Before he went down with a knee injury, Robert Griffin III was having a hot-and-cold day for the Redskins. The Redskins put together touchdown drives on each of their first two possessions. Griffin was on fire, completing six of six passes for 122 yards and a touchdown.
But then the offense went into a deep freeze. The drives for the rest of the first half went three plays and punt, two plays and a lost fumble, seven plays and a punt and four plays and a punt.
The lethargy continued in the second half, with the Redskins just able to muster two field goals, both following takeaways by the Redskins defense. It wasn’t until the final drive that the Redskins got into the end zone, with Kirk Cousins throwing the touchdown pass to Pierre Garçon after Griffin left the game.
Griffin finished the day completing 15 of 26 passes for 246 yards and a touchdown, a passer rating of 102.4. This was the fourth consecutive game that Griffin has had a passer rating of over 100.
Winning streak
Not coincidentally, the Redskins have won those four games where Griffin had the triple-digit QB rating. The winning streak is the longest they have had since they won in Weeks 2-5 of the 2008 season.
If the Redskins can beat the Browns, their five-game winning streak would be their longest since 2005. That team won its last five to go from 5-6 to a wild card playoff spot.
Morris strong again
Alfred Morris had another strong game with 23 carries for 122 yards and a touchdown. It was his third straight game over the 100-yard mark and his sixth of the season. He broke the Redskins record for rushing yards by a rookie last Monday night and he extended it today. The sixth-round pick now has 1228 rushing yards on the season.
The one negative on Morris’ stat sheet today was a fumble that the Ravens recovered at the Washington 14. Three plays later Baltimore scored to take a 21-14 lead. It was the second straight game in which Morris has lost a fumble.
Crawford takes advantage of opportunity
The inactive list before the game contained a surprise name—Brandon Banks. He has been the team’s kick returner since he was moved up from the practice squad for the fourth game of the 2010 season.
But he has been near the bottom of the NFL in both punt and kickoff return average this year and Mike Shanahan told him earlier this week that they were going to sit him down.
Rookie Richard Crawford drew the punt return duties and he took full advantage. He returned his first punt 20 yards. But he saved his best work for overtime.
The Ravens went three and out after winning the coin toss. Crawford fielded Sam Koch’s punt at the 12, headed straight up the left sideline, and then cut back toward the center of the field. Koch finally chased him down but not until he had a 64-yard return to the Baltimore 24. Three plays later Kai Forbath kicked the game-winning field goal.
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