The Washington Football Team is preparing to play their first playoff game since 2015 as they host the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Saturday at 8:15 PM. Washington is coming off a 20-14 win, albeit an ugly one, against the Philadelphia Eagles to clinch the NFC East. Despite their record, making the playoffs wouldn’t have been possible without the efforts of DaRon Payne and Jonathan Allen. At 7-9, the Washington Football Team is a heavy underdog against the 11-5 Buccaneers.
For Washington to keep the game close, they must rely on their defense, a unit that ranked fourth in the NFL in points allowed and second in total defense during the regular season. The identity of this defense is the vaunted defensive line, with five first-round picks and quality rotational pieces like Tim Settle. However, they face a unique test this week in Tom Brady. While Brady lacks any semblance of agility and speed, he excels at maneuvering the pocket and stepping up to evade the edge rush. In addition to Brady, the Buccaneers offensive line has surrendered just 22 sacks on the season, the fourth-lowest in all of football. While Chase Young and Montez Sweat may headline the Buccaneers game plan, rightfully so, DaRon Payne and Jonathan Allen are key because they attack Brady’s primary weakness: interior pass rush.
DaRon Payne and Jonathan Allen are Key for a Win Over Tampa Bay
Providing a Strong Interior Pass Rush
The blueprint for keeping Tom Brady off-balance is clear: generate an interior pass rush. In 2018, Brady had a 63.1 passer rating when pressured from the interior, while posting a 118.7 passer rating against edge pressures. Although the Buccaneers have an excellent interior offensive line, with Ali Marpet manning the middle, Jonathan Allen, DaRon Payne, and Tim Settle have a chance to take over a game with ten sacks between them this season.
In addition to generating sacks and hurries, Allen and Payne will open up opportunities for Chase Young and Montez Sweat. If Brady can’t step up into the pocket, then Sweat and Young should register sacks or, at least, force hurries causing off-balance throws for Brady. It could also lead to more one on one opportunities for Young, who is matched up with standout rookie Tristan Wirfs, and Sweat, who is matched up with Donovan Smith.
Stopping the Run
Forcing Tampa Bay to abandon the run will be critical if Washington wants to pull off this major upset. When the Buccaneers rush for more than 100 yards, they are 6-1 on the season, with their only loss being against the Chicago Bears. In games where they rush for less than 100 yards, they are 5-4 with a close win against the New York Giants, a team with an interior defensive line similar to Washington. While this may be dependent on the Washington offense jumping to a fast start, if Allen and Payne can push the line of scrimmage back one to two yards on each rushing attempt, it could force Tom Brady to attempt 45+ passes. This allows Washington to unleash their pass rush, with Sweat and Young.
On the flip side, if Ronald Jones II gets into a rhythm, as he averaged 6.5 yards per carry last week, then Tampa Bay could control the time of possession and open up the play-action game for their big-time weapons.
Allowing Jack Del Rio to Drop Seven in Coverage
While Washington isn’t a heavy blitz team, ranking 13th in blitz percentage according to Zach Selby, generating pass rush with their front four would be helpful to the secondary that has to match up with Chris Godwin, Antonio Brown, and Rob Gronkowski, even if Mike Evans does not play with a knee injury. Given Washington’s lack of “coverage linebackers,” it is unlikely that they consistently can play man coverage with Jon Bostic and Cole Holcomb against Gronkowski and Cameron Brate. With that being said, Washington could still send creative blitzes on third down with Kamren Curl and Holcomb.
Worth noting here that Washington's defense ranks 13th in blitz percentage but fourth in pressures. In other words, Washington is able to create problems for offenses without selling out on a blitz. https://t.co/t0p1OP2VHs
— Zach Selby (@ZachSelbyWC) January 6, 2021
But, especially with the limited practice designation for Kendall Fuller, Washington could limit the vertical passing plays by dropping seven in coverage and maintaining a reliable pass rush.
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