Redskins Overcome 49ers Despite Comeback
By Steve Thomas
October 16, 2017
The Washington Redskins did just enough to eek out 26-24 a victory over the winless but courageous San Francisco 49ers team Sunday afternoon at Fed Ex Field. The game featured mistakes and sometimes poor play on both sides, a furious 17 point comeback, and a benching of 49ers starting quarterback Brian Hoyer, who was ineffective in a little under one half of play.
The game started out on a great note, with the Redskins marching straight down the field on the opening possession to score on a Kirk Cousins – Josh Doctson 11 yard connection. The Redskins put together a very nice first drive, featuring multiple screen passes, and outside runs to Chris Thompson, which seemed to keep the 49ers off balance. The good times continued during the 49ers first drive, with the San Francisco passing game essentially ineffective facing pressure from the Washington defensive line and strong play by the defensive backfield. The secondary did have an injury scare, however, with safeties D.J. Swearinger and Stefan McClure both going out with injuries on successive plays. The Redskins dominated on defense in the early going, and the 49ers finished the quarter with just 21 total yards.
The second quarter saw more of the same from the Redskins offense, seemingly moving the ball with ease through a combination of primarily passes, edge runs, and short passes to the flats that resulted in big yardage after the catch by both Chris Thompson and Samaje Perine. The Redskins posted another touchdown and a short Dustin Hopkins field goal. Cousins was not at his sharpest, overthrowing receivers, turning the ball over on an overthrown deep ball, and barely avoiding another interception on the previous play. On the other side, 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan finally saw enough ineffective quarterback play from Brian Hoyer to make a change and inserted rookie C.J. Beathard in his place. This almost immediately resulted in an improved offensive performance, as San Francisco kept the Washington defense off balance through a series of accurate passes down the mid-range and deep middle. The 49ers were able to score their first points of the game following a gusty play call in which the 49ers gave up a sure field goal for a 3 yard touchdown try with just 3 seconds left on the clock. The half ended on a score of 17-7.
Both the Redskins and 49ers performance changed tones in the third quarter. The Redskins came out somewhat flat and lifeless to start the half on both offense and defense, whereas the 49ers offense moved much more smoothly under Beathard’s leadership. In the end, though, the biggest play of the quarter came when San Francisco was able to recover a fumble and return the ball to the 1 yard line on a controversial Vernon Davis fumble on which Davis appeared to be clearly down prior to losing the ball. The play was reviewed and the call stood, despite the protests of the Redskins and their fans. San Francisco running back Carlos Hyde ran the ball in on the next play, which put the score at 17-17 going into the 4th quarter.
The final quarter of the game brought a significant amount of unwanted drama. The Redskins scored a field goal and touchdown, albeit with a missed extra point by Dustin Hopkins; however, the 49ers came storming back to bring the score to within 2 following a 45 yard touchdown pass from Beathard to former Redskins wide receiver Aldrick Robinson. The 49ers had a final chance to kick the winning field goal, driving into Redskins territory with only seconds left on the clock, but cornerback Kendall Fuller intercepted Beathard’s 4th down pass on the second to last play of the game to end the competitive portion of the contest.
The game saw several players going down with injuries, the most prominent of which being cornerback Bashaud Breeland and rookie defensive tackle Jonathan Allen, who are both scheduled for MRIs on Monday.
On the day, quarterback Kirk Cousins did not have a particularly good game, despite a 102.3 quarterback rating, going 25 of 37 for 330 yards, with 2 touchdowns and 1 interception, plus one more pass that was very nearly intercepted. For his part, head coach Jay Gruden defended his quarterback, stating, “I thought he played efficient. He had the one pick on third-and-long. It was bad play design by us, but it was like a punt so it didn’t hurt us at all. Other than that, I think he threw for over 300 yards, had a touchdown run and a huge scramble for us again so I think he’s doing well.”
Chris Thompson led all receivers with 105 yards on just 5 receptions. Vernon Davis also had a quality game, despite the disputed fumble, with 65 yards on 3 receptions. As a team, the Redskins only rushed for 94 yards on 33 carries for an average of 2.8 yards per carry. Gruden addressed the idea that the team may have let up after building the 17 – 0 lead, stating in his post-game press conference, “I don’t think so. I think we got up 17-0, they scored at the end of the half, put a nice drive together and then they got the ball coming out in the third quarter. . . then we had the big turnover and let them back in it and next thing you know, it’s 17-17.”
Washington is now 3 – 2 on the season and will travel to Philadelphia to face the Eagles on Monday Night Football.