The Sports Xchange

ASHBURN, Va. — The Washington Redskins were looking at 90 yards of field and a four-point deficit Sunday against the Philadelphia Eagles. After a miserable night against the New York Giants 10 days earlier, there was plenty of reason to doubt that quarterback Kirk Cousins could engineer a game-winning touchdown drive.

But that is exactly what he did.

Cousins led a 15-play, 90-yard scoring drive that culminated in a Pierre Garcon 4-yard touchdown catch with 26 seconds to play. The Redskins won the game, 23-20, and evened their record at 2-2 in the wild NFC East.

“We try to focus on the process, not the results,” Cousins said. “It’s very important for us to take it one play at a time, stay in the moment, stay present. Don’t try to think about going 90 yards, don’t try to think about how we’ve got to get a touchdown.”

So much was made last season about Cousins shaking off bad performances — both during games and after bad performances like the Giants loss. He did that against Philadelphia.

For the second time in three games he didn’t commit a turnover. But Washington’s vaunted running game struggled against the Eagles’ strong defensive front, one of the NFL’s best at stopping the run so far in 2015.

That forced Cousins to throw the ball 46 times without deep threat DeSean Jackson (left hamstring injury). That’s been a recipe for disaster in the past. This time he peppered 31 completions to eight different teammates for 290 yards and that game-winning touchdown throw to Garcon, again showing the signs of improvement the Redskins need.

“As you get comfortable, you grow naturally,” Garcon said. “Kirk is seeing the same things that we are. That’s why we had a lot of completions on that last drive – the most important drive of the game. Kirk is growing as a quarterback and as a player.”

REPORT CARD VS. EAGLES

–PASSING OFFENSE: A. Kirk Cousins put the Giants game behind him quickly. Again without DeSean Jackson, he still managed a 91.8 rating with 31 completions on 46 throws. More important, Cousins used his entire arsenal with eight players finishing with at least one reception, including unheralded players like TE Derek Carrier and WR Rashad Ross, whose skill set most resembles Jackson. Ross’ only catch went for 43 yards. Most important, Cousins didn’t throw an interception.

–RUSHING OFFENSE: C. The going was tough against a rugged Philadelphia front seven, which ranked in the top 10 in run defenses entering the game. But the Redskins made just enough plays to make a difference – from Chris Thompson’s improbable 42-yarder on third-and-13 in the first quarter to Alfred Morris starting the game-winning drive with a 16-yard run up the middle. Morris had 40 rushing yards on the decisive drive. Rookie Matt Jones had just seven carries after fumbling two weeks in a row.

–PASS DEFENSE: C. Hard to give a grade any better than this when a team allows three touchdown passes. It doesn’t help that Philadelphia entered the game with an atrocious pass offense ranking among the worst in the league. QB Sam Bradford threw for 270 yards. But that was also expected. Washington is crippled at cornerback with only Bashaud Breeland healthy among the expected top four corners entering camp. SS Trenton Robinson struggled in pass coverage.

–RUN DEFENSE: A. Teams are learning quickly not to run on the Redskins. Terrance Knighton in the middle is a force at nose. The Redskins have a deep, rotating group of five defensive ends who defensive coordinator Joe Barry can mix and match depending on the situation. The Eagles managed just 87 rushing yards as the offensive line continues to struggle to open holes for DeMarco Murray, Darren Sproles and Ryan Mathews. Washington ranks second in the NFL in rushing yards allowed per game (78).

–SPECIAL TEAMS: B. Dustin Hopkins was solid on field goals and kickoffs. Punter Tress Way averaged 44.2 yards per punt and had a long of 63. But coverage continues to bedevil the Redskins, who lost their opener against Miami when Jarvis Landry returned a punt 69 yards for a score in the fourth quarter to break a tie game. Sproles returned a Way punt 45 yards late in the first half to set up a scoring chance for the Eagles, who couldn’t take advantage with a missed 33-yard field goal.

–COACHING: B. Give Jay Gruden and his staff credit. They got their players to put the Thursday night debacle against the Giants behind them. Washington got back to its identity: Pounding the ball early behind an improved offensive line and relying on its kicking game to generate an early lead and put Cousins in position to succeed. Joe Barry’s secondary is a mess with injuries. SS Duke Ihenacho is out for the season, too, not to mention the banged up cornerback unit. So he unleashed the pass rush. Washington sacked Bradford five times and could have had seven if LB Ryan Kerrigan hadn’t twice whiffed when he had Bradford down and out.