The Washington Commanders have won six of last seven games
The Washington Commanders beat the Atlanta Falcons 19-13. Washington ran the ball well all game. They finished the game with 176 rushing yards and had 4.8 yards per carry. On the other side the Falcons did the same thing. They would run for 167 yards and had 5.8 yards per carry. The game came down to a second and goal with a minute left where Marcus Mariota would throw an interception. The interception happened because Daron Payne would tip the ball up, which allowed Kendall Fuller to pick it off. The Commanders would get a first down on a penalty, which ended the game. Without that interception we would probably be looking at a different outcome in this game.
Offense
The Commanders ran the ball very well on Sunday. They were led by Brian Robinson with 105 rushing yards and averaged 5.8 yards per carry. This was his first time rushing for over 100 yards in the NFL. It seems like he is back to 100 percent and the Commanders are leaning on him more now. Robinson would also have 20 receiving yards and a touchdown.
Through the air the Commanders weren’t great again. Heinicke threw for 138 yards and two touchdowns. He also threw a bad interception right before halftime. On that play he had Curtis Samuel wide open in the flat for at-least five yards. Then to start the second half he had a pass that should’ve been an interception, but thankfully it hit the ground. Because of this the Commanders ran the ball 61 percent of the time.
Heinicke did have a couple of nice throws throughout the game. The first being on the first play for the offense where he found McLaurin open on a cross for 26 yards. His best throw was his touchdown pass to John Bates on a corner route. Then he had some bad throws and decisions. The first being the interception. It was a terrible decision throwing into triple coverage when he had a guy open. The other bad throw was right before the two minute warning in the first half where he missed McLaurin in the end zone for a touchdown. If Heinicke can start making these throws and stops the turnovers this offense will be tough to stop.
Defense
The defense didn’t play as well as it has the last few weeks especially against the run. The defense gave up 332 total yards on Sunday. When they needed a stop however they got it. They held the Falcons to only one touchdown, which helped the Commanders win the game. The biggest stop was at the end of the game when Fuller got an interception in the end zone.
The defensive line didn’t have it best game today. The Flacons were pushing them around for most of the game. This allowed the Falcons to have huge holes to run through, which allowed them to have over 5 yards per carry. But on the last two possessions for the Falcons the Commanders D-line would step up. On the next to last drive Daron Payne had a tackle for a loss. The next play Montez Sweat had a sack, which put the Falcons at 3rd and 20. Then on the last drive Payne tipped the ball up in the air, which allowed Fuller to intercept it and essentially ended the game.
The secondary had a decent game today. With backup corner Christian Holmes starting today I was worried about him getting exposed. He didn’t, but that could be because Mariota isn’t the best at throwing and missed some guys today. Whatever it was I will take it. Then at safety Darrick Forrest had a great game. He had a couple touchdown saving tackles throughout the game Sunday. One being on the Falcons final drive. If Forrest keeps playing like this he will be in DC for a long time.
Wrap Up
The Commanders won an ugly game, but a win is a win. Next week they have a divisional matchup against the New York Giants. The Giants lost on Thanksgiving to the Cowboys 28-20. New York is a half a game in front of the Commanders and are currently in the sixth seed in the NFC for the playoffs. A win next week will be a huge step for the Commanders to make the playoffs.
