If it wasn’t already clear that Dwayne Haskins Jr. should not take the field for the Washington Football Team again, it became undeniable this afternoon when a former XFL backup who was on the practice squad until this week outperformed the ever-regressing former first-round pick in just half-a-quarter’s worth of playing time.
Haskins finished the game with 154 passing yards on 14/28 attempts with two interceptions and a (controversial) fumble. Mercifully bailed out in the fourth quarter, Taylor Heinicke finished the game with 137 yards and a touchdown on 12/19 attempts, and seemed capable enough of leading a second-half comeback had he entered the game earlier.
Heinicke did make a throw early in his first drive that should have been intercepted, but otherwise he looked sharp for a practice squad quarterback making his first NFL appearance since 2018.
Haskins, meanwhile, looked as hapless as ever attempting to run the offense that, in fairness, was missing Terry McLaurin and also wasn’t catering to its strengths (Antonio Gibson received just 10 carries; JD McKissic did not start getting consistent targets until later in the game).
Game script aside, offensive coordinator Scott Turner should have used his running backs more from the beginning, and head coach Ron Rivera should have pulled the plug on Haskins much sooner.
Perhaps my preferred personnel package would have been a bit extreme, but there was no excuse for Haskins to return to the field in the second half. Anyone would have been better, or at the very least would not have been worse. With a chance to seal the division title, with a defense that did not allow any points in the second half, Haskins continually pissed away any chance at winning the game, and Rivera made the switch too late for it to matter.
The officiating didn’t help. A would-be scoop-and-score was called dead despite the ball being loose on the ground for two full seconds before whistles were blown, and as mentioned, the Haskins fumble in the first quarter was a close call. Despite the bad breaks, the Washington offense did not play winning football, and it came down to No. 7.
On the bright side, there still is a chance to win the division next Sunday. The Philadelphia Eagles were officially eliminated today in their loss to the Dallas Cowboys, so now if Washington beats them next week, the division title will be theirs. If they lose, it will go to the winner of the Giants/Cowboys game.
If Alex Smith’s leg is healed up, I like Washington’s chances, but the NFC East is as unpredictable as ever, and the Eagles can definitely beat Washington no matter who is under center. Even if Smith isn’t ready to go, it became abundantly clear that Washington has a better chance winning with Heinicke than Haskins, especially if the former has a full week of reps with the first team.
Haskins has been under fire all season, and it intensified this week when he was caught partying with strippers without a mask. Under normal conditions, the guy can do what he wants in his free time; no one should have any issues with that. However, these are not normal circumstances, and violating COVID protocols for the second time this season with a head coach that just recently beat cancer is selfish at best and reckless at worst. Enough has been said about Haskins’ mistake last weekend, so I’ll leave it at that.
The fact that this team has shown so much progress from last year, especially on the defensive side of the ball, and that Haskins is primarily responsible for holding the team back is frustrating. Granted, he cannot shoulder all the blame; Kyle Allen wasn’t too good himself, the play calls have been questionable at times and the offense could use another playmaker or two.
Still, this team is a legitimate quarterback away from being playoff-caliber, as hard as that is to believe, and it’s never been more obvious that Haskins just won’t be that guy. You could have said that two months ago (as I have), you could have said it last week (as I have), but it’s been confirmed today, and all Washington fans should hope that Haskins has taken his final snap with Washington.
The future of the quarterback position is perpetually uncertain, and if Washington wants to capitalize on this current group of young players, the answer better be in this upcoming draft class or the free agent/trade market.
Cover Photo Credit: CBS Sports/USA TODAY
The Wildcard 