Life comes at you fast. But, football fortunes come and go even faster. That sound you hear in the background is the accumulation of WFT fans hard at work on the old Bandwagon. After a tough first week the faithful were resigned to a season of pure disappointment. New faces were going to produce the same sad results. Three weeks later the emotions meter is now hard against the opposite peg on the gauge. Jayden Daniels appears to be the real deal. He is the NFL’s “Player of the Month” on Offense. The offensive production numbers are staggering. Pundits have gone off the rails in praise. If not satisfied with the level of praise from one analyst, keep looking. Another will up the ante. One went so far as to say that young Daniels was the best player in the entire league. Yes, the same league with Patrick Mahomes and Josh Allen. And, yes, after all of four games. The fanbase collectively resembles a dog when first released from a kennel. Shot from the guns the pups invariably run willy nilly, hither and yon burning off pent up energy. It’s all so exciting! Hey, let’s pump the brakes just a little bit.
“This is premature. I admit that. But, Why not Washington?”
Former NFL Executive Pat Kirwan
What helps this loosely organized frenzy gain even more traction is the manner in which the competition is performing. Philadelphia was crowned Division Winner before the season even began. They aren’t the least bit imposing so far. Dallas gave their two Offensive stars more money than the GDP of some island nations. Jerry Jones is hell-bent on winning a trophy before the sands run out. So far it doesn’t look like a good set of investments. (Psst; it’s going to hamstring the franchise for years with the salary cap.) And, the Giants…they’re the Giants. Daniel Jones has one reliable receiver in the rookie Malik Nabers. He’s out with a concussion.
Longtime NFL Executive Pat Kirwan said after the Cincinnati game, “This is premature. I admit that. But, Why not Washington?” Two weeks earlier it would have qualified as a laugh line. How well will it age? Three weeks from now it could be similarly ludicrous. Or, then again…it could prove to be prescient.
An Offensive Defense
Washington’s biggest issue is the Defense. It’s not good, Folks. In every statistical category the Defense is in the bottom-third. And that comes AFTER a decent performance against the surprisingly listless Cardinals. The unit is 21st in Passing Defense; 23rd in Rushing Defense; Defense; 25th in Scoring Defense; 27th in Red Zone; Dead Last in Passing TDs Allowed; and Dead Last in 3rd Down Defense. Oy! No one but a proud set of parents could look upon a picture of such an ugly child and beam about it.
A common thread among the commentariat is that the WFT has yet to face a good Defense. This is a way to throw shade at the Offensive performances so far. Two of the Defenses rank in the respectable range: Giants at #12 overall, and the Bengals at #15. The Bengals statistic is interesting as qualitatively the unit is regarded as sub-par. The other two games against the Bucs and Cardinals were against the 29th and 24th Defenses respectively. Yes, the team has not played against top-10 Defenses yet. But upcoming games are against teams in that #10-#15 range. The Browns are #11; Baltimore at #13. Division foes Dallas and Philly are right there with WAS in the bottom tier. At this point diminishing the Offensive performances is wasted energy. If you want to worry focus on the Defense and stay there. By the way, WAS is only one of four teams without an Interception. One of the others is Cleveland.
The Browns: A Cautionary Tale
The game against the Browns is set against an intriguing backdrop. The Owner is Jimmy Haslam. He made a fortune with the “Flying-J” truck stop concern. Like many new owners he wanted to win now. One way to do that is draft a winning QB and build around him. Having tried that with Baker Mayfield and not finding success he went another route: Purchasing a proven QB. Oh, and sending a tub full of draft picks to the team with his rights. But, this wasn’t the Jets getting Aaron Rodgers. This was Deshaun Watson who came attached to a red flag large enough for a lifeguard station at the beach during a gale. After sitting out a year due to allegations of lurid misconduct by nearly two-dozen women, Haslam lured Watson with a fully-guaranteed contract. The rest of the League offices were furious. This is just not done! Fast-forward two-plus years and the return on investment is horrendous. He is only 9-7 in 16 games. He was 5-1 last year, however before injury ended his season.
Cleveland went to the playoffs on the strength of old-timer Joe Flacco. He came off of the couch and played better than any of the three QBs trying to fill in for Watson. One of those is Washington’s QB2 Jeff Driskel. Joe was never extended an offer to return to the Browns. The Afterguard didn’t want the stadium chanting for Flacco as Deshaun struggled. Watson hasn’t found his old form. There’s a fair chance he never will. Then again, Washington’s Defense may be just the tonic he needs. The last time he was here at Jack Kent Cooke Stadium he won 24-10 on New Year’s Day 2023.
On the other hand Washington may put some more nails in the coffin. Should the Browns lose they would go to 1-4. That would put their playoff hopes somewhere within the Tower of London. An exit strategy from the Watson debacle might start to materialize. Yet another woman has lodged allegations at Watson. That could possibly give Cleveland a way out of its self-imposed straightjacket.
Josh Harris is emerging as the patient one among a crop of new owners. The ones that have pushed in big piles of chips are watching in dismay as the Dealer rakes them in.
A “Narrative” Game
Before the season the Vegas people set the Over/Under on WFT wins at 6.5. The path there was pretty straightforward: Win 2 of 6 Division games. Win 1 of 4 games against the powerhouse AFC North. And, then win 4 of 7 games against the remaining field. So far there has been one win in one opportunity against the Division; one win in two opportunities against the field; and, one win against the AFC North in one attempt. Win this game, posting an extra win against the AFC North, and one of the first thoughts will be, “Why didn’t I put some money down on that Over/Under?”
This game will control the narrative for the next few weeks. It is winnable. Getting to 4-1 would get the “P-word” (Playoffs) squarely into the conversation. It’s already in there. But, this would give it some legitimacy. The following week is against Baltimore in “Charm City.” (Does anyone really call it that anymore?) Only close friends and family expect a win there. Going back to 4-2 is a different orbit than 3-3. Do the latter and the Cowboys and Eagles are even or maybe ahead. This game really matters. With a loss all the old trepidations will come into focus. With a win the noise from the garage will get quite loud. The Bandwagon has been sitting in the barn covered in dust for an unthinkably long time. It will take a lot of elbow grease to get it running again.
Cleveland Browns at Washington Commanders
Date: Sunday, Oct. 6
Time: 1 p.m. ET
Location: Northwest Stadium, Landover, Md.
Network: FOX
Announcers: Jason Benetti, Greg Olsen, Pam Oliver
