It wasn’t going to take much for the Redskins defense to be successful against the Miami Dolphins on Sunday, but success was imperative. In a battle of winless teams, the defense looked to be the dominant unit that was boasted about coming into the season, and they looked like a cohesive group capable of stopping an NFL offense.
Of course, that NFL offense that they stopped is ranked near the bottom of the league — Miami ranks 31st in yards-per-game and 32nd in points-per-game. Nonetheless, a good team should be dominant against weaker competition, and that’s exactly what the Redskins were on Sunday. This isn’t to say that Washington is good, but their defense played the part against Miami.
Though they faltered late in the game and allowed the Dolphins to get into the end zone a couple of times once Ryan Fitzpatrick got into the game, the performance in the first three quarters was quite possibly the best of the year for the defense. The Redskins were able to sack Rosen five times in the first half, and they forced two interceptions and two turnovers. ‘Fitzmagic’ found a couple of holes in the defense late in the game, but there’s little that an NFL team can do when the Harvard graduate starts feeling himself.
It hardly indicates a turning point in the season, but Washington’s ability to stand up and create a legitimate opposition on defense should be noted. We endlessly criticize them when they allow 30+ points per game, but we should also give them credit when they deserve it after a nice performance, and they deserved it on Sunday.
