The Washington Redskins win against the Rams on Sunday came as a surprise to many. The hopes for a win is always in the air at FedEx Field, but yesterday there was a sense of renewed pride and excitement among Redskins fans. As I entered the stadium there was a fervor of camaraderie about and as the National Anthem rang aloud and the airplanes roared over, it was game time.
The Redskins owned the first half, as they came out and scored quickly with a Matt Jones 39 yard rushing touchdown with 7:14 left in the first quarter. Jones’s run met great applause among Skins fans and we all rejoiced and sang our fight song, “Hail To The Redskins,” with passion. The Rams had unsuccessful drive after drive and the Redskins ended the 1st quarter with a 46 yard field goal. After the first quarter Redskin fans were feeling optimistic, as we hadn’t started games well in the past years much less has a 10 point lead. The second quarter started off slowly and was a defensive struggle full of each team punting back and forth. This struggle ended with 3:07 left on the clock with a Kirk Cousins to Pierre Garcon 4 yard touchdown pass. With the Redskins going in to the half with 17-0 lead the team and fans were ecstatic, well at least the Skins fans were.
The second half started and as every Redskins’s fan knows you can’t let up even with a comfortable lead. The Rams took advantage of the Redskins letting their guard down and the Rams scored a 52 yard field goal. Two minutes later the Rams jumped on the Skins and Nick Foles threw a 40 yard touchdown to Kenny Britt, who left DeAngelo Hall in the dust. Redskins fans were now worried, it was a one score game; the thoughts of “is this Redskins of old” arose among us all at FedEx Field. Not until the fourth quarter with 2:43 left were we all reassured that this was not an old dismal Redskins team. Matt Jones punched it in from 3 yards out for another touchdown, his second of the day. With this we all knew the game was ours and we could rejoice.
The win was owed to the team, but the hero of the day was the rookie from the University of Florida, Matt Jones. He ran for 123 yards on 19 carries and scored 2 touchdowns in his effort for the win. The Redskins will now have a one two punch with All Pro running back Alfred Morris and now Matt Jones. This win and upcoming season looks good for the team, fans, and community; hopefully it’ll turn into a playoff run. One thing to ponder is what will happen if the St. Louis Rams beat the Seattle Seahawks, and the Redskins beat the Rams, so can we beat the Seahawks?