Washington Redskins: Examining the Team's Performance Through Week 4

The Washington Redskins enter their Week 5 bye week with a 3-1 record on the season and sit atop the NFC East. Head coach Mike Shanahan has the Redskins playing good football thus far and has surprised the NFL with an unexpected start to the season. Through four weeks of the 2011 season, I’ll take a look at how the performance of the burgundy and gold.

One of the key reasons why the Redskins are sitting at 3-1 is because of their defense. Washington ranks fifth in the NFL in total defense. Jim Haslett’s 3-4 defense is paying dividends as the Redskins have great talent at key positions in order to be effective. The only thing they need to work on is stopping the run.

Brian Orakpo and Ryan Kerrigan rushing off the edges has been a nightmare for opposing quarterbacks so far this season. With Laron Landry lurking in the secondary and London Fletcher still playing at a high level, the Redskins defense has looked impressive.

The running game now consists of the Tim Hightower, Roy Helu and the returning Ryan Torain, who had 135 yards on 19 carries this past Sunday against the St. Louis Rams. Even though the NFL is becoming more and more of a passing league, it is still vital to have an effective running game. Having three different backs to carry the ball is a rare occurrence in today’s game.

Hightower, Torain and Helu are all different styles of runners. We see Hightower run the stretch play that carries him a little outside the tackles, while Helu is a very quick cutback runner. Then you have Torain, who is your power back. Having these different styles of runners is a great way the Skins can use the clock and hit opposing teams right in the mouth. I expect the Redskins to continue to go with a three-back system throughout the season.

The Redskins offense has looked pretty good so far. There is definitely room for improvement, but overall they have been able to put up points, which they struggled to do most times last season. However, they need to improve in the red zone and play with consistency.

They took the foot of the gas against the Rams in the fourth quarter on Sunday and almost allowed them to come back in the game. Capitalizing in the red zone will allow you to put away teams and not have to worry about letting a team crawl back into a game.

Rex Grossman has played pretty well so far, but has had his ups and downs. The Redskins have a minus-one turnover ratio this season. Teams such as the Green Bay Packers, Baltimore Ravens, and New England Patriots all have at least a plus-four ratio. The Redskins are fortunate enough to be 3-1 right now. Grossman has to take better care of the ball and play consistent football following the bye.

With that being said, the Redskins have a minus-one turnover ratio and sit at 3-1, which means there is only room for improvement. This team will get better as the season goes along. The defense will continue to improve, which is scary to think about considering where it is right now. Shanahan will get this offense to play consistently and finish drives in the red zone.

At 3-1 and exceeding expectations so far this season, the outlook for the Redskins looks bright. The upside of this team is vast and it will be exciting to see them once they return from their off week.