FEDEX FIELD — Shel Silverstein famously wrote that "there are no happy endings. Endings are the saddest part. So just give me a happy middle, and a very happy start."
That poem seems apt to describe Washington's season thus far, after opening with two straight come-from-behind wins before a dose of reality arrived at FedEx Field in the form of a 37-3 Commanders loss to the Buffalo Bills.
Things fell apart early for Washington. In the Commanders' first 11 offensive plays, Washington gave up three sacks and young quarterback Sam Howell threw an interception.
In fact, this was easily Howell's worst game of his NFL career.
Recognizing this is only Howell's fourth career start and that there's obviously going to be growing pains along the way, this was still a bad game. He finished with four interceptions and repeatedly took sacks when he could have thrown the ball away.
The Commanders offensive line wasn't much help for Howell either. Again the tackle position appears to be problematic as there was repeated pressure from the Bills edge rushers Leonard Floyd and Terrell Bernard.
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And one week after brilliantly deploying an explosive offense in Denver, offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy needs to face some questions. Washington only ran the ball five times in the first half of this loss despite lead back Brian Robinson averaging more than 5 yards per carry.
The difference in protection that Washington provided Howell compared to what the Bills offensive line provided their star QB Josh Allen was stark. Howell was sacked nine times and seemingly pressured on most of his drop backs.
Allen wasn't sacked at all through the first three quarters of the game and when he was pressured, he turned upfield and became a major factor with his legs. He finished the game with three rushes for 46 yards and a rushing TD.
Washington's defense played okay for most of the game. The Bills scored 38 last week in a win over the Raiders, and the Commanders held the explosive Buffalo group to only 16 points through three quarters.
The Bills were able to pile on the points in the fourth quarter after another Antonio Gibson fumble. As if things the issues of a young QB having a bad game weren't enough, the continued fumbling from Gibson is a major issue. He's lost a fumble in both of the Commanders home games this season.
The short version to explain Washington's performance: Bad.
The longer version requires more context. The Bills are a true Super Bowl contender. They've made the playoffs four straight years and Allen is a true franchise quarterback. Buffalo's built to win, right now, and maybe win it all.
Despite the 2-0 start and so much excitement after the departure of Dan Snyder, the truth is Washington is not on the same level as Buffalo.
Ron Rivera's built a team that can compete with the middle of the pack in the NFL, but against the elite, the Commanders don't belong.
At least not yet.
