Oct 14, 20193 min read

Victory Monday Edition; McLaurin Shines Despite Team’s Struggle in Miami

It wasn’t pretty, but the Redskins got their first victory Monday since December ’18 by defeating Miami 17-16. The final score doesn’t tell the full story, which was an up and down performance by Washington. Although the defense registered 5 sacks and 2 ints through three quarters with John Allen and Quinton Dunbar leading the way, their play in the fourth quarter had fans panicking once again.

Miami pulled quarterback Josh Rosen from the game after he went 15/25 and for just 85 yards passing and 2 TD’s after the 3rd quarter concluded and in came 15-year veteran, Ryan Fitzpatrick. In only 1 quarter of work, Fitzpatrick nearly equaled Redskins quarterback, Case Keenum’s final output, falling 30 yards shy of the Redskins’ signal callers 166 yards passing. Fitzpatrick brought his team back in what seemed to be the game tying score with only 6 seconds remaining, but instead of going for the tie, they opted for the 2-point conversion on a failed screen attempt.

Callahan stuck to his promise and committed to the run which featured Adrian Peterson who ran for 118 yards on 23 carries and finished with an impressive 5.1 per carry average. Although Peterson was productive, the big plays came from rookie receiver Terry McLaurin who shined with 2 receiving touchdowns. Although a key 2nd half drop could have put the game away for Washington, McLaurin proved difficult to cover, registering 4 catches for 100 yards with an eye popping 33 yards per rec average. McLaurin now leads all rookie receivers with five touchdowns and has to be an early season candidate for Offensive Rookie of the Year.

Fans can hang their hat on the dominant performance of the defense with their best effort thus far, as well as Peterson and McLaurin carrying the offense. In saying that, fans and more importantly the Redskins have to realize it could be time to give rookie quarterback Dwayne Haskins a shot at leading this team.

Mark Maske of The Washington post echoed the sentiments that many Redskins’ fans were thinking after Sunday’s win over Miami with his post-game tweet.

As hard as it is to admit, this was another second half collapse by Washington. However, for the first time this year, Washington ended up on the right side of the win column. There is enough blame to go around, namely with defensive coordinator Greg Manusky looking bewildered by Miami’s quarterback change and aggressive play calling. But, it’s time admit that the problem comes back to the man under center, Case Keenum.

The narrative that Haskins just “isn’t ready” needs to be analyzed and revisited by the Redskins Interim Head Coach. Although the Redskins schedule is brutal from here on out, there is no better way for Haskins to take the next step in his professional maturation than getting some on the job training that doesn’t involve coming off the bench in a crisis situation. It’s safe to say that Colt McCoy will be inactive unless an injury occurs

Some may say that going against the menacing San Fran defense is a bad way for a rookie to get his first start, but having Haskins enter the game after another injury to Keenum seems like the best way to set him up for failure. Fans have witnessed how dynamic his OSU teammate McLaurin has been in the receiving game; now it’s time to get his former quarterback into the fold

Let’s enjoy this victory Monday, but also keep perspective that the future of this organization is now. With ten games remaining, it’s time to get Haskins ready to lead this team and more importantly give this team a legit shot at winning more games this season.

By Adam Aniba