Redskins win 2nd in a row, wins 29-21 over Panthers, Guice shines (12-1-19)
By: Drew Willingham
Headline Photo Credit: Garrett Campbell-Washington Redskins
Coming in to this game, the Redskins (2-9) were riding high off of a comeback win against the Detroit Lions. The Panthers (5-6) were looking to snap a three game losing streak and they had a chance to do so at home against a struggling team who has been searching for an identity all season long. Many people were picking Carolina to come away with the victory, but Washington believed they had a chance from the start.
This game would start out with Carolina steam rolling on the first two drives to take a 14-0 lead by the arm of quarterback Kyle Allen. Looking to give the fans of their team some excitement by taking control of the game from the start. Things were looking great for the Panthers. The majority of the first quarter would be a snooze fest for Redskins fans as their team would only score on a field goal to narrow the deficit 14-3.
Things would pick up for Washington in the second quarter as they would score on a field goal to be within 8 points of the Panthers. Carolina would look out of sync and completely the opposite of how they started the game in the first quarter as they would punt the ball on three drives and be intercepted on the fourth. The Redskins would score a touchdown towards the end of the second quarter on a 1-yard run from Derrius Guice. A failed two-point conversion would leave them trailing the Panthers 14-12 at halftime.
Washington would start off the second half with possession and come away with a field goal to take a 15-14 lead. You could see the squirming beginning to unravel on the sideline of the Panthers as they had been out scored 15-0 since their second possession of the 1st quarter. Both teams would exchange punts throughout the remainder of the third as we headed in to the fourth quarter.
Washington would lead off the fourth quarter with possession and a familiar face in Derrius Guice would find the end zone again on yet another 1-yard touchdown run. On their next drive, Washington would find the end zone again with a 12-yard run by Adrian Peterson. Carolina would finally find the end zone after being out scored 29-0 since their last score on a touchdown pass by Kyle Allen who had three on the day. The Panthers would recover the onside kick, but Allen would fumble the ball on the WAS 31-yard line to give the Redskins the victory.
The Redskins won this game on the stellar running game by Guice and Peterson. Dwayne Haskins seemed to be learning from his bumps in the road at the start of the season and now this team is on a two game winning streak. Carolina now on a four game losing streak decided to part ways with head coach Ron Rivera following this game and are now looking towards a total rebuild of their team for next season.
Washington (3-9) now travels to Lambeau Field to take on the Green Bay Packers (9-3) who are looking to get one step closer towards the playoffs with their rookie head coach. The funny thing is, even though the Redskins are six games under .500, they are still in the playoff hunt for the NFC East. It’s a long shot, but this franchise has pulled off some unbelievable comebacks before. Can they make history this season? It’s hard to believe it as they will have their hands full against a tough opponent this Sunday.
