NFL
By: Ryan Cooley
In yet another Monday night catastrophe, fans will be calling for immediate changes. The Redskins have had one of the toughest schedules to start the season. However, there is no excuse for an 0-3 start. If you want to be a successful team, you must win tough games.
Here are five takeaways from their 31-15 loss.
Gruden and Manusky Need to Go
Gruden has a 35-47-1 record since becoming the head coach in 2014. His best year came in 2015 when the Skins went 9-7. Since then his record has progressively gotten worse. It is clear Gruden is not capable of making this team a contender.
Manusky may be the biggest problem. Many thought this defense could make waves this season. Instead, they just made Trubisky look like an all-pro QB. Opposing teams have scored 30+ points in all three games.
This defense has too much talent to be playing this bad. Coming into this game, the Bears were the 26th ranked offense. They had no problem moving the ball up and down the field all night. If this defense wants to improve, they must move on from Manusky.
Monday Night Woes Continue
2-17 is Washington’s record at FedEx when playing on Monday night. The most famous game was the Monday night massacre in 2010. The Eagles steamed rolled the Redskins 59-28 with Vick throwing for 333 yds and 4 TDs.
I am not sure why the NFL continually puts the Redskins on a Monday night game. Most primetime games are supposed to be filled with potential and contending teams.
With yet another ugly loss, it seems the Redskins may forever be cursed on Monday nights.
Time to Start Thinking About the Offseason
While it is sad, this may be the only thing for fans to do. Only 2% of teams that start 0-3 make the playoffs. This team shows nothing that would make anyone think they can pull off a miracle.
There is a lot the Redskins can do to turn this team around and give fans a little more optimism about the future, but the playoffs are virtually out of the picture.
Keenum’s Magic Ran Out
Coming into this game, Keenum had an impressive 111.2 QB rating. He had thrown 5 TD passes and 0 INTs. He seemed to save all of those turnovers for the Bears. Keenum had 3 INTs Monday night along with two fumbles.
Turning the ball over five times in one game is a good way of finding your way to the bench. After this game, the QB controversy in Washington will begin to heat up. Colt McCoy could return next week which would make matters even more interesting.
Many will call for Haskins, especially after watching what fellow first-round pick Daniel Jones did Sunday. I do not believe there is a right answer for when Haskins should start. He sat his whole freshman year at Ohio State, then threw for 50 TDs the following season. However, fans will grow impatient watching a team that cannot win games and will want some spark of energy.
Undisciplined Again
The Redskins committed 18 penalties in their first two games. They had nine Monday, which shows no improvement. This is a young team which will lead to undisciplined play, but when you commit that many, you have to blame the coaching staff.
When you look at successful teams like the Patriots, they rarely have games in which they commit a high number of penalties. The Redskins must make this a point of emphasis moving forward.
