Running game » Alfred Morris did nice things vs. the Colts. But you have to give credit to the line and all the blockers for the most part, including tight end Fred Davis. Morris rarely had to dodge defenders in the backfield, and more often than not the first contact he received was past the line of scrimmage. He got extra yards, but the creases were there. Time and again the interior of the line had re-established the line of scrimmage a yard or two downfield. It didn’t always result in a huge run, but it certainly led to positive gains. It also must be said that the Colts have a long way to go to become a good defense. A long way. Morris had one run in which he wasn’t touched for the first 16 yards en route to a 24-yard gain.

2

First down » The Redskins’ 16 first-down plays gained 77 yards (35 coming on gains of 18 and 17). They never lost yardage on first down. In fact, the first-team offense had no plays on which it lost yardage (no penalties on this unit). For the game, the Redskins had one play from scrimmage that lost yardage (aside from a Jordan Black hold and a Kirk Cousins kneel down at the end of the game). That’s impressive, but it also speaks to the troubles Indianapolis’ defense will face this season.

3 Chris Chester »

He made a big difference at right guard. On the second play of the game, he hit defensive tackle Fili Moala off the line, moved him back a couple yards and then headed to the linebacker. Right tackle Tyler Polumbus, who had a solid game, then had a clean cut block attempt of Moala. Polumbus failed to get him on the ground, but Chester had done his part. Later in that same drive, Chester’s patience resulted in two blocks. First he stayed on Moala long enough for Polumbus to take over and then went to the linebacker for another block on a 5-yard run to the left.

4

Robert Griffin III » The rookie’s 11-yard pass to Josh Morgan was impressive. Pressure by Polumbus’ man forced Griffin to step up and slide to the right. Defensive coordinators will cringe at this sight. He delivered a perfect strike just over the head of the defensive back to Morgan, a gorgeous throw on the move. Griffin was patient on this one, looking left, right and back to the middle before sliding. And only 2.78 seconds elapsed.

5

Tim Hightower » The running back showed his veteran savvy on one blitz pickup. He started outside to take a corner blitz but spotted a linebacker coming inside. The rule of thumb: Take the most dangerous man. And that means picking up anyone in the middle, which Hightower then did. It enabled Griffin to unload a pass in 1.96 seconds to Davis. He made an athletic move to turn inside and get seven yards after the catch.

6

Adam Carriker and Barry Cofield » Both defensive linemen played well in the middle. The Colts struggled to move either of them, leading to clogged running lanes. Cofield is playing much better than at this point last season. He plays with an excellent base that enables him to play stronger. It has shown this summer. He’s not always making plays, but the linebackers had clean paths to the ball.

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