John Matthews
WMAL.com

LONDON — (WMAL) So THAT’S what kissing your sister is like.

The Redskins and Bengals did something Sunday that had only been done a half-dozen times before since 2000. They played to a 27-all regular season tie.

“I don’t know how to react,” Gruden said shortly after the game. “I didn’t think it was possible to tie. I know there was a tie last week in Arizona, but I was like, ‘How the heck did they tie?’ Now we know. Like I said, we’re [4-3-1], which doesn’t count for a loss. But we need to rack up some wins.”

So what does the tie mean for the Redskins going forward? There’s no real way of knowing until the final couple of weeks of the regular season. The tie could save the team’s playoff hopes – or doom them. Oddly enough, both the Seattle Seahawks and Arizona Cardinals also have ties on the year, and both should be in the playoff hunt along with the Redskins.

For now, the Redskins remain in sole possession of last place in the NFC East, but just a half-game behind the Giants and Eagles in football’s only division with teams all playing above .500 at the midpoint of the season.

So what do the Redskins have to look forward to as they enter their bye week?

1. Getting healthy

For fans who wonder why the NFL doesn’t play games in overtime until a winner is decided, the answer should be pretty obvious. Both teams would eventually run out of players.

The Redskins suffered six significant player injuries on Sunday, including three in overtime. Tight end Niles Paul, Tackle Morgan Moses and Safety Duke Ihenacho all left the game during the extra period, and in Ihenacho’s case, he was replaced by someone who had already left the game with an injury. Will Blackmon, who had fractured and dislocated his left thumb, finished up the game for the Redskins.

Earlier, Wide Receiver DeSean Jackson left the game after being struck in a helmet-to-helmet collision. Jackson cleared the concussion protocol, but did not return, telling reporters later he still felt woozy.

Cornerback Bashaud Breeland also left the game early, suffering from leg cramps.

2. Working on the Red Zone offense

The Redskins had no problems moving the ball between the 20’s, racking up 546 yards of offense, led by Kirk Cousins, who threw a team record 56 passes, completing 38 of them. Cousins also took only one sack in the effort, and offset his one interception with a pair of touchdown passes. Still, the Redskins wasted repeated scoring opportunities, scoring only one touchdown in four trips into the Red Zone.

The Bengals managed to stay with the Redskins and turned a 10-7 halftime deficit into a 20-10-point lead early in the second half because the Skins failed to put Cincinnati away when it had the chance.

“I mean, no matter, any game, you can always look back and say we should’ve did this, we should have did that,” left tackle Trent Williams said. “Hindsight is 20/20. You can’t really live in that world, especially in the professional football world, because you’ll drive yourself crazy.”

The Redskins players have to deliver on the field, but some of the blame has to be shared with Offensive Coordinator Sean McVay, who calls the plays. The Redskins have tried unsuccessfully off-and-on all season to score on corner fade routes into the end zone, adding to the Red Zone woes. That was not an issue on Sunday, but for whatever reason, the team has been unable to find open receivers when the field shrinks.

3. Paying their fines?

Josh Norman was fit to be tied after the game. The Redskins’ star cornerback was flagged five times during the game, including four times for illegal use of hands, and one time for pass interference while trying to cover the Bengals’ star receiver A.J. Green. Those made up a third of the Redskins 15 penalties in all, which included a questionable offensive pass interference call on Pierre Garcon that helped to kill the Redskins’ last shot at victory. To say the least, Norman was upset with the officiating. ‘

“Who’s 88? I gotta know. I just gotta know. Who’s official 88?” Norman asked, speaking of Side Judge Brad Freeman. “He sucked. I just gotta be honest with you. I’m just going to be honest with you. I’m going to be straightforward. He was terrible. I feel he should be reprimanded,” Norman added.

Norman was just getting warmed up.

“I just play the game, play it with physicality. That’s how we do it: all up in your face, hands on you. They know that. We do this. We come over here in an international game, and it seems like, sheesh, everything out the window that we do. Hit the guy on the line, five-yard penalty, hands to the face, hands to the face, hands to the face. But yet, every time I touched him, he knocked my hand up into his face. But I’m telling him, and he’s still calling it. How do you play like that?,” Norman asked.

The cornerback could very well receive a letter from the NFL office seeking to make a withdrawal on Norman’s weekly paycheck.

To his credit, Garcon did not play the blame game after being flagged on the questionable offensive pass interference call that knocked the Redskins out of field goal range as the clock wound down at the end of overtime.

““Eh, I can’t talk about the call,” he said. “Just got to play football. Should’ve never had it, but he called it. Gotta move onto the next play.”

4. Practicing their kicks.

It’s tough to hang the tie on Kicker Dustin Hopkins, but after a stellar start to the season, in which he hit 16 of 18 kicks, Hopkins missed two on Sunday. His 55-yard try on the final play of the first half fell short, and after being iced by Bengals coach Marvin Lewis, Hopkins missed what should have been a 34-yard game winner.

“I try my very best every time I go out, and that’s kind of the only standard I can hold myself to. Obviously, I expect more from myself. I can’t expect anything more from these guys. They played their heart out, so I’m disappointed for them. I’ll kind of let it sit for two days then get over it and get ready for the next game.”

Hopefully, it’s a good sign that his teammates appear to have Hopkins’ back.

“It’s not a one-man game whatsoever, so if anybody wants to go at [Hopkins] for missing field goals, I think you suck,” Norman said.”Things come up short. They really do. So if you’re putting this game on him, [you’re] terrible for it, and I just want you to know that.”

The Redskins will now enjoy a week off, and return home to face the Minnesota Vikings at Fed Ex Field on November 13th.

Copyright 2016 by WMAL.com. All Rights Reserved. (PHOTO: AP Photo/Tim Ireland)