» Linebacker Perry Riley is still learning, which, of course, is expected considering he has made only five starts. He’s worth developing because of his speed and ability to play the run. But one thing that hurt young players such as Riley on Sunday was New England’s penchant for running a fast offense, giving them less time to read pass plays before the snap. Riley was beaten on a 50-yard pass to tight end Rob Gronkowski when he appeared to misread the play off the snap. He was beaten again later on a crossing route, and only a bad Tom Brady pass prevented an easy touchdown.
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» Roy Helu is fun to watch. In his first two games, Helu gained the majority of his yards after contact — 69 of his 100 vs. the Jets, for example, came that way. Helu has improved at pressing the hole from the start of the season. On a couple occasions Sunday, Helu set up defenders by racing to one hole, then at the last minute bouncing to another hole. The freed-up defender often was too late to follow. He didn’t get as many yards after contact Sunday, but he did get a lot of yards after he cut because he made defenders miss.
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» The Redskins need much better play from the secondary next season. Free safety Oshiomogho Atogwe has not delivered, whether because of injuries or ineffectiveness or both. But his issues haven’t always stemmed from a lack of explosiveness; sometimes it’s just that he has played it wrong. LaRon Landry is no lock to return unless the Redskins franchise him (a real possibility). Cornerback Josh Wilson has improved and has played much better in the second half of the season. But they could use another cornerback, and they need DeAngelo Hall to keep his composure more. Can he?
» The offense is fun to watch when it’s clicking. The coaches are aggressive and creative. They did a good job with the game plan and then with adjusting vs. New England — more inside runs, for example — especially given who the Redskins had missing from the lineup. But the Patriots used two receivers as defensive backs and already were a struggling defense. The best aspect of the game was not the passing but the running. It continued a trend, and if the Redskins finish the season strong on the ground, then they can build on that for next season.
