Snider: The D-Line Was Largely Neutralized
No pass rush, no pass defense. And when the Washington Football Team’s famed front four were too often bogged down, Arizona’s passing game opened up. Ultimately, it led to a 30-15 loss on Sunday.
Eight sacks against Philadelphia on opening day wasn’t a mirage, but it wasn’t the standard, either. Chase Young gained one, but really Washington chased elusive Arizona quarterback Kyler Murray without much success all afternoon.
The front line was simply stymied far too often. You hardly ever hear Daron Payne and Jonathan Allen’s names despite being first-round picks. Indeed, Allen made four tackles and no pressures while Payne’s name was hardly mentioned with the exception of one pressure and for a penalty. Meanwhile, Montez Sweat managed one tackle and best seen being unable to catch Murray. Ryan Kerrigan didn’t make the box score.
The front line is supposed to lead the charge. Instead, they were largely neutralized. Sure, everybody struggles to contain Murray, but he made it look easy with two dazzling touchdown runs while throwing for a score and 286 yards. Murray’s only mistake was an interception by Landon Collins, who only minutes earlier looked like a statue in coverage when allowing an easy touchdown.
The secondary saw so many busted coverages it was like the memory of Josh Norman was still pointing at them following touchdowns. Too many broken coverages and broken tackles. With injured cornerback Kendall Fuller missing his second game, this unit doubles as a “Naked and Afraid” episode if the front doesn’t pressure the passer.
But the scariest part is Washington trailed 20-0 early after down 17-0 the previous week. Is that poor coaching leaving players unprepared? Then again, the defense shut down its opponent for the second straight third quarter to show counter punching by the staff. Coach Ron Rivera even won a red-flag challenge for noticing 12 Cards on the field.
Washington’s offense is borderline effective this season. Too many young players still learning to make it a potent force. Either the defense sets them up for some short scores or it needs to stop opponents early, neither of which Washington did versus Arizona.
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In past years, rare good defensive efforts were often followed by poor losses. It was often a case of thinking they were good enough when every week in the NFL is a battle. That’s not the problem here. Not under coach Ron Rivera. But, the defense needs to approach readying for Cleveland on Sept. 27 with the same hunger of its opener. It needs to remember it has done nothing yet other than play a good second half against a bad Philadelphia team.
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Redemption is only a week away in the NFL. So is failure. Washington has seen both in just two weeks.
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Rick Snider is an award-winning sports writer who has covered Washington sports since 1978. He first wrote about the Washington football team in 1983 before becoming a beat writer in 1993. Snider currently writes for several national and international publications and is a Washington tour guide. Follow Rick on Twitter at @Snide_Remarks
