After 25-years of failure and ridicule the Washington football fanbase has been condition-response trained to find and embrace agony at the slightest opportunity. Last week’s game against a nice Atlanta squad sent the masses to the Cellars of Angst quick, fast, and in a hurry. It was spectacular in some respects. By mid-week not only had the team been declared an utter failure; significant shade was being thrown at the General Manager for not stocking the team 3-deep with All Pro players. After all, he has had two whole years. “C’mon! Get with it.”
The truth was far less dramatic. An Offense without its three best “Skill Players” still put up 27-points. Only 12-teams scored more points than that for the week. And, Washington was the only team scoring 27-points or more who lost. (Dallas and Green Bay tied at 40-all.) WFT’s Special Teams were really good. It was the Defense that played poorly. Bijan Robinson helped in that regard as he slithered through cracks and forced missed tackles. Atlanta had all of their Offensive weapons on-hand and used them well. Washington was missing three Defensive Back starters. It showed on any number of broken coverages. Still there was plenty of opportunity to win. With 8:08 remaining Atlanta started a drive at their 23-yard line with a 7-point lead. One Defensive stop would give the WFT time to go tie the score. Didn’t happen. 69-yards, 15-plays, and 6:51 later the Falcons would ice the game. Boiling down the day to that drive tells the tale.
At the end of the day it was an opportunity lost. While much of the fanbase has clenched their pearls into dust the team has no time for such things. New week, new game.
The “E” Word
Sports fandom is an often inelegant dance between reality, hopes, and expectations. Many years ago radio personality Rich “Da’ Coach” Gilgallon opined that, “Expectations are the mothers of resentment.” Last year’s miracle run was just that; miraculous. Banking on a repeat of a miracle is the ultimate in long odds. There were many factors that went into last year including; a weak schedule; minimal injuries; a string of late-game heroics; and the “JD5 Effect.” When Baltimore lost a game to Detroit earlier this season it was notable for many reasons. But, one stood out. Lamar Jackson lost to an NFC team. For his career he is now 24-5 in those games. There was no Quarterback in the Conference that played like him until… Guess who JD5 resembles in playing style. The NFC was simply not ready for Jayden Daniels.
Expectations are the mothers of resentment
Rich “Da’ Coach” Gilgallon
All of the factors in their favor last year are now reversed early on in this campaign. The schedule is a bear. Honestly, the weaker part of it is essentially over. Did someone say “Injuries?” This team has really been hobbled. Six Opening Day starters have seen time on the sideline. Two are out for the year. This week Terry McLaurin and Noah Brown are out again. Deebo Samuel, a really bright spot for the Offense has been playing catch on the sidelines at practice with a “Heel” injury. Mike Sainristil has some form of “Knee” issue. But, he will play as will “Bill” Jacory Croskey-Merritt. Daron Payne is listed with a “Knee.” There are others. Oh, and Mr. Daniels will be wearing a knee brace.
The NFC has had a year to study Jayden Daniels. His style is no longer a surprise.
It’s not a real pretty picture if you harbor Super Bowl Contender expectations. Life comes at you fast. But, a football week is set in stone in only three-hours. If Washington loses this game, on the road, in a dome, on plastic turf, and as an underdog the band will still cue up mournful dirges. There would be venom also. Plenty of it showed up last week. Resentment and scape goats would not be far away.
Back in the days of analog meters with the needles a challenge was the “Noise” of a given signal. A pressure gauge installed near the output of a pump would jump up and down like a yo-yo gone berserk due to the turbulence in the system. The answer was to install a “Damping Low-Pass Filter.” Typically these were nothing more than a resistor and capacitor. It would knock out all of the frenzied up-and-down movements so the needle would give a steady indication. Jim Zorn‘s adage to, “Keep it medium” applies. Suffice it to say, NFL fanbases are not equipped with Damping Filters. The needle moves spastically from the low to high peg with frightening speed.
A win this week would be a good thing indeed. But, it should not be used in a vacuum to pull the bandwagon out of the garage.
The Bolts
The Chargers’ franchise has had many years of pseudo irrelevance. As noted above the sole Championship came in the Black and White TV days of the early American Football League. Those glory days didn’t outlast the remarkable red/orange striped shirts the referees wore. They have had great players and great seasons. But, no gold. They have also made some curious decisions over the years. In 2006 the late Marty Schottenheimer led the team to a 14-2 season. But, the team lost to the Patriots by a Field Goal in the Division Round of the playoffs. The ownership promptly fired Marty. The replacement was old friend Norv Turner. There is no sense in making one big mistake when another one can be added on top of it. Force Multiplier Stupid is a powerful thing.
When Washington won Super Bowl 22 it was at the Chargers’ home field known at the time as Jack Murphy Stadium. It was demolished in 2021 as the team left San Diego for Los Angeles. They played for three-years on a soccer pitch named “Dignity Health Sports Park.” It seats 27,000. For any out there thinking the Oakland/Las Vegas Athletics situation was unique, it happened with the Chargers a few years ago. The Athletics are playing in a minor league park after leaving Oakland. Most in attendance are rooting for the opposition. The exact same thing happened to the Chargers. Finally the Chargers are tenants in “SoFi Stadium.” The Rams’ Owner Stanley Kroenke owns the stadium and charges rent to the Bolts. This is a parallel situation to the Jets in Giants Stadium/ Met Life Stadium. It hasn’t worked out particularly well for the Jets. Being the #2 team in a 2-team city is not an easy venture.
Herbert and Defense
Miami fans go straight to apoplexy when asked about the team passing on Justin Herbert in the Draft for Tuanigamanuolepola Donny Tagovailoa. Tua has had his moments. But, Herbert has had seasons. Right now their Offense is ranked 8th in the League for yards, but 20th in points scored. The limiting factor is their run game. So far they have 7-passing TDs, but only 2-TDs on the ground. Their “Bell Cow” Running Back was Najee Harris. His season is over from a knee injury.
What has emerged as a story line for this game is their Offensive Line. Premiere Guard Rashawn Slater was lost to injury for the year before the season started. This came just days after he had inked a contract to make him the highest paid Offensive Lineman in the League. This week standout Tackle Joe Alt will not play due to a bad ankle. Teams are putting plenty of pressure on Herbert. He is being pressured on right at half of his drop backs. This could be the opening for Washington. The two wins have come against teams with poor O-Lines. There were pressures aplenty in those games. Reprising that act would help immensely.
Whatever weaknesses the Bolts have on Offense do not carry over to the Defense. That unit is stout. Their Defense is 4th in the League for Points Allowed and 3rd for Yards Allowed. Going up against this with the two best Wide Receivers inactive is a stiff challenge. The possible opportunity is their Run Defense. Defensive Coordinator Jesse Minter is fond of stacking one side of the line in 3rd Downs to the tune of over 60% of the time. With the Linebackers a few steps back the “A Gap” (Between Center and Guard) is inviting to the Weak side for a power run. Washington’s Running Back by Committee is working just fine. Look for Kliff Kingsbury to try and exploit that opening. It would help tremendously if the team would stay out of Third-and-Long. Avoiding penalties is a necessary first step.
Heads or Tails?
Is this a big game? Here’s a clue: It’s Fox’ “America’s Game of the Week” with their #1 announcing tandem in the booth.
At the end of the day on Sunday Washington will be either one-game better than .500 or one-game below. This assumes that the silliness on display in Dallas on Monday night where the game ended in a tie does not materialize. We all know what a loss will bring. A win might just be a good opportunity to exhale.
Game Information
Washington Commanders at Los Angeles Chargers: FOX, Oct. 5, 4:25 p.m.
Announcers: Kevin Burkhardt, Tom Brady, Erin Andrews, Tom Rinaldi
D.C. Radio: Bram Weinstein (play-by-play), London Fletcher (analyst), Logan Paulsen (analyst) BIG 100 WBIG-FM
