What the Washington Redskins Must Improve Most Coming out of Week 10 Bye

A bye week is typically the time for teams to regroup and get healthy from the season to that point. The Washington Redskins don’t have many players who will get healthy and return, and many of their issues are too much to simply regroup from.

Nevertheless, a 3-6 start is not where the Redskins want or need to be, and the bye week should prove beneficial heading into the second half of the season.

With seven games remaining, a bye week alone isn’t going to be enough to fix the multitude of problems the Redskins have. It would have been better to go into it coming off a couple of wins, but things could be much worse.

Here are a few things the Redskins need to improve during their bye week.

Getting Pierre Garcon Involved

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The arrival of DeSean Jackson was supposed to make life easier for Pierre Garcon. Coming off a season in which he led the league in receptions, he should have been poised to truly break out as an elite receiver.

Garcon has more receptions (42) than Jackson (36), but the bulk of his catches have been on short routes or bubble screens that don't amount to many yards.

At his best, Garcon can pick up big yards after the catch with his physicality and underrated ability to turn on the jets to outrun defenders. At his worst, he has trouble getting open and creating separation down the field to allow for bigger plays.

Garcon may not be as explosive as Jackson down the field, but he is much better than the 10.9 yards per catch he is currently averaging. He is actually averaging half as many yards per catch as Jackson, who leads the league with 21.8.

Washington should run him out of the slot, get him running off picks or simply do something—anything—to get him the ball with some room to either run for daylight or run through a defender. As long as it isn't more bubble screens.

Utilizing Niles Paul and Jordan Reed

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Most fans and experts will agree that Jordan Reed has the potential to be a special player. Injuries and the offense’s inconsistency have led to a slow rise for the star, but all the signs are there.

Niles Paul, on the other hand, is a player who has had few chances to prove his mettle, switching from receiver to tight end and being relegated to special teams duty.

In Reed’s absence this season, Paul emerged as a serious threat in the passing game.

A full house package with Roy Helu and Paul in the backfield, and Reed, Jackson and Garcon split out would pose a problem for most defenses.

Jackson is the best deep threat in the game. Garcon is one of the most violent runners as a receiver. Helu is an underrated receiving back. Reed is a rising star. And Paul is too fast for most linebackers and too big for a number of safeties to outmuscle.

Unless the Redskins intend on using Santana Moss or throwing Ryan Grant into a serious role, they need to get the most out of the weapons they have. Paul and Reed could be one of the best tight end duos in the NFL if used properly.

Pass Coverage

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The Minnesota Vikings could have—and maybe should have—beaten Washington much more soundly than they did. Specifically, David Amerson and Ryan Clark had a bit of a miscommunication that led to Cordarrelle Patterson being wide open down the field a good 20 yards ahead of any Redskins defender.

Amerson is young, spry and will learn from the mistake. Clark is an old dog in the twilight of his career, making him a liability in the secondary.

Bashaud Breeland has been a bright spot at corner after being thrust into the starting role with DeAngelo Hall on IR with an Achilles tear. Amerson and Breeland are not the problem.

Clark is too slow to be starting at free safety. He is too slow to hold up in coverage, which forces the Redskins to keep Brandon Meriweather out of the box and in coverage, where he is not suited to be for any extended period of time.

For the Redskins to improve their secondary play, they will need to mask it—the way they did against the Dallas Cowboys, in particular.

They kept Meriweather in and around the box throughout the game, offering the threat of a safety blitz off the edge or up the middle.

They did not do that against Minnesota. They allowed a single touchdown throw to change the entire game plan.

Applying pressure is the best solution to the secondary being unable to maintain coverage for the Redskins.

Pass Rush Consistency

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There is little hope for the secondary to make dramatic improvements during the bye week, which means the front seven is going to have to do more. The Redskins have the personnel to disguise their pressure packages, yet the scheme seems to fall apart when there isn't a safety in the box.

Against Minnesota, Washington had some success pressuring Teddy Bridgewater early. But it found little success over the course of the game when Meriweather was dropped back in coverage.

Ryan Kerrigan, Trent Murphy and Jason Hatcher have combined for three sacks and 14 total tackles over the past two games, and it is from this trio that the Redskins need more. They offer the most versatility and each is relentless in his attack.

As much as it may seem unfair to expect more out of the pass rush because the secondary is unable to hold up its end of the bargain, it is the best chance the Redskins have at righting the ship on the defensive side of the ball.

The corners and safeties can't give up big plays if the pass rush is forcing quarterbacks into bad throws or sacks.

Everything on the Offensive Line

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The offensive line has gone from an excellent run-blocking and mediocre pass-blocking unit to being horrible at both, making life infinitely more difficult for Alfred Morris and the quarterbacks.

Shawn Lauvao and Chris Chester have been disappointing at guard this season, and both are giving up a ton of ground to defenses pressuring up the middle. And it isn't as though teams are bringing the house. Lauvao and Chester are giving up pressure to four-man fronts, which means there is no pocket to speak of for any of the Redskins' quarterbacks.

The situation at right tackle remains unsettled, as Tyler Polumbus and Tom Compton appear to be locked in a battle for who is easier to beat on the pass rush.

Rookies Spencer Long and Morgan Moses have not progressed to the point of pushing for significant time or starting roles on the line, so the offense has suffered through the status quo.

This may be the most daunting bye-week task the Redskins have, since it is nearly impossible to improve with very little to work with.