By Matthew Paras - The Washington Times - Friday, August 20, 2021

LANDOVER, Md. — Jaret Patterson plunged headfirst into the end zone, the same end zone that he once watched his idols like Chris Cooley and DeAngelo Hall celebrate from. Now, here the undrafted running back was, enjoying his own touchdown — hearing cheers from the FedEx Field crowd.

Patterson grew up a fan of the Burgundy and Gold and in Friday’s 17-13 win over the Cincinnati Bengals, the Maryland native starred yet again for his childhood team.

A week after balling out against the New England Patriots, Patterson rushed for 71 yards on 16 carries for a touchdown and caught three passes for 25 yards. 

Here are other observations from the victory:

Disjointed offense

Two weeks in a row, quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick failed to lead the offense to the end zone. On Friday, Fitzpatrick’s playing time in terms of series doubled — the starting offense played four series instead of two — but the team again stalled out, despite some promising moments. 

Washington, for instance, couldn’t fully capitalize on a 29-yard strike to rookie Dyami Brown — Fitzpatrick’s longest completion of the evening. After the catch, Fitzpatrick overthrew tight end Logan Thomas and wideout Adam Humphries, and he was almost picked off by Bengals linebacker Markus Bailey.

The struggles weren’t all on Fitzpatrick, though. The team’s starting offensive line was bullied, at times, and Fitzpatrick was sacked once. 

Fitzpatrick’s overall stat line: 7 of 13 for 96 yards with a 77.7 passer rating. 

Safeties rotate, but Landon Collins shows out

Washington is still very much determining who its starting safeties should be. Landon Collins, however, is making a strong argument he should be one of them.

While the three-time Pro Bowler didn’t start Friday, he made an impression. Collins looked explosive when he came crashing into Bengals tight end Thaddeus Moss in open space, allowing only a two-yard gain. The hit was another indication that Collins is not just back from the torn Achilles he suffered last October, but an indication he might be in store for his best season yet in a Washington uniform.

Could that prove to be an overreaction based on two preseason games? Perhaps. But The NFL Network’s Kim Jones reported an interesting nugget prior to the game: Collins is down to the weight he played in college at Alabama — under 220 pounds — based on defensive coordinator Jack Del Rio’s recommendation. Collins looks faster than before his injury, and that could help explain why. 

In three series, the defense trotted out Kam Curl and Bobby McCain, then Curl and Collins, and then went to Collins and McCain. Expect the experimentation to continue next week, too, as the coaching staff tries to find the right pairings. 

The starting defense, as a whole, was effective in limiting a Joe Burrow-less Bengals offense. Washington’s starters, down cornerbacks Kendall Fuller and William Jackson III (thigh), limited Cincinnati to just a field goal.  
 
Patterson’s new skillset 

One more Patterson note: the running back added a new wrinkle to his game, fielding kick returns in the second half. 

That’s something that coach Ron Rivera mentioned he wanted to see from the undrafted Buffalo product, and Patterson delivered. On his first return, Patterson set up great field position with a 37-yard run.

The path for Patterson, undersized at 5-foot-7, to make the roster is still to be determined. If Washington only keeps three running backs — what it kept last year — then veteran Peyton Barber could be the odd man out. Barber rushed for just two yards on three carries. Having four running backs on a roster, though, isn’t unheard of.

Dustin Hopkins redeems himself

Washington expressed little concern over kicker Dustin Hopkins’ misses after last week’s game against the New England Patriots, saying there would be time to fix the problems on hand. 

On the surface, that appears to have happened. 

Hopkins went 3-for-3 on his field goals Friday — nailing kicks from 34, 31 and 31 yards. The obvious caveat is that Hopkins did not attempt a kick from a distance of, say, 50 yards — a range that the veteran occasionally struggles from. 

But to Rivera, the misses last week weren’t solely on Hopkins. Instead, he pointed to the timing between Hopkins, holder Tress Way and rookie long-snapper Camaron Cheeseman. Cheeseman, brought in the offseason, snaps the ball much faster than former snapper Nick Sundberg, so Rivera said the group had to find a rhythm. 

For a week, at least, they have. 

• Matthew Paras can be reached at mparas@washingtontimes.com.

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