- 11 hours ago
Kevin Sheehan breaks down the key strategies for a Commanders' victory against the New York Giants. Sheehan highlights the need for the defense to contain the Giants' run game and force Jameis Winston into turnover-worthy throws. Offensively, he stresses establishing the run with Austin Ekeler and utilizing quick passing to keep Jayden Daniels protected in wet weather conditions.
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00:00Washington on Sunday, keys to a win over the New York football Giants.
00:05Let me just tell you a little bit about the Giants.
00:07First of all, they're banged up heading into this one, too.
00:09You know about Jackson Dart and Brian Burns being lost for the year.
00:12So, you know, their starting quarterback and arguably their best defensive player out.
00:18They have won three games.
00:20They have.
00:21They won that season-opening Sunday night game against the Cowboys, which was an odd game.
00:26It was a game in which literally there were just a few possessions per team in the second half.
00:33Seven total, really six, for the game for each team.
00:37Dallas only had the ball twice in the second half.
00:41Why?
00:42Because the Giants controlled the ball against that bad Dallas defense.
00:46And Dart played well.
00:47He ran the ball well in that game.
00:50And then, obviously, he was lost after their week two, early in their week two game against the Rams.
00:57They beat a Cowboy team in week one.
01:00Week one is a strange week.
01:02They lost to the Rams when they lost Jackson Dart 28-6 in week two.
01:07And then they eked out a win over the Titans with four field goals from their kicker, Dominic Zavada,
01:14who right now is 9-for-9 on the season, 3-for-3 from beyond 50 yards, has not missed
01:20a PAT.
01:22A game against the Titans in which, look, the Titans are not very good offensively,
01:27but they were pretty good on third down in that game against the Giants.
01:31And it was just an ugly game decided really by turnover margin.
01:36Tennessee had two of them.
01:38The Giants didn't turn the ball over.
01:40The Giants are plus three on the season with eight takeaways on the season.
01:44That's second best in the league, tied for second best in the league.
01:48But still, unimpressive win over Tennessee, who's a bad football team.
01:53And then last week, they were an underdog at home against the Cardinals,
01:58which tells you what the oddsmakers thought of the Giants heading into that one.
02:03Jameis Winston hit on some big plays, some big ones to Malik Nabors,
02:07a big one to Isaiah Likely.
02:10Malachi Fields had a big one in that game as well, the rookie third rounder from Notre Dame.
02:16It is interesting to see their injury report for this week because, you know,
02:21through yesterday, you did not have Malik Nabors was limited.
02:27Andrew Thomas was limited.
02:29So two key players on their offense.
02:32We'll see what it looks like.
02:33Limited was Isaiah Likely too.
02:36Cam Scadaboo was.
02:37I think all of those players are expected to play.
02:40But it would be great if they were a little bit wounded heading into this one as well.
02:44I actually do like Tyrone Tracy as another back if they have to go to him more than Scadaboo,
02:50if Scadaboo isn't at 100%.
02:53But that dude looks built for a rain game on grass.
02:58And to me, the number one priority Sunday, if this team is going to win the game,
03:06is to get the Giants off the field defensively, to win this game first and foremost with defense.
03:14Holding the Giants to no more than 16.
03:19I don't want to say 17 because that's two touchdowns.
03:2216 points in this game.
03:25You know, three field goals and a touchdown in this game.
03:28No more than that.
03:30I think Jaden in the offense could get 17 plus, even in the weather conditions.
03:36But to stop the Giants and get them off the field, it starts with stopping their running game.
03:41Now, they're only averaging 3.7 yards per carry.
03:45But they stick with it.
03:47Matt Nagy is sticking with the run.
03:49There's a certain level of we are tougher than our opponent that the Giants have this year with John Harbaugh
03:57and with a guy like Scadaboo in the backfield and with some of their defensive players as well.
04:04And they are going to stick with the run.
04:06And Washington has to do what they did early, but they got to do it throughout the game.
04:11Because a guy like that, look, I don't know how long this guy is going to be in the league
04:15with the way he throws his body around and his head around.
04:18You know, he doesn't seem like the sharpest tool in the tool shed.
04:21But, man, does he compete.
04:23He is one hell of a competitor.
04:26And however long his career is, he's going to be hell to deal with when he's on the football field.
04:33You've got to – he's not going to break the big ones unless you don't tackle well.
04:38But they've got to make sure they are gap sound and they have to tackle well.
04:43And they've got to gang tackle well in this game.
04:46Then – so stopping the run is key.
04:48And then number two, it's all about confusing Jameis and pressuring Jameis.
04:54Because he's going to throw three or four that are going to be balls that can be picked off.
05:01Interceptible balls.
05:02Turnover-worthy throws.
05:05Jameis is going to have three to four of those.
05:07You've got to snag two to three of them.
05:13So stop the run.
05:14I'm leading with defense here Sunday.
05:17Part of it is the weather.
05:18But I think even if it wasn't a weather game on Sunday, you've got to really – you've got to
05:24take it out of them.
05:25You cannot let them dictate as the more physical football team on Sunday, as the team that's going to dominate
05:32time of possession and keep Jaden Daniels off the field.
05:36I'm sure they're looking at it as, okay, five's back.
05:39He's hurt us in the past.
05:41And so our best defense, and we like our defense, is to keep our offense on the field.
05:50I'm pressuring Jameis, giving him different looks, confusing him.
05:55You know, Jameis isn't the most studied of QBs during his career.
06:00And that does probably account for some of the balls that he's had picked off over the years.
06:07It's also that he's fearless.
06:09Like, he's convinced he's got the arm and the arm strength to fit the ball into any sliver of space.
06:16And he's gone for it over the years.
06:18He's a let-it-rip guy.
06:21And they have let-it-rip receivers in Malik Nabors, in Malachi Fields.
06:26And Isaiah likely is a tight end who's more of a receiver.
06:30They throw to Theo Johnson on screens.
06:32We got killed with tight end screens against Seattle.
06:35Killed.
06:36That's something I guarantee you New York's coming back with because they've run them already in the first four games.
06:43Those tight end screens.
06:45You know, to guys like Likely.
06:49To guys like Johnson.
06:50To guys like even the fullback, Patrick Ricard.
06:54They play with a fullback, just like Harbaugh did in Baltimore.
06:59So, you've got to confuse Jameis.
07:02You've got to pressure Jameis after you've stopped the run.
07:05And then you've got to take it away from him when he gives you the opportunity to take it away
07:11from him.
07:12All right.
07:12The other side of the football.
07:14Look, I think you've got to run the football against the Giants.
07:16I do.
07:17The Cardinals did it last week.
07:20They did it with two really good backs in Jeremiah Love and Tyler Algier.
07:26The week before that, though, Tony Pollard averaged four and a half yards per carry.
07:31They were down, though, and they ended up having to throw to get back into the game.
07:35They were down 12-0 in that game, and they scored a touchdown in the fourth quarter to make it
07:3912-7.
07:40But I know that right now Washington's run-blocking unit is not good.
07:45The running game is not good.
07:47But I'd love to see them, you know, establish some ability to run the football.
07:53And to me, on Sunday, that's got to be Austin Eckler.
07:58Austin Eckler is an early down back.
08:01Austin Eckler is a second down back.
08:03Austin Eckler or Rashad White as a third down back.
08:08Look, Krosky Merritt, I'm not telling you that he needs to be benched at this point.
08:14He's going to be an alternative for me as a first down back.
08:19He's tough.
08:20He put the ball on the ground once, you know, this year.
08:22That's it.
08:23I mean, it's only four games in.
08:25But I just trust Eckler much more.
08:28I just don't know what kind of pitch count he's going to be on.
08:30I'm assuming there is some sort of pitch count he's going to be on for week two as they ease
08:37him back.
08:37But he looked like the freshest, the fastest, the quickest, and clearly he's the most experienced of all of their
08:45backs.
08:46And I think if Mariota stays in the game last week, they win the game.
08:50I think if Eckler had become a bigger part of the game for the rookie quarterback, they would have had
08:56a better chance.
08:57But they had him on a pitch count.
08:59Clearly they did on Sunday.
09:00And I don't know if that comes, you know, down in terms of the pitch counts lessened so that he
09:09can be out there more.
09:10But I want to see him more.
09:12Because Krosky, Merritt, I gave you the stat the other day, rushing yards, overexpected.
09:18It's that stat that indicates everything about a back either getting the yards that are there or not getting the
09:24yards that are there.
09:25And he was 47th out of 53 backs.
09:30It's partly the O-line, hence the run block win rate being 32nd in the league.
09:35But if you get Cosme back, and it's Cosme, Patrick, and I, you know, Paul, and we don't have to
09:42see Gulbin or Allegretti on the field.
09:45And the receivers are huge.
09:47You know, not having Terry in the game last week doesn't help the running game.
09:52Terry's their best blocking wide receiver.
09:57I don't know what they'd do without Diggs and Terry.
09:59But you've got to run the football a little bit.
10:03Yeah, I think that you've got to establish the run.
10:06You have to be a threat to run the football.
10:08And I would have said this had Mariota been the quarterback.
10:12I hesitate saying it with Jaden as the quarterback.
10:15But Marcus, I think, needs to be a part of the run game.
10:19I think he's much better when he's a part of the run game.
10:21The pull on the zone read for 35 yards last week.
10:24I don't know if we want Jaden running a lot of zone read against the Giants on a wet field
10:30Sunday.
10:31I do think that a lot of quick game will be necessary against the Giant pass rush.
10:36Now, Washington's been an outstanding pass pro team through four weeks.
10:41Number three in pass block win rate in the league.
10:44And with a quarterback that is more decisive than the rookie was last week, you know, the second fewest sack
10:51team in the league, you don't want a lot of those negative plays.
10:54So I want run game established and I want quick game.
10:58And it can be the run game through the extension of short, quick throws.
11:04And those can be short, quick to chig at the line of scrimmage, you know, on a tight end screen,
11:10on a tight end bubble.
11:12He's a receiver as much as he's an inline tight end anyway.
11:16Not having Diggs and Terry would be a big blow on Sunday.
11:21It would feel, not the opponent, but it'd feel a little bit like the Seattle game that he came back
11:27to last year when they didn't have anybody on the field.
11:32Different opponent, of course.
11:34All right.
11:35Defensively, stop the run, number one.
11:37Number two, show Jameis a lot of looks, confuse him, and definitely you've got to catch the two or three
11:45out of the four that he puts up for grabs.
11:49You've got to be the more physical team Sunday.
11:51You cannot let the Giants dictate it.
11:53That's what they want to be.
11:54That's who they are right now through four games.
11:56It's why they're three and one.
11:57They have a different mentality, a different mindset.
12:00And they've got good players, you know, especially on defense.
12:04And then offensively, I think for the first time this year, the run needs to be established.
12:10I give Blau credit for sticking with it and not moving away from it.
12:14But I also think that with Cosme back, hopefully, if you've got a line of Patrick, Cosme, Paul, Connerly Jr.,
12:22Coleman,
12:24with hopefully Terry, you know, back as a receiver, receivers and tight ends are crucial in the run game.
12:30And you've got a running back like Eckler back there.
12:33I think you can do it.
12:35And then after that, it's got to be quick stuff.
12:38I think it's got to be quick stuff, and they've got to get yards after the catch.
12:42Now, all the other stuff applies, right?
12:44You can't turn the ball over.
12:46You've got to be really good in the red zone.
12:48But that is a big part of Sunday, red zone efficiency.
12:52The team that is two for four rather than one for four or oh for three is probably going to
12:58win the game.
12:59So you've got to be really good and have really good low red zone plays for this weekend against the
13:08opponent.
13:09I do like the chances, but I don't feel like this is a gimme by any stretch of the imagination.
13:14No one should.
13:15No one should feel that about any NFL game.
13:18But this is a mystery in terms of what we're going to get with Jaden in the brace on Sunday.
13:25I think it's a defensive day or needs to be a defensive day.
13:29The best one we've seen in a while, and we've seen some better ones in the first half.
13:35Certainly the first five series against the Giants, it needs to look like that.
13:40Against the Colts last week, it needs to look like that against the Giants on Sunday.
13:46The rain in the forecast, look, it's going to rain.
13:50I think everybody knows that.
13:52It's the remnants of the hurricane, and we're going to see showers.
13:57And I was watching camera last night, and he said, look, sometime between Sunday morning and Sunday night, there will
14:04be periods of some heavy downpours.
14:07And there could possibly be some severe weather as well.
14:11But he also said the winds won't be as much of a factor.
14:16The storm's wind speed will sort of die out as it moves up through the Midwest and into the Mid
14:23-Atlantic.
14:23But it's going to be a wet field.
14:25And, you know, that field with heavy rain, we've seen what it can look like.
14:30Remember that game against the 49ers a few years ago when it was heavy rain throughout?
14:34And that field didn't drain particularly well.
14:38Maybe it's changed.
14:39Have we had a really good rain game in the last few years, Max?
14:47I don't think we've had that 49er game when the 49ers were sliding, doing slip and slides at the end
14:53of the game for Kyle's win over his, you know, he and his father's most despised football jobs that they
15:00ever had.
15:02That would not be fun in a must-win, especially with a quarterback coming back with a brace on.
15:11It's going to be interesting.
15:12It's going to be interesting.
15:13The NFL, Sunday, and Landover.
15:16A big one to get Washington within a game of the lead, bunched up with basically the other three teams.
15:24You know, the Giants at this point have played a schedule.
15:28Yes, they've had the Rams, but they later in the season play the 49ers, the Seahawks, you know, whatever the
15:36Lions are going to look like.
15:37They've got to go to Dallas.
15:38They have the Jags coming up in a few weeks.
15:42So they still have, you know, this division does feel like at the, you know, not exactly the quarter poll
15:49anymore.
15:51It'll be, you know, it'll be the quarter poll at the halfway, at the quarter mark of this game, right?
15:59Yeah.
15:59It'll be the actual quarter poll when the first quarter is over in this game.
16:04But, yeah, feels like you've got to win these games at home, and you've got to start winning some of
16:11these games against your division opponents.
16:14And you've got to be in this thing at, you know, 6-6 through 12, 5-7 through 12, and
16:20then you've got a shot maybe to win a 9-win division.
16:24Probably not a very good shot at a wild card.
16:27Long way to go to start talking about playoff scenarios.