Cousins Lifts Washington over Tampa Bay in Huge Comeback Victory

The Tampa Bay defense has given up more than 30 points each of the past three weeks – to teams that seldom score at such rates (Panthers, Jaguars and Redskins). The Redskins haven’t really run the ball well since week two of the season.

Pierre Garcon/Ryan Grant (Wide Receivers): Garcon took a backseat to Grant in this game as he was only able to catch 5 out of 6 targets for 55 yards.

Alas, just as the Redskins celebrated the return of their offensive playmaker, Washington lost its top defensive player. “I probably wouldn’t be standing up here today”.

Reed’s game was highlighted by catching the game-winning touchdown pass from quarterback Kirk Cousins with 24-seconds left.

Matt Jones ripped off an 11-yard run, but the Bucs committed yet another personal foul penalty to help the Redskins move further down the field. On November 8, the team will travel to New England to face the undefeated Patriots. All three are good backs and will have big days in the future, but it’s a worrying trend when teams are routinely rushing for over 150 yards against your defense. Tampa Bay Buccaneers recorded 218.4 passing yards and 122.4 rushing yards while allowed 202.4 passing yards and 120.4 russhing yards with turnover differential of 0.4. Keenan Robinson and Perry Riley have simply struggled at filling gaps, getting off blocks and making tackles. When you combine his total against Jacksonville with this one, he has gone 34-48 for 506 yards and three touchdowns.

The Redskins run game was once again lacking in this game. Just one play before the touchdown, however, Cousins threw a pass that almost got picked and ended the game, but fortune was (for once) on Washington’s side, and the ball fluttered incomplete. Jason Hatcher playing on a sore knee doesn’t help as teams run outside and away from Terrance Knighton in the middle. “But everyone on the sideline had the confidence that we were going to score and win the game”. It kind of starts with us first as coaches. Cousins made a few mistakes early on, but he more than made up for it to close out the win. The Cowboys haven’t won a game without Tony Romo and sit in last place and the Skins have already beaten the Eagles, who also sit at 3-4. “We didn’t put the guys in the best position to be successful in that situation”. Of course, you could flip it the other way and argue that wasting Winston’s outing makes everything feel worse, but… Instead, Washington’s defense stuffed the Bucs and forced a field goal to limit the damage to a six-point deficit, allowing the offense to win the game.

Washington Redskins tight end Jordan Reed (86) celebrates his touchdown during the second half of an … Andre Roberts has been a solid addition the past year and a half, but Reed’s ability to get open against virtually any coverage makes him an indispensable part of the offense. Cousins threw on every play, going 9 for 11 for 75 yards, capped by the 6-yard toss to Reed on a slant.

On Winston’s desperate attempt in the last 24 seconds, a completion to halfback Charles Sims took the Buccaneers into Redskins territory, but Chris Baker recovered a Sims fumble to set up one final kneel for Cousins to seal Washington’s comeback triumph.