Washington Redskins Week 4 Report Card: Grading Each Unit

The Washington Redskins entered their Week 4 matchup against the St. Louis Rams with a couple of bad tastes in their collective mouths. Last week's tough loss to the Dallas Cowboys and last season's embarrassing loss to the Rams served as motivation to go out and put the game away early.

Though it didn't quite go as anyone would have hoped, the Redskins moved to 3-1 on the season heading into their bye week with their victory over the reeling Rams.

With the bye week offering a couple of weeks to iron out the lingering wrinkles in the Redskins attack, there will be a lot of focus spent on the positives and negatives from the first four weeks. Here is how each unit graded in Washington's win over St. Louis.

Quarterback

Rex Grossman needed a big game to make up for his game-ending fumble against the Dallas Cowboys. He turned in a spotty performance and saw his defense and running game pick up the slack to win the game.

Fans were calling for John Beck after the loss to Dallas; imagine how they're going to feel after the two interception outing against the lowly Rams?

Grossman saw some pressure from the Rams defense, but looked good moving in and out of the pocket as he felt rushers closing in. Whether by design or decision, Grossman was stuck in too many bootlegs and didn't go through his progressions.

He missed several open receivers in his effort to take a shot down the field.

One interception was clearly Grossman's fault, while the other belongs to Santana Moss, but the Redskins can't have Grossman fall back on old habits. Until he outright blows a game, Grossman will remain the starter.

The leash will only get shorter as time goes on and he doesn't eliminate the costly turnovers.

Grade: D

Running Backs

Tim Hightower has struggled to capture the form he displayed during the preseason, and we knew going into this game that the coaches were prepared to insert Ryan Torain. Hightower finished the game with eight carries for 24 yards, with Roy Helu getting 35 yards on his eight carries.

In his first action this season, Torain carried the ball 19 times for 135 yards and a touchdown.

Torain's second carry of the season went for 20 yards and a touchdown. Not only did Torain outplay Hightower, he looked more capable of running the stretch play. The biggest difference is the patience Torain displays.

Where Hightower looks to capture the edge with his speed, Torain was letting his blockers set up and then cutting hard through the hole.

Helu looked solid in relief of both Hightower and Torain, and should see his carries increase if Hightower doesn't improve over the coming weeks. The 196 yards on the ground made up for the mere 143 yards gained through the air, and Torain is the catalyst behind the outburst.

Grade: B

Receivers/Tight Ends

This was the first week that the Redskins offense thrived on the ground, even though the Rams were playing with a vulnerable secondary. Jabar Gaffney and Santana Moss led the way with nine catches and 101 yards between the two, but only Fred Davis had more than one catch after them.

Distribution will be key as the season progresses, and the Redskins were lucky they found success running the ball.

Receivers weren't given many chances to run after the catch, but were instrumental in converting 9-of-18 third downs. Moss let a pass slip through his hands on the second Grossman interception, which led to points for St. Louis.

Anthony Armstrong was inactive, but Donte Stallworth didn't do anything with the opportunity to play. It is apparent from his inactive status that the Redskins are taking they're time with Leonard Hankerson. But you have to wonder why they aren't giving Terrence Austin a chance to make some plays.

Nothing particularly impressive about the receiving corps, but nothing to really complain about aside from the lack of variety in the sets. That's more of a coaching issue, though.

Grade: B

Offensive Line

The offensive line did a good job in pass protection and excelled in run blocking. Trent Williams got blown up a couple of times, but was bailed out by some good pocket movement by Rex Grossman. The pass blocking has been a nice surprise so far, but could easily break down if Williams doesn't find some consistency.

Paving the way for Ryan Torain's 135 yards showed that it wasn't a blocking issue, but a running back issue for the Redskins' ground game.

When Torain entered the game, the offense seemed to run a little smoother than with Tim Hightower. The zone blocking scheme is still a work in progress, but they showed against the Rams how good it can be.

Center Will Montgomery was lucky his early snap was recovered by Hightower, or it could have been a much different story for the game.

At the end of the game, they kept Grossman cleaned and got Torain to 100 yards on just 19 carries. That's worth a lot considering how consistently disappointing the offensive line has been in seasons past.

Grade: B

Defensive Line

The defensive line had a big game to open the season and then settled in over the last two weeks. Against the Rams' shaky offensive line, the Redskins defensive line had a field day.

Barry Cofield has solidified the interior of Washington's defense, putting their run defense worlds ahead of where it was at any point last season.

Adam Carriker and Stephen Bowen account for 2.5 sacks, while Cofield recovered a fumble to set up a Redskins touchdown. After an early 13-yard run from Steven Jackson, the line kept him bottled up for just 45 total rushing yards.

Washington needed to create pressure to keep the game in hand, and their defensive line did a tremendous job controlling running lanes and collapsing the pocket for the linebackers to clean up the running game.

Grade: A

Linebackers

Ryan Kerrigan recorded another sack and another forced fumble, Brian Orakpo turned in 2.5 sacks, Rocky McIntosh spent a lot of time in the Rams' backfield and London Fletcher was quiet but still present in the middle of the defense.

In short, the Redskins linebackers had a great day in St. Louis.

Kerrigan and Orakpo gave the Rams tackles fits on most downs, and McIntosh looked great reading lanes and stuffing runs by Steven Jackson. Jim Haslett has the Redskins linebackers playing at an elite level, and the group will only get better as the season progresses.

Grade: A

Secondary

The Rams are 0-4 for a lot of reasons, and their receivers are a big one. Mike Sims-Walker has done nothing for the passing game, Danny Amendola didn't play this week and the likes of Brandon Gibson and tight end Lance Kendricks don't strike fear into the hearts of opposing defenses.

Washington's secondary had a quiet day, but only because the front seven kept the pressure on Sam Bradford.

The Redskins owe a lot of thanks to the Rams receivers for dropping several passes, especially a sure touchdown Bradford floated over Kevin Barnes's shoulder into the waiting hands of his receiver. DeAngelo Hall had the busiest day tackling, but the longest completion the Rams managed was just 25 yards.

There were some passes that could have, and should have, been intercepted. However, limiting the Rams to just 164 passing yards is a good way to make up for it.

Grade: B

Special Teams

The Redskins were solid, if unimpressive, in the special teams department. Graham Gano was perfect on two extra points and one field goal, Sav Rocca put three punts inside the 20 to win the field position battle, while kick and punt coverage kept the Rams to just 33 yards on returns.

Punt coverage, however, left a lot to be desired after the Redskins were penalized for hitting a defenseless player and failing to give the returner a chance to field the punt.

It was hard to not feel bad for Austin Pettis, who was leveled on each of his three return attempts before being replaced by Quinn Porter.

For the Redskins, Brandon Banks couldn't get going, and you have to wonder how long Danny Smith will stick with him returning punts. He hasn't displayed good vision to complement his speed, and has had some close calls fumbling punts.

The lack of a return game hurts the Redskins.

Grade: C

Overall

It wasn't pretty, and it was too close for comfort towards the end, but the Redskins came out on top. In a league that rewards wins and losses, not style, the victory is what matters.

The defense looked like it released some frustration on the seven sacks after failing to sufficiently batter Tony Romo last week. They got pressure from outside rushes, up the middle and on stunts. The response to the Rams pulling within a touchdown was tremendous.

The offense looked out of sync for most of the game, especially in the passing department.

Torain's impressive outing should make the coaches think about how they disperse carries among their three capable running backs. Mike Shanahan is looking like a genius with the Torain move. He's getting a lot out of a group that everyone else seemed content to write off before the season.

Overall, the Redskins looked solid. There are things to be happy about and things to be concerned about. They've got the bye week to figure out how to fix the problems and prepare for the rest of the season.

Final Grade: B