Up until Week 13 of the NFL season, it was probably fair for Dallas Cowboys fans to assume that the Washington Football Team, and pretty much all of their other NFC East rivals, were dead, buried, and done for. Washington had other plans.
After losing four games in a row before their bye-week, the Football Team is now on a four-game winning streak, by some miracle. They are now sitting at No. 6 in the NFC, which puts them in Wild Card contention. While the Cowboys are still two games ahead of their divisional rival, they will have to face Washington twice in the next three weeks.
Keep in mind that all of their wins haven’t been pretty. Taylor Heinicke, who was undrafted in 2015, is committed and tough, but he also makes a lot of mistakes. The team is also dealing with a myriad of injuries at all positions. Yet, somehow, they still come out on top.
Let’s hope Tinkerbell stops spreading her pixie dust on this turn-around team ASAP – or at least until after the Cowboys see them twice in the next three games.
Here’s what Cowboys fans need to know about the Washington Football Team’s miraculous four-game win streak
Their wins may not be pretty, but they are happening. Whatever head coach Ron Rivera said to his team in the bye week clearly worked.
The four-game winning streak started when Washington beat the reigning champion Tampa Bay Buccaneers 29-19. Even though they’d lost many players to injury, Washington figured it out. Even after losing Chase Young, Washington’s defense managed to hold Tampa Bay’s impressive offense to a season-low 273 total yards. They also intercepted MVP frontrunner Tom Brady twice.
In Week 11, Heinicke outshined Cam Newton in a 27-21 win over the Carolina Panthers. Terry McLaurin also helped the offense, contributing 103 of the total 369 yards of offense for the Washington Football Team. Once Newton’s backup, Heinicke asserted himself as a potential threat, completing 16 of 22 passes for 206 yards and three touchdowns.
The next week, Washington beat the Seattle Seahawks 17-15 in a must-win game for both teams. Again, this win was not beautiful. There were several turnovers, a blocked extra-point kick returned for two points, and the loss of another player, as J.D. McKissic was carted off the field in the fourth quarter. Yet, despite all of that, they still came out with a W.
In perhaps the most miraculous of them all, the fourth victory came against the Las Vegas Raiders, with another 17-15 final score. This game was chaotic, shocking, strange, and yet somehow, Washington once against proved themselves resilient.
You could genuinely argue that Washington did not play well in Week 13. Tons of missed tackles. Many almost-interceptions. Heinicke was borderline reckless with the ball at times. Yet, the pixie dust worked – especially for kicker Brian Johnson. After being signed just six days before from Chicago’s practice squad, Johnson was asked to kick a game-clincher in only the fifth game of his NFL career. (He also hadn’t attempted a field goal the entire game.)
Washington’s fourth kicker of the year nailed a 48-yard field goal with just 37 seconds left to help secure the fourth victory in a row.
You may be thinking to yourself, “This team is hurt. Their quarterback is inconsistent. Why should I care?”
The simple answer is: because they are a divisional rival that is figuring out how to win games. Whether it’s the pixie dust, Wheaties, Michael’s Secret Stuff, or something else, the Cowboys may have their hands full with this chaotic group in the next three weeks. On paper, the Cowboys should secure two easy wins. But you never know with these guys. Prepare yourselves.
