Kirk Cousins is not to blame for the loss to the Philadelphia Eagles. His offense was very good to start the game, and he did all that he could to make the Washington Redskins offense move late in the game. There is a fundamental flaw with the Redskins that is all based on how much they have done to help Cousins. They do not believe in him, and they have not made wise additions to their offense over the past couple of years. They are not happy to spend money, but they will suffer as a result. We must allow Cousins more time to adjust to the team's current makeup, and we must expect the defense to remain one of the best in the NFL.
Kirk can do it all
Kirk Cousins is more than capable of doing everything necessary in the Washington offense so that his team can score quickly, but he does not have all the pieces around him that make that job easier. You do not see the Redskins playing a multitude of offensive skill position players like you would find in other cities, and Cousins is asked to make due with one runner and one receiver. He cannot vary the offense when we all know where the ball is going, and we have to assume that Jay Gruden has some work to do because he did not vary the play calling enough to keep the Eagles on their toes. There came the point in the game in which the Eagles had figured out what The Redskins were doing, and that is not Kirk's fault.
That defense
The defense in Washington must improve for the balance of the season. They must look like one of the best defenses in the league, and they must have more help from the offense. An offense that stays on the field will rest the defense, and the two units support each other by playing their best game at all times. The Redskins can do a lot to help themselves by making adjustments before week two.
They are better than we thought they were, and they simply need to improve.
The Eagles were great
The Eagles made all the right adjustments, and they proved that they have all the pieces needed to be very competitive in their division. It is not possible to send three teams from the NFC East to the playoffs because the conference is so deep, but the Eagles could knock off one of their opponents in New York or Dallas.
We will have to wait and see how far the Eagles can go, but they may surprise us with that offense run by Carson Wentz. No one expected him to be that much better when the season started, but he has proven that he knows how to keep up with an NFL that scouted him all offseason long.
