was covering Bryant, after the game.
“Sooner or later, someone’s going to [bleeping] figure it out,” he said.
A day later, linebacker Brian Orakpo said on ESPN980 that the call “kind of backfired against us. I know it’s a call we wish we could have back.”
But they can’t. Some of that aggressiveness, though, resulted in big plays by the defense earlier in the game in the form of sacks, fumbles or interceptions.
“You find a way to win or you don’t,” Shanahan said. “You don’t have a lot of time to think about it.”
This week, that’s probably a good thing for the Redskins.
