LANDOVER — After the Washington Redskins beat the New York Giants, 20-14, to move into first place in the NFC East, coach Jay Gruden addressed the obvious.
If the Redskins want to maintain the division lead, they’re going to have to prove they can win away from FedEx Field this season. All five of their wins have come at home and three of their final four games are on the road against Chicago, Philadelphia and Dallas.
However, before the Redskins embark on that final road stretch, they’ll host the Dallas Cowboys on Monday Night Football next week.
“We just haven’t handled the road ones very well, obviously with the turnovers and the miscues,” Gruden said. “Today we had no turnovers and you can see how much of an impact that has in a football game. Can’t put our hand on it but eventually we’re going to have to go on the road and win a meaningful game this year. But we’re worried about Dallas now.”
The Redskins’ biggest issue on the road is their inability to be consistent, but that will be at the forefront this week, even with a home game. Washington has yet to win consecutive games this season. So while the Redskins proved their resiliency in bouncing back after a 44-16 loss to Carolina, Gruden would like to see his team do the same after an emotional win.
“How we bounce back from this victory is going to be equally as important as how we bounced back from Carolina,” Gruden said. “I’m impressed with the team and the way they are working. I have a lot of respect for these players. I’m happy for them. We also understand that there is no time to take a deep breath, we just keep grinding.”
With that, here are three takeaways from the Sunday’s win.
** Though tight end Jordan Reed’s early penalties made it hard for the Redskins to get going at times, he more than made up for it. On three plays, Reed wiped out 26 yards of offense with penalties — two for holding and one for offensive pass interference. However, he boosted the offense with eight catches for 98 yards — none more important than his 20-yard pickup on third-and-five with 3:29 to play. Reed made it look easy, getting wide open on the play. Instead of a three-and-out, the Redskins went on to run the clock down to 27 seconds. Reed also has a keen awareness for where the chains are located at all times. He constantly fights for extra yards, like he did on a second-and-eight play and stretched for a nine-yard pickup.
“When you play two safeties – like the last third down is a great example – when you play man coverage underneath and two safeties over the top, your linebackers and your backs are the ones that have got to win,” Gruden said. “Jordan has proven that he can do that. He’s a huge weapon for us.”
** The Redskins’ offensive line dramatically improved from last week’s game against the Carolina Panthers. Washington rushed for 105 yards against New York, far more than the 14 they gained against Carolina. The pass protection was solid as well. Throughout most of the game, Kirk Cousins had plenty of time in the pocket and was able to work through his progressions to find an open target. He completed 20 of 29 passes for 302 yards and a touchdown and was not sacked.
“It was very important for us to get Kirk that time,” right tackle Morgan Moses said. “We studied their blitzes and they had a hell of a pressure package. We studied it throughout the week and we were able to execute this Sunday.”
** After weeks of being unable to stop the run, the Redskins finally did so on Sunday. They allowed just 33 rushing yards — the fewest all season — after surrendering more than 140 yards in each of the last six games. The Giants had to abandon their rushing attack once the Redskins took a 17-0 lead, but even before that, Washington showed improvement. Not only was the tackling was better, but the Redskins appeared to be more disciplined in their gap assignments — something that escaped them in the last six games.
• Anthony Gulizia can be reached at agulizia@washingtontimes.com.
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