Washington Redskins: Complete Report Card for Their Preseason Week 2 Win

Everyone seems eager to point out that it is preseason and none of it matters. While that is true to an extent, it is impossible to overlook everything done during the preseason. The Washington Redskins have been crisp in their first two preseason games, grinding out a 16-3 win over the Indianapolis Colts in impressive fashion.

"Grinding out" and "impressive" don't typically go together, but you can blame the scoreboard for that contradiction.

The starting units played the first half, and the Redskins looked great for most of that half against the Colts' starters. Here's how the team fared in their Week 2 preseason victory.

Offense

The starting offense, with John Beck at the helm, ran six plays, covered 80 yards and scored a touchdown against the Colts' starters. The Colts played without Antoine Bethea, Ernie Sims and Tommie Harris, but the Redskins imposed their will for the first half. Zero punts in the first half, even for a preseason game, is a good thing.

Beck made his case for the starting job, Tim Hightower showed why the Redskins traded for him and the offensive line bent, but did not break.

Beck completed 14 of 17 passes for 140 yards, but was sacked three times. Even in the face of pressure he remained poised in the pocket, which is a great skill to have. Hightower ripped off a 58-yard run in the opening drive, and capped it off with a short touchdown run. Beck got both Logan Paulsen and Fred Davis involved, though Davis nearly fumbled after his catch.

The starting receivers didn't see a lot of action with the success of the running game, but Santana Moss and Jabar Gaffney displayed their value with a catch apiece as part of the opening drive.

Despite producing over 200 yards of offense in the first half, the Redskins managed just one touchdown in four red-zone trips, which is not going to cut it in the regular season.

Still, they moved the ball and only Rex Grossman turned it over with a second-half interception.

Grade: B

Defense

The defense didn't allow a single point until a third quarter field goal from Adam Vinatieri spoiled the shutout. Brian Orakpo was all over the place, Ryan Kerrigan got his first sack as a pro and the Colts offense was limited to 150 yards for the entire game.

Regardless of Peyton Manning and Reggie Wayne's absence, the Redskins defense looked great from start to finish.

The front line of Jarvis Jenkins, Barry Cofield and Stephen Bowen had their way with the Colts offensive line, forcing Curtis Painter out of the pocket and into sacks. A couple of screens found their way through the Skins defense, but the running game was stifled for the most part.

Rookie Brandyn Thompson made a great play for an interception on a deep pass in the second half, which is more than last year's starter Carlos Rogers could ever do.

London Fletcher, OJ Atogwe, LaRon Landry and Adam Carricker sat out for the game, making the chemistry on defense all the more impressive.

Grade: A+

Special Teams

Last year's pariah is the preseason hero, as Graham Gano has been great on kickoffs, field goals and extra points thus far. He was a perfect 3-for-3 against the Colts and managed to limit Indy to just 22 yards on one return.

Sav Rocca showed good hangtime and accuracy on his four punts, booting one for 52 yards.

Terrence Austin had two punt returns for good yardage, including one for 29 yards where he displayed good speed and vision maneuvering through traffic. Punt coverage held the Colts returners to 10 yards on two attempts.

The Redskins look overloaded with special teams aces, but that is never a bad thing. Perry Riley had a nice hit on the kick return, and Austin did good things with his limited touches. While Brandon Banks deals with knee issues, he'll still have his chance to take over as kick returner or expand his role with the team.

Grade: A

Rookies

This was an awesome game for the Redskins rookies. Ryan Kerrigan recorded a sack in the first half displaying strength and tenacity as he pushed his blocker back, fought through traffic and dragged Curtis Painter to the turf.

A glimpse of the future for Kerrigan, and only a small helping of what Washington's first-years did against the Colts.

Cornerback Brandyn Thompson showed off his speed and hands on a second-half interception. Jarvis Jenkins got the nod at defensive end with Adam Carriker out with blisters, and he showed good strength and technique. Chris Neild got some time at nose guard, and a good push on a few plays.

Leonard Hankerson redeemed himself from last week with three catches for 46 yards, but it was running back Roy Helu who stole the show.

There were questions about Helu's weakness in pass protection, which were silenced by his 101-yard rushing performance to go along with 23 receiving yards. Helu broke a run for 51 yards that saw him hit the edge, hop away from the sideline and run for an extra 40 yards. He even recovered what would have been a Fred Davis fumble, and ran it for a few yards.

Grade: A+

Overall

The starting offense played a great first half with the exception of their red-zone success. The starting defense, minus a few key starters, played a great game. There is a lot to be excited about just from this game. Good chemistry on both sides of the ball, the increasingly intriguing quarterback battle, the explosiveness of the running game, the pressure on defense.

The veterans showed up, the rookies impressed and there weren't any season-ending injuries to any indispensable players.

If the defense continues to gel, they could be Top 10 material before long. If the offense improves their grasp of the Shanahan offense, they may overcome their apparent quarterback deficiency.

If I didn't know any better, I'd say the Redskins were on their way towards returning to respectability. Not to get too worked up over a victory in August.

After all, it is still just preseason.

Final Grade: A