Sometimes people get caught up in what the media pays the most attention to with teams -- quarterbacks, front office drama, coaching missteps. Focus on that stuff and you might think Washington's football team is a disaster. But their defense might be surprisingly good this year, especially in fantasy terms.
Their offensive struggles -- they were last in scoring and next to last in total yards a year ago -- make everything more difficult on their defense. Negative game scripts like playing from behind, short fields to defend due to turnovers and an inability to move the ball; tough to overcome that. Their defense last year was 27th in both yards and points allowed.
But this is not a defense without talent. Four years in a row they've been beefing up their front seven via the draft. Their last four first-round picks (aside from Dwayne Haskins) are Jonathan Allen, DaRon Payne, Montez Sweat, and most recently Chase Young (pictured). They're starting to pay dividends.
Two years in a row, Washington has 46 sacks. Only four teams have more sacks than they do over those two seasons. That was before drafting Ohio State's Young (16.5 sacks a year ago) at No. 2 overall.
| TEAM SACKS, 2018-2019 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Team | '18 | '19 | Tot |
| Pittsburgh | 52 | 54 | 106 |
| New Orleans | 49 | 51 | 100 |
| Minnesota | 50 | 48 | 98 |
| Kansas City | 52 | 45 | 97 |
| Washington | 46 | 46 | 92 |
| LA Rams | 41 | 50 | 91 |
| Arizona | 49 | 40 | 89 |
| Carolina | 35 | 53 | 88 |
| Philadelphia | 44 | 43 | 87 |
| Tampa Bay | 38 | 47 | 85 |
| San Francisco | 37 | 48 | 85 |
| Green Bay | 44 | 41 | 85 |
| Jacksonville | 37 | 47 | 84 |
| Denver | 44 | 40 | 84 |
| Tennessee | 39 | 43 | 82 |
| Chicago | 50 | 32 | 82 |
| Baltimore | 43 | 37 | 80 |
| Buffalo | 36 | 44 | 80 |
| Indianapolis | 38 | 41 | 79 |
| Dallas | 39 | 39 | 78 |
| New England | 30 | 47 | 77 |
| Cleveland | 37 | 38 | 75 |
| NY Jets | 39 | 35 | 74 |
| Houston | 43 | 31 | 74 |
| Seattle | 43 | 28 | 71 |
| Detroit | 43 | 28 | 71 |
| LA Chargers | 38 | 30 | 68 |
| NY Giants | 30 | 36 | 66 |
| Atlanta | 37 | 28 | 65 |
| Cincinnati | 34 | 31 | 65 |
| Miami | 31 | 23 | 54 |
| Oakland | 13 | 32 | 45 |
Pass rush isn't everything. Washington has been only average in takeaways in recent years. And if they can't get their offense going, their defense won't enjoy enough favorable situations to really be a difference maker.
But I like the idea of spending a late-round pick on the Washington defense this year. With the talent in the front seven, it's going to have some very good weeks. Not sure I'm ready to call them a great sleeper, but they're in the discussion for those who prefer to wait until the last round to select one.
--Andy Richardson