ASHBURN | By the time the Washington Redskins were driving into the New York Giants’ territory to set up Dustin Hopkins’ 37-yard field goal, which positioned the team for a 29-27 victory on Sunday at MetLife Stadium, they had committed to the run and succeeded behind a makeshift offensive line.
Running back Matt Jones ran the ball eight times for 37 yards, as the Redskins bled six minutes and two seconds off the clock on the 10-play drive. Jones picked up chunks at times running behind Trent Williams, the Redskins All-Pro left tackle who had played the second half at left guard after injuries forced left guard Shawn Lauvao and center Kory Lichtensteiger out of the game.
Williams proved to be a critical short-term fix, one that helped the Redskins escape MetLife Stadium with a victory and stave off the peril of an 0-3 start, including consecutive NFC East losses. Now, as the Redskins prepare to host the Cleveland Browns on Sunday at FedEx Field, they’ll be tasked with finding a solution that doesn’t involve one of their franchise cornerstones playing a position he had never played in his life until last Sunday. Washington will also have to reshuffle the secondary after encountering a spate of injuries on Sunday.
The worst came for free safety DeAngelo Hall, who sustained a torn ACL in his right knee in the second quarter. Team doctors feared that was the case for the 13-year veteran and an MRI exam confirmed that on Monday. Cornerback Bashaud Breeland and left guard Shawn Lauvao both left MetLife Stadium wearing walking boots and underwent MRI exams on Monday.
Breeland strained tendons in his ankle and is week to week, according to coach Jay Gruden, but the positive was that he avoided any broken bones.
“I think there was fear he had a high ankle [sprain]. or even broke a bone in there, but I think this is good news,” Gruden said. “He’s always been a quick healer. He’s going to be back a lot sooner than I think people anticipate, hopefully.”
Lauvao has a moderate right ankle sprain and will be evaluated on a week-to-week basis. The same timetable was set for Lichtensteiger, who sustained a moderate calf strain.
The Redskins began the second half without Lauvao at left guard and on the second play, Lichtensteiger was injured. Spencer Long, both the backup left guard and center, took over at center. The only other available lineman was tackle Ty Nsekhe, which forced the Redskins to move Williams inside. It was an ominous predicament, but Williams’ strong play helped avoid a disaster. He delivered a key block on wide receiver Jamison Crowder’s 55-yard touchdown reception in the third quarter.
Gruden said on Monday that the Redskins are looking to bring in a “center-type body” to help boost the depth of the offensive line. Austin Reiter, who was in his second season and the only other true center the team had, was signed off Washington’s practice squad by the Cleveland Browns last week. The in-house option would be to start Arie Kouandjio, who has played just one offensive snap in his first two seasons, at left guard. Kouandjio has been inactive in the first two games. If the Redskins feel comfortable with him there, that would allow them to keep Williams at left tackle and Long at center.
“[Williams is] so good at tackle, but he actually played pretty darn good at guard,” Gruden said. “He’s a great athlete, probably be a good center too. I think we’ll just have to evaluate that situation and see how it goes, see how Arie does at left guard. Ty is an excellent player, there’s no question about it, but to move your Pro-Bowl left tackle out of the mix to guard is something that’s a little unique and hard to do.”
In the secondary, Gruden said Will Blackmon will take over for Hall at free safety. Both Blackmon and Hall transitioned from cornerback to safety this season. Blackmon played well when he filled in for Hall on Sunday and forced a fumble, but then had to switch to the slot cornerback position once Dashaun Phillips sustained a hamstring injury.
“The first couple of games we didn’t get [Blackmon] a lot of reps out there, we wanted D-Hall to take it and run with the position,” Gruden said. “But now it’s up to Will and we have total faith that he’ll get the job done.”
Gruden also said the team is also unsure if Phillips will be ready to play against the Browns. If Phillips is out, the Redskins are expected to use third-round pick Kendall Fuller as the slot corner. Fuller battled with Phillips in training camp and the preseason for the starting job, but was inactive the first two games.
“I think [Fuller] finished really strong in training camp and I think he had a good preseason, I really do,” Gruden said. “He was right there, neck-and-neck with [Dashaun] Phillips and we played Phillips there to start the season with the idea to get Fuller a little bit more time to get ready with his body and his mental state of mind. I think he’s more than ready. He’s a bright, bright football player. He’s got great, natural ball skills and instincts and I think he’ll be ready to go.”
• Anthony Gulizia can be reached at agulizia@washingtontimes.com.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.