October 28, 2013
Ceci Ferrara
Sports Writer
Sports Insider
After edging out the Bears last week, the Redskins were hoping to string together a pair of wins when they visited the Denver Broncos (7-1) on Sunday. It seemed promising at first, with Washington holding the explosive Denver offense to just seven points in the first half and tying the game just seconds before halftime.
The momentum for Washington continued in the second half as they converted two quick turnovers into a 14-point lead. After recovering a Peyton Manning fumble and running it in for a touchdown, DeAngelo Hall intercepted Manning’s first pass for a pick-six and 21-7 lead. But instead of getting disheartened, the Broncos got to work.
Manning led a touchdown drive on his next possession en route to 38 unanswered points and a 45-21 win. He made up for three turnovers by throwing for 354 yards and four touchdowns. “You can’t give Peyton that many opportunities, because he’s going to take advantage of it,” coach Mike Shanaha said afterwards.
After his breakout game against Chicago last Sunday, RGIII looked mediocre in the Rockies. He completed just 15 of 30 passes for 132 yards, including one touchdown and two picks before exiting the game late in the fourth quarter. Shanahan removed Griffin from the game with a possible left knee injury, though in his post-game conference, Griffin said he was fine.
With the Skins trailing 21-38, backup QB Kirk Cousins made his first appearance of the regular season. Instead of reducing the 17-point deficit, he added onto it – throwing two interceptions, one of which was intercepted for the Broncos’ final score of the game.
It was certainly not the ending Shanahan envisioned for his return to Denver. Shanahan led the Broncos to two Super Bowl wins as head coach before he was let go in 2008. His return was met with a video tribute and applause by the fans, but a win would have been much sweeter.
Though the Skins fell to 2-5 (losses by the Cowboys (4-4) and Eagles (3-5)), Sunday meant the NFC East is still up for grabs. Even after starting the season with six straight losses, the New York Giants (2-6) have a chance. For the Redskins, that’s good news. If RGIII can stay healthy and the team improves in the second half of the season, a playoff berth isn’t that far-fetched.
Capitals
After starting the season 2-5, the Capitals went on a three game win streak to improve to 5-5. After beating the Blue Jackets at home and picking up road wins against the Jets and Oilers, the Caps were looking to extend their win streak on Saturday against the Calgary Flames (5-4-1).
They bested the Flames 5-4 during their first encounter earlier this season, but didn’t fare as well on Saturday. Kris Russell scored a goal for Calgary just over one minute into the first period, and Jiri Hudler followed with a second goal a few minutes later to give the Flames a 2-0 lead less than 10 minutes in. Washington’s left wing, Jason Chimera, gave the Caps their first points of the game with a goal in the first period. Then the Flames responded less than a minute later with their third goal of the period.
Washington added another goal in the second period, but it wasn’t enough to overcome the earlier deficit. Calgary tacked on two more goals in the third period for a 5-2 win that snapped the Caps’ three-game winning streak.
Afterwards, Capitals players suggested that they were unprepared for the game, which hindered their ability to either score or stop goals. “Just weren’t prepared to play. It was as simple as that,” goalie Braden Holtby said of his team’s performance afterwards.
Coach Adam Oates took a different perspective, instead commenting on the bright spots of the game, i.e., when they scored in the second period and were only down 3-2. “When we play right, that’s what it looks like,” he said.
The Caps have two more road games against the Vancouver Canucks and Philadelphia Flyers, before heading back to Verizon Center for a three-game home stay.
