LANDOVER | Redskins outside linebacker Ryan Kerrigan burst off the line of scrimmage, bulldozing Denver Broncos left tackle Garett Bolles to the ground. Bolles — flat on his back, legs in the air — left Kerrigan a clear path to Broncos quarterback Brock Osweiler.
As was the case for most of the afternoon, Osweiler found himself on the ground as well.
In the final home game of a disappointing, injury-filled season, Kerrigan and the Redskins defense bullied a hapless Broncos offense.
Kerrigan had two of the Redskins’ four sacks and Washington held Osweiler to 194 yards passing — with a measly 5.1 yards per attempt — in a 27-11 win at FedEx Field.
Kerrigan, who now has back-to-back seasons with double digit sacks for the first time in his career, noted the Redskins were able to read Osweiler.
“Fortunately for us, he held onto the ball a little long early and then after that, he was trying to get rid of it because of the rush,” Kerrigan said. “That’s what you want to do, fluster the quarterback a little bit, get them out of their rhythm.”
The Redskins finished with another multi-turnover game — this time two fumbles and an interception — for the second week in a row. Last week, the Redskins defenders stuck to their assignments and caused the Arizona Cardinals to commit two turnovers.
At first it seemed the Redskins needed their defense to carry them, with the offense struggling to get untracked.
“[Defense] played really well in all phases,” Redskins coach Jay Gruden said. “I was really excited to see it. Last week, we didn’t give up a touchdown. They played great red zone defense. This week, we carried it over. We played great total team defense across the board.”
Entering Sunday’s game, the Redskins were coming off back-to-back games where the offense failed to reach even 200 yards in the air. The Broncos, on the other hand, were ranked first in passing and total defense.
Gruden said earlier in the week that he didn’t think his team would be able to sustain lengthy drives against Denver. The Redskins needed big plays, specifically from Kirk Cousins, in order to win.
Those plays didn’t come until later.
To start the game, the Redskins couldn’t find anything on offense. Cousins began 0-for-6 and didn’t complete a pass until two minutes were left in the first quarter.
Still, the Redskins’ defense took advantage of another subpar quarterback. Denver had success with short passes and running the ball, but not much else.
Whenever the Redskins forced longer down-and-distance situations, which was often, Osweiler couldn’t find his receivers and often hurried to escape pressure.
Denver’s first points came after a 10-play, 33-yard drive that resulted in a field goal and a 3-0 lead in the openiing quarter.
Then the Redskins defense started to force turnovers.
With the game tied at 3, Osweiler tried to escape pressure and just dropped the ball, turning it over at Denver’s 38-yard line.
“There’s been a lot of guys out there rushing hard,” said linebacker Preston Smith, who was credited with the sack on Osweiler’s fumble. “Guys are just trying to get to the quarterback and put the best things on tape.”
The Redskins quickly scored their first touchdown: a 15-yard pass from Cousins to wide receiver Jamison Crowder.
At that point, the Redskins’ lead seemed insurmountable for the inept Broncos.
On the very next possession, Osweiler threw a horrendous interception straight to D.J. Swearinger.
In the second half, Cousins and the Redskins offense found more of a groove. Washington was able to exploit openings in the middle of the field, working in Crowder and Ryan Grant.
Cousins found a wide-open Josh Doctson for a 48-yard strike to take a 20-3 lead with 12:07 left in the fourth quarter. He added a 31-yard touchdown with 4:21 left, finding Vernon Davis.
Cousins went 19 for 37 for 299 yards with three touchdowns and one interception, a poorly thrown ball forced into triple coverage in the end zone in the third quarter.
Broncos running back CJ Anderson added a garbage time touchdown with 1:18 left, cutting the Redskins lead to 16.
The Redskins, though, shut down Denver in the second half — holding them to just 115 yards.
With the win, the Redskins earned their second straight victory and improved to 7-8.
Gruden said Monday that he wanted his team to close out the season strong in three ways: converting on third down, making special teams plays and for his defense to make impact plays.
Against the Broncos, the defense did just that.
“They’re going to make their yards, but at the end of the day, we force them to have 10, 12, 14-play drives,” Gruden said. “Our guys are doing a good of staying poised and getting off the field when it comes crunch time.”
• Matthew Paras can be reached at mparas@washingtontimes.com.
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