After facing more than a few winless teams earlier in the season (and losing to one that was riding a 19-game string of futility) the Redskins got a crack on Sunday against a team that hadn’t lost a game all year.
And the ‘Skins nearly pulled off the biggest upset of the year.
At times, the contest reminded yours truly of a game the Redskins hosted way back in 1975 (yes, I’m freaking old) against the 10-0 Vikings. Washington blew a 21-point lead and then a 10-point lead before pulling off a 31-30 come-from-behind win.
This time around, the ‘Skins built three different ten-point leads, and blew each of them.
The key moment came when D.C. kicker Shaun Suisham missed a 26-yard field goal with 1:56 to play, which would have pushed the lead back to ten points. (Somewhere, Gary Anderson laughed his ass off.) Five plays later, the Saints forced overtime.
Washington won the toss tp start overtime, but a key fumble ruling via replay (we’ll make the play the subject one of the topics of our Morning Aftermath offering) gave the Saints the ball at the Washington 37. Seven plays later, Garrett Hartley didn’t miss an 18-yard field goal attempt.
Saints 33, Redskins 30.
Some will think that the game provides proof that the Saints can be beaten. We tend to think that it confirms their invincibility. If they ever were going to lose a game, it would have been today, six days after a huge win over the Patriots in a game played in temperatures below 40 degrees.
Now that the bullet has been dodged, the Saints will be more likely to roll the Matt Ryan-less Falcons, the Cowboys at home, and the Bucs at home.
In the end, it’ll likely come down to Saints and Panthers in Charlotte on January 3. Maybe the ’68 VW bus will stop in Charlotte for that game, while we’re making our way back from watching the Mountaineers give Bobby Bowden a gold watch -- and a butt whupping -- in the final game of his coaching career.