LANDOVER, Md. — Washington stayed with its plan to run the ball.
Running backs Brian Robinson, Antonio Gibson and Jonathan Williams combined to rush 31 times for 159 yards in a 19-13 victory over the Falcons on Sunday. Overall, Washington ran the ball 37 times for 176 yards and averaged 4.8 yards per carry.
The commitment to the run allowed Washington to amass 33 minutes and 9 seconds in time of possession.
“Too many missed tackles,” Falcons defensive end Grady Jarrett said. “I’ve got to run back and see the film. But maybe too much leaky yardage. A couple of mushed plays that could have went the other way.”
Robinson led the way with 105 yards on 18 carries. Gibson, who played at Eagle’s Landing High and Memphis, rushed nine times for 32 yards. Williams added four carries for 22 yards.
“We just have to be stouter,” Jarrett said. “It’s (the defensive) line, the linebackers or however it may be. Even myself, just be better. We just have to review this tape and get better.”
Linebacker Rashaan Evans led the Falcons with 13 tackles. Mykal Walker, who had an interception, was second on the team with nine tackles.
“We do have to play stouter,” outside linebacker Lorenzo Carter said. “We can’t give up all of the big plays and the explosive plays. Especially on the ground. That’s something that we’ve taken pride in all season. We gave up too much this game.”
The Falcons did not lose any ground to Tampa Bay, which lost to Cleveland.
“There are five more games this season,” Jarrett said. “We have to put our best foot forward. We put ourselves in this position. It’s going to be up to us to get out of it. We just have to go back to work.”
The Falcons have not been able to string together more than two wins this season. Their only back-to-back wins came against Seattle and Cleveland in weeks 3 and 4. They had a chance to build on their win over the Bears but couldn’t stop the Commanders’ rushing attack and the offense wasted two opportunities to take the lead in the fourth quarter.
Jarrett believes the Falcons can rebound from the 19-13 loss.
“If you’re going to line up and be able to play on Sunday, you need to have that mindset,” Jarrett said. “If you don’t (have it), you’re in the wrong place. As a competitor, you should want to put your best foot forward. Win games when you get to play them. There should not be too much hooray. It should be some easy ‘want to’ to get back to work and get better.”
Shortly after the loss, the Falcons found out that they blew an opportunity to move into first place.
“You can’t lie and say it was not a missed opportunity because it was,” Jarrett said. “But, at the end of the day, we still have life. We still have stuff ahead of us to be able to strive for.”
The Falcons thought they had a good shot to defeat the Commanders, who had won five of their previous six games.
“We went all the way to the end,” Jarrett said. “We felt good about our chances coming into this game. For it to go down how it did definitely hurt.”
The Falcons have moved on from the costly interception in the final minute of the game.
“We’ve got to go back to work,” Jarrett said. “We can’t sit here and sulk in this for too long. We have to get back to work. It’s one of those losses where you want to get back on the field quick. Get the taste out of your mouth and be excited to play next week.”
The Falcons play Pittsburgh and then finally get to their bye week.
“All losses are tough,” Jarrett said. “Being at the highest level of professional football that there is, you can’t win all of them. But, at the end of the day, we don’t plan to take L’s. You don’t know they are going to come or when they will come. You’ve got to be able to respond.”
The Falcons know they’ll likely be in more close games.
“That’s the NFL,” Carter said. “That’s why I let the young guys know, especially after these tough losses. You never know what play, which series or what play, what call. You’ve got to take advantage of every opportunity because ... at the end of the day, it’s going to come down to one or two plays, one score or less than one score.”
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Atlanta Falcons 2022 schedule
Sept. 11: Saints 27, Falcons 26
Sept. 18: Rams 31, Falcons 27
Sept. 25 Falcons 27, Seahawks 23
Oct. 2 Falcons 23, Browns 20
Oct. 9 Buccaneers 21, Falcons 15
Oct. 16 Falcons 28, 49ers 14
Oct. 23 Bengals 35, Falcons 17
Oct. 30 Falcons 37, Panthers 34 OT
Nov. 6 Chargers 20, Falcons 17
Nov. 10 Panthers 25, Falcons 15
Nov. 20 Falcons 27, Bears 24
Nov. 27 Commanders 19, Falcons 13
Dec. 4 vs. Pittsburgh, 1 p.m.
BYE WEEK
Dec. 18 at New Orleans, TBD
Dec. 24 at Baltimore, 1 p.m.
Jan. 1 vs. Arizona, 1 p.m.
Jan. 8 vs. Tampa Bay, TBD
