After Benching Haskins for Allen, Washington Now 7.5-Point Underdogs vs Rams in Week 5
- Dwayne Haskins has been benched as starting quarterback by the Washington Football Team in favor of Kyle Allen
- Washington is a 7.5-point home underdog to the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday
- Which way is the line likely to shift after this decision?
Dwayne Haskins is out. Kyle Allen is in.
The Washington Football Team will have a new starting quarterback as they take the field Sunday to face the Los Angeles Rams.
When the 2020 NFL season got underway, new Washington head coach Ron Rivera said he wanted to see what the young guy – meaning 2019 first-round draft pick Haskins – had to offer the team.
Evidently, Rivera has seen enough.
Washington, 1-3, is a 7.5-point home underdog on Sunday in the LA Rams vs Washington odds.
LA Rams vs Washington Football Team Odds
| Team | Moneyline | Spread | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Los Angeles Rams | -360 | -7.5 (-110) | O 45.5 (-110) |
| Washington Football Club | +300 | +7.5 (-110) | U 45.5 (-110) |
Odds as of Oct. 7th at DraftKings.
Washington is 4-11 over the past two seasons with Haskins as starting QB.
Is Dwayne Done?
Rivera didn’t just bench Haskins. He buried him. According to the NFL Network, the player Washington picked 15th overall in the 2019 NFL Draft is now #3 on the QB depth chart, behind Allen and Alex Smith.
Oddly enough, Haskins is coming off his best game of the season in terms of raw numbers. He passed for a season-high 314 yards in Sunday’s 31-17 loss to the Baltimore Ravens. His passer rating (90.4) and completion percentage (71.11) were also season-highs. But he didn’t find the end zone once during the game.
The Dwayne Haskins Experience:
🔸 Get drafted 15th overall by a HC on the hot seat
🔸 Play for three HCs in 13 games
🔸 Get vote of confidence from Ron Rivera to start the season
🔸 Go from No. 1 to No. 3 QB after four games— Kimberley A. Martin (@ByKimberleyA) October 7, 2020
On the season, Haskins has thrown for 939 yards and shows a 61% completion rate. However, he’s passed for four touchdowns against three interceptions. His passer rating of 80.3 is the the fourth-worst among the NFL’s full-time starting QBs.
Might this spell the end for Haskins in the nation’s capital? Thanks to the disastrous landscape of the pitiful NFC East, Washington remains a playoff contender. Rivera appears to prefer experience under center while the postseason remains a possibility for the team.
Allen Keys
Another week, another Allen under center facing the Rams. Two weeks ago, LA was in Buffalo, facing Bills QB and NFL MVP candidate Josh Allen. He dealt them their first defeat of the season, a 35-32 setback.
This week, the Rams get the second-best Allen. Kyle is well-known to Rivera. He played 12 games in place of an injured Cam Newton for Rivera last season with the Carolina Panthers.
It started well. Allen opened 4-0 and was 5-1 after six games. Then it spiraled downward.
Jameis Winston led the league in turnover-worthy plays last year with 40.
Kyle Allen had 34 on 150+ fewer attempts.
If that's familiarity with the system, you can keep it.
— Sam Monson (@PFF_Sam) October 7, 2020
Allen lost his last six starts. He finished the season with 17 TD passes and 16 interceptions, meaning his TD percentage (3.5) was only slightly better than his interception percentage (3.3). His passer rating was 80.0 and his QBR a dismal 39.4. Allen also fumbled 13 times.
He did lead the league in in one category. Allen was sacked for more lost yardage (397) than any other NFL QB.
Allen Might Be a Placeholder
It could be that Rivera is just trying to buy time until Smith is ready to go. He’s still recovering from the horrific broken leg he suffered during the 2018 season.
I can understand Washington going a different direction, but i'd understand it a lot more if they just went with Alex Smith.
Kyle Allen isn't an improvement over Haskins. If you're going that route, might as well continue to let Haskins start and hope he improves.
— Dov Kleiman (@NFL_DovKleiman) October 7, 2020
Rivera has talked Smith up all through training camp. He’s a veteran signal caller who took both of his previous teams, the San Francisco 49ers and Kansas City Chiefs, to postseason appearances.
With Rivera sensing they have a shot in the bizarro NFC East, he might be hoping Allen can play well enough to keep them in the race until Smith is able to take the reins.
Spread It Out Further
Washington has lost three successive games by margins of at least 14 points. Amazingly, they covered in one of those games, which probably says more about how bad of a team they truly are.
The line on this game opened at Rams -8.5. It should go back there. The Rams are 3-1 and a legit playoff contender. Their only loss was by a field goal to the unbeaten Bills.
Kyle Allen is the new QB1. Alex Smith and Steven Montez behind him. Dwayne Haskins is not participating in the drill. pic.twitter.com/sVC9utLRwV
— Sam Fortier (@Sam4TR) October 7, 2020
Allen will be Washington’s seventh starting QB since 2018. At best, he’s a mediocre NFL QB. Then again, it could be argued that mediocrity would be a step up for this franchise.
Switching from Haskins to Allen at QB is kind of like shuffling the deck chairs on the Titanic. What difference does it make? You’re still going down.
An industry veteran, Bob literally taught the course on the history of sports at Elder College. He has worked as a Sports Columnist for Postmedia, appeared as a guest on several radio stations, was the Vice President of the Society For International Hockey Research in Ontario, and written 25 books.
