The Redskins had a rough game on defense and their special teams broke down again, but they were celebrating when the final whistle sounded largely because of the efforts of quarterback Robert Griffin III.
If that felt like a throwback to points in the 2012 season, it’s because Griffin looked a lot like he did as a rookie. He kept the ball on zone read plays and hurt the Bears with his feet, except for the times that he chose to give it up and watch Alfred Morris or Roy Helu do the same. Griffin also made plays through the air and improvised gains on plays that looked like they’d lose yards, leading to a 45-41 victory and a feeling from Griffin after the game that he’d recovered his form after the struggles of the first five games.
“Without a doubt,” Griffin said, via John Keim of ESPN.com. “We had a feeling about this game. I know I did. I talked to the guys before the game about having a breakthrough. We needed that breakthrough.”
The Bears defense is a mess, which was obviously a factor in how well things went for Griffin and the rest of the offense on Sunday and mitigates any attempt to say that all is well in Washington. That was the offense and the Griffin essential to last year’s success, however, and there wasn’t going to be any success this season until and unless it returned.