The uncertainty of the 2020 NFL season has been the theme of the past few months. Questions have arisen about player safety, fan attendance, and most recently the prospect of rebranding an entire franchise to eliminate any potentially racist and harmful symbols within the league.
The Washington Football Team, as they’re called now, has shed the Redskin name which they’ve held for 87 years. The change is long overdue and will forever follow Dan Synder as long as he continues to own the franchise, but it is at least a step in the right direction. However, due to Synder’s prior stance that he would never change the team’s name, they are left without a backup plan and will exist as the Washington Football Team.
Moving beyond times like this will not be easy, but there is always an avenue to approval in the NFL. The Washington Football team is first and foremost a football team. Success is vital to public appeasement, and the team’s inability to win in recent years has created a bigger cloud around Dan Synder’s decision making. Winning quiets questions raised at management, which is crucial right now. Finding the Washington Football Team’s on-field identity may be just as important to help move beyond the racist past.
The Washington Football Team’s Identity on the Field
Ron Rivera’s Offensive Style
Two things are necessary to change the identity of a football team. First is a reliable head coach. Following Ron Rivera’s departure from Carolina, he quickly became the most sought after head coaching candidate. Coaches with a winning pedigree and playoff experience (four playoff trips in nine years) are hard to come by these days as teams are often looking for the next young brilliant mind to radically change their franchise.
Rivera isn’t that, nor does he need to be. What he brings is consistency, something that Washington has been lacking for some time. For better or worse you know what a Ron Rivera team is going to look like. You know how they’re going to approach the game, and how they plan to win football games.
During Rivera’s nine-year tenure with the Panthers, they were in the top half of the league in rushing attempts eight times. In all nine seasons, they ranked in the top half of the league in rushing. Seven times they were within the top 10. This is important because 10 of the 12 playoff teams last year were ranked in the top half of the league of rushing. Rivera has a strong tendency to lean on the run game, and with a unique collection of backs in Washington, this will surely continue.
Adrian Peterson ran for nearly 900 yards last season on over 4 yards per carry, and while he may be 35 years old, nearly unheard of from a runningback, he still has something to offer for Washington. Alongside Peterson figures to be Derrius Guice assuming he can remain healthy. Guice showed flashes after his return from injury last season (5.8 yards per attempt) but was ultimately not able to make it to week 17. Those two together provide a formidable duo, along with early 3rd round Antonio Gibson, who figures to play a gadget role similar to the one that Curtis Samuel played in Carolina for Rivera.
The Washington Football Team has the potential talent to run the football. They were 13th last year in yards per attempt but only 31st in rushing attempts. They often had to throw their way back into games, but that number can still improve regardless. With Rivera’s commitment to run the ball, Washington could find their offensive identity as a rushing team.
Dominant Defensive Line
In a year full of disappointment for Washington last season, their pass rush was a lone bright spot. The team was ranked 10th last year with 46 sacks, and every big contributor is set to return, along with 2nd overall pick Chase Young, who is widely regarded as one of the best pass-rushing prospects of the century. They have arguably the deepest group of guys to attack the quarterback in the entire league.
Montez Sweat collected 7 sacks as a rookie and will start on one end. Up until he got injured last season, Ryan Kerrigan had a 3-year streak of 10+ sacks. Jonathan Allen has 14 combined sacks in the past 2 seasons, while Matthew Ioannidis led the team with 8.5 sacks a year ago. Throw in 23-year old former first-rounder Da’Ron Payne and Ryan Anderson who forced 5 fumbles in 2019 and everybody can get some rest while still keeping talent on the field
Oh and that Chase Young guy we talked about. At Ohio State last season, Young recorded 16.5 sacks in just 12 games and won just about every award possible in a historic season. All the aforementioned players are solid rotational guys. Some of them have star potential, sure. But Chase Young may very quickly become a bona fide superstar, the likes of which we haven’t seen in Washington in a long time.
We’ve seen multiple great defenses anchored by an outstanding pass rush. The rest of Washington’s defense may not be great, but any team that can get after the quarterback with just four guys is problematic for opposing offenses. With a dominant group up front, guys on the back end have a much easier time standing out. Players like Kendall Fuller, Landon Collins and Thomas Davis who we know can play, have a lot more freedom to do so.
We saw San Francisco do it a year ago. The “Sacksonville” Jaguars nearly made a Super Bowl in a similar way a few years back as well. We talked about how nearly every playoff team is great the running the football, but being able to attack the QB has proven to be just as effective. Nine of the 12 playoff teams last season had over 40 sacks.
If Washington can perfect those two aspects over the next year while continuing to build around Dwayne Haskins allowing him to manage football games, they could be a serious force in years to come. It probably won’t happen this year but right now is the ideal time to lay the groundwork for the future.
By the time they’re named, the current Washington Football Team may be a legitimate contender in the ever-shifting NFC.
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