Jon Bostic on how Washington's D can improve: 'Start faster' originally appeared on NBC Sports Washington
The Washington Football Team (1-1) is headed into Cleveland for a 1 p.m. matchup with the Browns (1-1) who, while seemingly dysfunctional, have a plethora of capable weapons, specifically on the offensive side of the ball.
With that being the case, the Washington defense is looking for ways to put a more complete game together on that side of the ball, especially after two abysmal first-half performances against the Philadelphia Eagles and Arizona Cardinals.
For some odd reason, this defense has struggled with setting the tone out of the gate. Through the first two weeks of the season, Washington has given up a combined 37 points in the first half of games but only seven points in the second half.
"We've got to start faster," linebacker Jon Bostic said in a 1-on-1 interview with NBC Sports Washington Football Insider JP Finlay. "When you put the film on, it's very clear. We may have a good series here and there but we need to start faster. We can't wait until the end of the first quarter, halfway through the second quarter, before we say 'hey, we've got to start playing now.'"
Bostic made it clear that both, players and coaches, have been focusing heavily on setting the tone at kickoff.
"We've got to play the full 60 minutes of football...we can't start slow or have a dumb penalty that puts us behind a little bit and gives them momentum," Bostic said. "We're just scratching the surface. We play good football in spurts."
