ASHBURN — Minutes after the Washington Redskins’ 34-20 loss to the New York Jets on Sunday, coach Jay Gruden stood at a podium in the bowels of MetLife Stadium and declared this week’s game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers a “code-red” situation.
It is rare for a coach to put such strong emphasis on a singular game, often deferring to answer with cliches about how every game is as important as the next. The Redskins (2-4) had just played their worst game of the season, though, and Gruden’s sense of urgency came to the forefront.
On Monday, Gruden stressed the same amount of concern for Sunday’s home game against the Buccaneers before the bye week.
“They’re all important games, but this is big,” Gruden said. “We’re getting backed into a corner right now and everybody’s taking their shots at us and we can either come out swinging or we can take it. I hope that we all come out swinging. I have faith that the competitive group that I have in the locker room — the coaches and the players, myself — will come out swinging and give it our best shot to get this thing turned around and get some positive thinking going on during our bye week and come back fresh and healthy after the bye.”
Gruden also reiterated that he believes the Redskins’ best shot at turning things around is with Kirk Cousins as the starting quarterback.
There were many issues on Sunday. The offense rushed for 34 yards on 17 carries. The defense allowed 221 rushing yards after allowing 176 to the Atlanta Falcons a week earlier.
SEE ALSO: Kirk Cousins’ interceptions again an issue as Redskins squander lead in loss
Yet the loss was punctuated by another two-interception performance by Cousins. The first turnover was a particularly ugly decision and a pass both Gruden and Cousins acknowledged should have been thrown out of bounds.
After the game, Gruden vehemently backed Cousins as the Redskins’ starting quarterback. On Monday, Gruden again voiced his support for the fourth-year quarterback, but he did so with a more measured tone.
“You know, it was a tough day for all of us at the office,” Gruden said. “[Cousins] had some throws that didn’t come out the way he wanted them to and the production wasn’t there by the offense in general, but Kirk himself needs to play better, and he’s getting better and he will play better.
“But, it’s our job as coaches to make it as easy on him as possible, and we didn’t do that. We were forced into tough situations there late in the third quarter, early fourth quarter. A lot of pressure was on him. He didn’t live up to the standards that we set, but we didn’t make it any easier on him. So, moving forward, man, we’ve just got to do a better job all together as a football team and as a staff to make everybody better.”
Gruden is not expected to trash his starting quarterback after a poor performance, but he went to great lengths on Sunday to defend Cousins. When asked about Cousins’ inaccuracy after the game, Gruden cited the windy conditions and the pressure of having to make pre-snap reads.
On Monday, Gruden was asked if he is cognizant of how he explains things so it does not sound like he is making excuses for Cousins. He answered in a regretful tone.
“I talk too much,” Gruden said. “I’m not trying to make excuses for anybody. It wasn’t good enough by anybody — not Kirk, not myself, not the offensive line, not the coaching staff. There was nobody in this locker room that played good enough to win a football game on Sunday afternoon. I’m not making excuses for anybody. I’m not trying to baby anybody. I’m trying to get our team ready to play the Tampa Bay Buccaneers moving forward and get this thing back on the right track.”
SEE ALSO: Third quarter again serves as Redskins’ unraveling in loss to Jets
In all four of the Redskins’ losses, Cousins has thrown a pair of interceptions. Not all have been his fault; in Week 3, one pass was batted into the air and easily intercepted, and one in Atlanta bounced off wide receiver Pierre Garcon’s hands and into those of a defender.
A pass intercepted by Jets cornerback Darrelle Revis on Sunday — Cousins’ first interception — was more outrageous. Revis shadowed Garcon, handed him off to a teammate and then rolled over to cover wide receiver Ryan Grant, at which point the pass headed directly to him.
“I think [Cousins has] done some good things in this season to warrant him some consideration to be a starting quarterback in the National Football League for some time,” Gruden said. “Let’s see how he progresses. Let’s see what happens here at the end of the year and go from there. I have all the confidence in the world still in Kirk, and I think he’s done some good things. I know his teammates still have confidence in him, and that’s the only thing that’s important to me.”
• Anthony Gulizia can be reached at agulizia@washingtontimes.com.
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