The Washington Post - 21.10.2019

MONDAY, OCTOBER 21 , 2019. THE WASHINGTON POST EZ SU D11

kicked two more field goals, and

Washington’s players were left to

stand in the cold, hard rain and

contemplate the chances that

have slipped away for this entire

dreary season.

Afterward, the Redskins’ lock-

er room emptied quickly. There

wasn’t much for the players to say.

Hopkins said he didn’t want to

use the weather as an excuse for a

missed kick, but he also shrugged

because of course the downpour

had everything to do with why it

went awry. Offensive tackle Don-

ald Penn saw hope in nearly beat-

ing one of the NFL’s best teams,

but then he shook his head, sighed

about the missed chances and

said, “We’ve got to learn that when

we get people by the neck we have

to choke them out.”

Standing in front of his locker,

Peterson pulled on a shirt, saw a

mob of approaching reporters

and gagged a bit. At least it sound-

ed like a gag. It might have been a

gurgle, given the amount of water

that had accumulated outside.

He had only run for 81 yards

despite his promising first drive.

He smiled sadly and thought

about the fumble that had left the

Redskins’ last, best opportunity

sitting in the mud beside him.

“It hurts even more because the

guy didn’t even punch it out,” he

said about 49ers linebacker Kwon

Alexander, who knocked the ball

from his hands.

Down the damp corridor from

Washington’s locker room, Shana-

han was standing before his play-

ers and dedicating the game ball

to his father, Mike, the former

Redskins coach who was fired by

owner Daniel Snyder after the

2013 season. Mike Shanahan

wasn’t there to get the ball, but the

message was delivered.

The delighted son had been

able to avenge his father’s firing,

while the Redskins suffered in a

wet, cold misery of opportunities

missed yet again.

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the ball fell from his hands. Defen-

sive tackle Jullian Taylor recov-

ered it. The 49ers jumped in the

air, while Peterson sat in the mud

and slammed his fist into the slop.

That was the last of the Red-

skins’ great chances. Elated, the

49ers moved the ball better in the

fourth quarter, maintaining pos-

session for all but 2:44 of the

game’s final 15 minutes. They

was disappointing,” Callahan la-

mented.

But a quarter later they were

there again, this time on the San

Francisco 29 and surging toward

the end zone. At the time, the

49ers were clinging to a 3-0 lead,

only 1:20 was left in the third

quarter, and it was first and 10.

Peterson cut right and was tack-

led, and as he tumbled to the mud,

han said.

And they did get another op-

portunity, late in the first half,

when they got to the San Francis-

co 28 and didn’t dare attempt a

field goal on a fourth-and-one

play, instead handing the ball to

Peterson, who got knocked back-

ward for a one-yard loss.

“A play we’ve gone to many

times, and not to get that executed

meanwhile, remains stuck in the
mud at 1-6.
“We caught the rabbit eating
carrots, and we kicked him in the
back, but we just couldn’t grab
him to cook him up and eat him,”
Washington linebacker Ryan An-
derson said, in what seemed a
perfect summation of what had
happened on the field.
For more than a half, the Red-
skins outplayed the 49ers. Run-
ning back Adrian Peterson
splashed through the San Francis-
co defenders’ attempts at tackles.
Quarterback Case Keenum had
more passing yards than the
49ers’ Jimmy Garoppolo (which
wasn’t hard to do, because Garop-
polo only had 10 passing yards at
halftime). They even stopped the
49ers’ feared three-man running
attack. Yet none of it did them any
good.
The rain kept pouring down,
swirling around the stadium’s
half-filled tiers, and Washington
struggled to take advantage.
How about this for a break not
seized?
Peterson carried the ball on the
game’s first seven plays, sloshing
past 49ers tacklers who struggled
to keep their feet, let alone grab
hold of a 220-pound future Hall of
Fame running back in a soaking
wet uniform. He gained 36 yards
on those first seven carries and
wound up with 49 yards in total
on the first drive as Washington
got all the way to the San Francis-
co 21 only to have a holding penal-
ty push them back. With the
march killed, interim coach Bill
Callahan sent out kicker Dustin
Hopkins to attempt a 39-yard
field goal from a puddle.
“It was one of those things
where we say: ‘Let’s give it a try
and hope for the best,’ ” Hopkins
said.
He missed, by a lot.
“I just felt we’d be back in it and
have another opportunity,” Calla-

REDSKINS FROM D1

NFL WEEK 7

JONATHAN NEWTON/THE WASHINGTON POST

Coated in mud, 49ers guard Mike Person heads to the sideline during the third quarter. San Francisco controlled the fourth quarter, maintaining possession for all but 2:44.

Redskins sink further into mire of dismal season

TONI L. SANDYS/THE WASHINGTON POST

Redskins tight end Jeremy Sprinkle goes airborne after a hit by 49ers cornerback K’Waun Williams.

Excerpted from

washingtonpost.com/redskins

Hopkins is errant

on early field goal

The Redskins marched

63 yards on 10 consecutive

running plays, including eight

handoffs to Adrian Peterson,

to open the game before

Steven Sims Jr. caught a

shovel pass and was tackled

for a loss on third down in the

red zone. Dustin Hopkins

came on to attempt a 39-yard

field goal to give Washington

the lead but pushed the kick

wide right in rainy and windy

conditions.

Still scoreless

San Francisco’s second

possession, a 13-play drive that

lasted more than six minutes,

culminated in a 45-yard field

goal attempt by Robbie Gould

after Matt Ioannidis and Ryan

Kerrigan combined to sack

Jimmy Garoppolo on third

down. Gould’s kick had less of

a chance than Hopkins’s effort,

sailing wide to the left to keep

the game scoreless.

Peterson stuffed

Washington moved the ball

effectively on its ensuing

drive, and Coach Bill Callahan

left his offense on the field

after Peterson was stopped a

foot short of the marker on

third and short. Rather than

attempting a quarterback

sneak with Case Keenum, the

Redskins again gave the ball to

Peterson, who was tackled for

a loss of one by Jullian Taylor

and Ronald Blair. The 49ers

took over on downs at their

29-yard line.

Apke’s first pick

After a scoreless first half, San

Francisco went to the air on its

opening drive of the third

quarter and moved quickly into

Redskins territory. On fourth

and four from the Washington

36-yard line, Garoppolo fired a

pass down the left sideline that

was intended for Dante Pettis

but intercepted by Redskins

safety Troy Apke. The second-

year pro out of Penn State, who

entered the game moments

earlier in place of the injured

Montae Nicholson, returned

his first career interception to

the Washington 47-yard line.

49ers get going

It seemed it was only a matter

of time before the league’s

third-ranked offense got going,

and it happened midway

through the third quarter. On

third and three from the San

Francisco 30, Garoppolo found

wide receiver Richie James Jr.

wide open in the middle of the

field. James turned the easy

completion into a 40-yard

gain. Four plays later, Gould’s

28-yard field goal gave the

49ers the only points they

would need.

Peterson’s miscue

The Redskins threatened to

answer on their next

possession, thanks to a

roughing-the-passer penalty

on Solomon Thomas that

extended the drive. One play

after Keenum connected with

a sliding Trey Quinn for a 19-

yard completion to the San

Francisco 29-yard line, 49ers

linebacker Kwon Alexander

knocked the ball out of

Peterson’s grasp as the

running back was being

dragged to the ground. Taylor

recovered for San Francisco,

ending Washington’s last

scoring threat.

Swell for Dwelley

Leading 3-0 early in the fourth

quarter, the 49ers went for it

on fourth and one from the

Washington 35. San Francisco

called a play-action pass to

backup tight end Ross Dwelley

in the flat. Dwelley, who had a

drop in the first half, made a

diving catch for the first down,

and the 49ers added to their

lead with a 22-yard field goal

five plays later.

Kittle contributes

George Kittle had a quiet day

by his standards, with only

three catches for 38 yards, but

one of the Pro Bowl tight end’s

grabs came on third down

early in San Francisco’s final

drive, allowing the 49ers to

burn more time off the clock

before kicking a field goal that

iced the game.

— Scott Allen

DEFINING MOMENTS