Doug Pederson: 'Comes Down To One Or Two Plays A Game'
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- The Washington Redskins are one of the NFL's top offenses.
However, the Eagles held them to just two third down conversions and a modest 334 total yards, well below their second-best average of 412. But when it mattered most, Washington's quarterback Kirk Cousins orchestrated an eight-play, 77 yard game-winning touchdown drive with 4:49 left in the game.
"I thought overall, defensively, this is one of their better games down the stretch," Pederson said on Monday's 94WIP Morning Show. "When you hold a team like we did for only two third downs [on seven attempts] and we gotta get off the field, we have the pick six. It just comes down to one or two plays a game, that's the way these games usually come down. We pressured from one side on that last side that they ran the ball in and we just lost contain on the front side."
Listen: Doug Pederson on the 94WIP Morning Show
Redskins' running back Chris Thompson ran it in from 25-yards out with 1:53 remaining to give his team a 27-22 lead, but in actuality, it benefitted the Eagles giving them enough time at a potential game winning drive.
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Carson Wentz and the Eagles marched 48 yards to the Washington 14-yard line, but a Ryan Kerrigan strip sack ended the game with 21 seconds to go.
"Looking at it, hind sight, it definitely might have been a blessing in disguise," Pederson said of the Redskins' final touchdown. "You never want to let a team score, but at the same time, it gave us a minute and 53 [seconds] and a timeout to get our two minute offense going."
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Did the Eagles purposely let Thompson score?
"No, no, no, not at all," Pederson clarified. "It wasn't discussed like that. If that was us, I would have instructed our guys to go down and not score and then you make your opponent burn your timeouts and then you kick the field and win the game that way. So you don't give your opponent that much time and timeouts."
