Washington Vs. New England (Preseason) – Studs and Duds

Washington Football is back! And so are my Studs and Duds.

Washington’s first preseason game of the 2021 season saw them travel to Foxboro to battle the Patriots. We got to see a few series with the starters, and despite a vanilla game plan, the offense should be much improved from last season.

Overall, it was a very ho-hum performance, but there were a few bright spots; along with some not-so-bright ones.

Below are my Studs and Duds of the game – followed by some notes/observations.

Studs:

Chase Young: In his limited snaps, Young was his dominate self. He recorded, what I thought should have been a sack (tuck rule), and forced fumble of starter Cam Newton on the first defensive series. This man is poised for a HUGE second season!

Sam Cosmi: Cosmi was very solid on the evening in extended play for the rookie. He looked fast, athletic and definitely played with an edge. He had a few pancakes that I saw throughout the first half.

Looks like Tarzan – plays like Tarzan!

Sammis Reyes: I know, he double-caught a pass…but guess what – he caught it! Aside from that, he had a nice grab on a seam where he took a low shot by the safety, but he was the one who inflicted the pain. He also showed solid effort in the run game as a blocker. He may not be a finished product by any stretch of the imagination, but this was a nice start in his first ever NFL game action, AND…he looked a HECK of a lot better than Hemingway!

Jaret Patterson: The rookie running back had a very nice game, both running the ball, and as an outlet in the receiving game. He rushed 10 times for a team high 40 yards, and got what I thought was a touchdown inside the 5 yard line (they ruled his knee down just before the ball broke the goal line). He also added four receptions for 30 yards – which led all Washington receivers.

Duds:

Temarrick Hemingway: Hemingway had a night to forget. Actually, it was quite embarrassing! His blocking was absolutely abysmal and he was knocked off his route on the release a few times. He gave up a sack and had a bad dropped pass as well. He recorded no catches on the evening.

Keith Ismael: The backup center was pushed around all evening when he was inserted into the game by the Patriots defensive front. He looked small, and played small against bigger, stronger defenders.

Darrick Forrest: Forrest played some as the Buffalo Nickel last night, and some as a safety. The problem – he was missing tackles all over the field, and was beaten deep on an occasion in the third quarter (although the pass fell incomplete). Part of this is the lack of full-contact action allowed by the NFLPA in practice. Still, he’s going to need to work on wrapping up and keeping his head up.

Jon Bostic: Bostic made a good play early in the game when he jumped a flat route by a Patriots running back. I was pleasantly surprised! Then, on the next few series, the true Bostic emerged. He was late on a screen and essentially ran himself out of the play, missed a tackle on a drag route to Jonnu Smith that resulted in extra yards for the tight end, and was juked out of his shoes in the backfield by Damien Harris in the first quarter. I know the depth behind him is very poor, but we need to try our best to keep him off the field on passing downs.

Dustin Hopkins: I know, I know…I sound like a broken record here. I get we have a new long snapper, but Hopkins’ performance Thursday night was inexcusable. Two missed field goals in a meaningless game you say… but we’ve seen this before!

– Fitzpatrick and Logan Thomas really seem to have a connection. The back-shoulder thrown down the right side for 24 yards was beautiful.

– Dyami Brown was getting open early and often. Inaccurate throws didn’t allow him to shine.

– I think the Gandy-Golden 2pt conversion should not have been overturned. The second year receiver made a great catch on a perfectly thrown ball by Montez, but the ball did get punched out at the end – but it was after both knees had hit the ground (one out of bounds), which should have ended the play as a completed catch. Aside from that moment, AGG had done nothing. He really needed that play to boost his confidence.

– I was impressed by Bates’ blocking. He did a nice job down by the goal line on Barber’s touchdown.

– I thought Charles Leno Jr. struggled against Matt Judon early in the game. I also saw the same waist-bending tendencies from Cornelius Lucas that I saw last season.

– Saahdiq Charles looked solid at left tackle in the second half, albeit it was against the Patriots reserve edge rushers. Still, the big man showed quick feet and good power.

– Lamar Miller was running hard behind our third string offensive line. He also caught a touchdown pass.

– Steven Sims Jr. made a nice hands-catch on a DIG route thrown by Heinicke. It was a good step for the speedy wide receiver who has struggled with his hands the past two seasons.

– If one of our starting linebackers goes down, we are in some trouble!

– Isaiah Wright looks like he’s lost significant weight.