Sometimes it is best just to get away for a while. Washington had absolutely no say in the decision to play this Brunch Time game in Madrid. But, it was fortuitous. This is a team mired in a deep run of bad football. A change of scenery for a week has not been a bad thing. It won’t be a complete tonic for what ails. But, it was better than staying Stateside and absorbing the bile and venom from those who thought this year would be a repeat of last season’s magic. This year Midnight came early.
Triage
Let’s get this out of the way: This is one seriously banged up team. When the team published the Depth Chart in early September there were 22-starters split the usual way; 11 on Offense and 11 on Defense. As of now there are only 11-players still taking the field. Third-Grade math says that’s 50%. It is simply untenable. Here’s the chart:
Note that the “Skill Players” on Offense along with the Defensive Line and Backfield are where the injuries are clustered. The O-Line is unscathed. This week one of the bright spots for the team was added to the Injured list. Trey Amos has had a fine Rookie season. But, a broken Fibula has probably ended it. The top-2 Cornerbacks are out for the year. The top-3 Defensive Ends are out for the year. The top-2 Wide Receivers have played 6-games combined for 28-targets, 16-receptions, and ZERO Touchdowns. Oh, and the 2024 Rookie of the Year is at home with a healing Left Elbow.
This week Washington signed two more players off of the Practice Squad. They then signed two replacements. It’s a thing. Last week they added Sheldon Day and Treylon Burks. This week Burks is home recovering from a finger injury and subsequent surgery. Guys getting signed off of the street are going out injured after a game or two. That’s how unreal this has become.
And, then a healthy player can’t go because he threw a punch at certified punk Amon-Ra St. Brown last week. Brown, it turned out had swung two plays earlier. He miraculously was not flagged. He won’t be suspended. And, the fine, which has not been published as of this writing, will likely be minimal. Payne will forfeit somewhere around $912,000 for the suspension. $882k in salary and $30k in Roster Bonus per game money. One has to hope it felt good at the time.
The Fish
For opposition this week the WFT has drawn a team with an identical record. Washington’s woes are well documented here and elsewhere. Miami’s maladies are not similarly injury-driven. Miami is a team with considerable talent. The similarities between them and a good football team end there. Missing are the key characteristics of winners; drive, discipline, and resilience. It’s a “Soft” team. Normally such a lack of team chemistry is laid at the foot of the Head Coach. Mike McDaniel has somehow escaped accountability from the organization.
In the middle of the season the ownership in Miami decided to jettison the General Manager and retain McDaniel. This is diametrically opposed to what the Giants did this week in firing the Head Coach and retaining the GM. Neither one of these sets of moves made complete sense. Firing both in each circumstance would have been a better play. Regardless, McDaniel remains. His unshakable belief is that he’s the smartest guy in the building; he wants you to know it; and, above all else he’s Cool. Speaking of diametrically opposed, Don Shula was a fully registered hard ass. Football has changed. But, it hasn’t changed so much that grit fails to count.
Perhaps the Miami squad has had some sort of epiphany. Every year the NFL Players Association does an anonymous player poll for all the franchises. Which team is the most player-friendly? Miami wins this meaningless exercise seemingly every year. Yet, players openly want to get out of there during the off-season. Even during the season players traded away openly rejoice. Jaelan Phillips was a trade deadline move to Philadelphia. He recovered a fumble in his first game. But, “the happiest day of his life” was getting out of the Dolphins’ organization. Last week all the “distraction” games like Ping-Pong were removed from the team’s Locker Room. They then erupted with a signature win against a truly baffling Buffalo squad. Too late, of course, but perhaps they have turned a corner.
It’s hard to imagine the Dolphins looking at the Washington Defense on film and not licking their chops.
How Bad is the Defense?
The old college Physics professor would say, “The universe is not stranger than you imagine. It’s stranger than you can imagine.” Well, this Defense is more porous than the bounds of reality should allow. In the last 10-Quarters of football Washington has allowed 103-points. That’s a rate of 41.2-points per game. If a team allows 40-points or more the odds of winning are pretty bleak. There have been 2-games all season where a team won the game while giving up such a large amount of points. And, there was one tie at 40-all. Other than that giving up 40 or more is a certain loss. Conversely, a team giving up 40-points needs to score 40 or more in order to win. The WFT has done that exactly once this season. This is a bad recipe if ever there was one.
The Pot-Holed Road Ahead
This game is the spring board to the Bye Week beyond. It will be a welcomed respite. On the other side awaits the dominant Denver Broncos. Right this minute the Broncos would take the Division title away from the Kansas City Chiefs. The annoying Chiefs are currently out of the playoff picture. The odds of winning that tilt against Denver are slim and none. Slim hasn’t been seen for a while. Two games with the Philadelphia “Underachievers” who still seem to win every week despite their best efforts not to do so are in the queue. One more game with Dallas, the Giants, and the Vikings also await. How many wins are on that menu?
Memonto Mori
It’s a tough go for the faithful. The WFT this year is not “Must See TV.” But, there is a certain compulsion to watch every week…if only for a quarter or a half. Already there a pivot pieces about with Mock Drafts. Yes. Mock Drafts, a favorite way to while away dreary March days are already on the scene months prematurely. It’s a hauntingly familiar place for the fanbase. They spent over two decades there under one Daniel Snyder.
Lost in last year’s euphoria was the realization that it all could be very temporary. When the Romans conquered some region they would hold a “Triumph” in Rome. Streets were lined with celebrating citizens as the Legions marched through in front of their General. But, behind him was a man with the title “Auriga.” His thankless task was to whisper occasionally to the Victor “Memonto Mori.” “Remember you are mortal.” No Auriga was on hand last year to remind the fanbase that failure was an option close at hand. ‘Twas a pity. It would have saved so much fruitless vitriol when the unthinkable became reality.
The Dolphins are favored by 2.5-points this week. IF they play to their potential it won’t be that close. They have a tendency to get decent leads on teams considered their lesser only to gag it up late. We’ll have to see which version of the Miami squad shows up.
Game Information
Sunday, November 16, 2025
Washington @ Miami (In Madrid) 9:30AM
NFL/NFL+ Kenny Albert and Jonathan Vilma (Jamie Erdhal)
D.C. Radio: Bram Weinstein (play-by-play), London Fletcher (analyst), Logan Paulsen (analyst) BIG 100 WBIG-FM
