The 5th Quarter: Redskins 24 Buccaneers 22

Written by Thomas Threlkeld on Monday, 01 October 2012 09:09. Posted in The Fifth Quarter

IT WAS OVER WHEN... PK Billy Cundiff's 41-yard field goal sailed through the uprights to give the Redskins a 24-22 lead with three seconds left in regulation. Cundiff missed three field goals -- two of them very makeable -- earlier in the game so few Redskins players and fans could have had much confidence in Cundiff when he stepped on to the field with 7 seconds remaining. The kick was set up by a drive led by QB Robert Griffin that began at the 20 yard line and moved 57 yards in 1:36, thanks to quick passes to Santana Moss and Fred Davis and a 16-yard scramble by RG3 himself.

STATISTICALLY SPEAKING... The Buccaneers came into the game on Sunday with the top rush defense in the NFL, giving up less than 45 yards on the ground per game. They were also yielding about 2 yards per carry. The Redskins rushed for 160 yards, with 113 coming from TB Alfred Morris, who averaged well over five yards per carry. The Redskins averaged 5.3 yards per carry as a team, over 3 yards more per carry than the Bucs were giving up going into the game.

THINGS I LIKED...

-- The Redskins rushed 30 times and threw the ball 35 times, so they had good balance on offense.

-- RG3 doesn't care who he throws the ball to as long as the target is open. Nine different receivers caught a pass from RG3 against the Buccaneers.

-- OLB Ryan Kerrigan is a beast and clearly the best defender on the team. He had another sack and several QB pressures against Tampa & he plays the run well now.

-- TE Fred Davis led all Redksins receivers with 70 yards yesterday and his return to the game plan the last two weeks is a very good sign for the QB and team.

-- Washington had 474 yards of offense and 7.1 yards per play. The offense is just first-rate now, moving the ball on the ground or thru the air.

-- FB Darrel Young runs like he's trying to bash thru a brick wall, getting lots of yards after contact. Keep throwing the ball to him.

-- Washington's short passing game is working well now because it avoids risky passes downfield and receivers are getting lots of yards after the catch.

THINGS I DID NOT LIKE...

-- Stupid penalties by WR Pierre Garcon and C Will Montgomery killed two promising second half drives and Kory Lichtensteiger somehow managed two false start penalties despite playing right next to the center. The Skins need to knock off the stupid penalties.

-- Obviously, your placekicker cannot miss a 31-yard FG and a 41-yard FG in the same game. The Skins are lucky Billy Cundiff didn't cost them the game.

-- The Skins lost 3 completions on drops by WR Leonard Hankerson and TE Niles Paul and a fall by Hankerson. The receivers need to help RG3 out more.

AND IT ALL MEANS... The Redskins are 2-2 and tied with the NY Giants in the NFC East. The Redskins are 2-2 after a month of games, but the problem is they just finished with the easiest part of the schedule. The Redskins will have to play the undefeated Atlanta Falcons, the 3-1 Minnesota Vikings, the NY Giants and the Pittsburgh Steelers over the next month. The Redskins sure don't look like a playoff contender right now due to their awful secondary, the tendency of the defense to give up big plays in the passing game, the kicking/punting game problems and the entire team's tendency to commit stupid penalties. In truth, it does not appear as if Mike Shanahan has made a lot of progress with this football team in his third season in Washington. One thing he does have now, though, is Robert Griffin III, the best player on the team and the future of the franchise. It's important for the Redskins to win as many games as possible this year, but even more important is the continued development of RG3, who looks as if he has the potential to be the best player in franchise history. The Shanahans might not be around much longer to enjoy putting Griffin's immense talents to use, but someone will be -- Shanahan or not.