In the wake of the injury to incumbent starter Kyle Allen, the Washington Football Team will move forward with Alex Smith at quarterback. Head coach Ron Rivera indicated as much after Sunday’s loss to the division rival New York Giants, but went into a bit more detail on Monday regarding the factors that weighed into his decision to stick with Smith rather than Dwayne Haskins, who began the season under center before being replaced by Allen.
Smith, who returned this year from a nearly two-season absence after suffering a terrifying leg injury during his first season as Washington’s starter, has made two appearances this year, both in relief of Allen. He is 33 of 49 for 362 yards, one touchdown, and three interceptions, but he has been sacked on an incredible 14 percent of his dropbacks.
According to Nicki Jhabvala of The Washington Post, Rivera explained the decision by noting, “Nothing has really changed in the NFC East other than we lost the tiebreaker with the Giants. It’s still a close race.” Washington is now 2-6 after Sunday’s loss, but incredibly remains in second place in the decrepit NFC East because both the Giants and Cowboys are 2-7. The 3-4-1 Eagles remain in first.
Jhabvala further noted that Rivera said having Smith under center could also be helpful for Haskins’ development, and that Haskins may actually start again at some point this season. Smith’s presence as the Chiefs starter during Patrick Mahomes‘ rookie season has received at least some credit for aiding in Mahomes’ development, besides obviously his otherworldly talent, Andy Reid’s coaching, and the skill position players on the roster have gotten the lion’s share.
Haskins appeared to show slight improvement but still struggled in his four starts earlier this season, completing 61 percent of his passes at an average of 6.4 yards per attempt, while throwing four touchdowns and three picks. He was Washington’s first-round pick just last season, but that was under a previous leadership regime. It’s not uncommon for new coaching and management staffs to have less loyalty to their predecessors’ draft picks, simply because they do not have as much invested in their success.
Barring Haskins returning to the lineup at some point this season and showing great improvement, it seems highly likely that Washington will be in the mix for one of the top quarterback prospects in the 2021 NFL Draft.
