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News | Washington Commanders - Commanders.com

Coaches Admire Garcon's Fiery Passion

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The Redskins' offensive resurgence since the bye week has the team on a five-game winning-streak, giving them control over their playoff fate with two games remaining. 

The team's top receiver over that stretch is offseason addition Pierre Garçon, who has made an improbable comeback from a painful foot injury to lead the team in receptions and yardage during the win streak.

His foot injury is still an issue, illustrated by his inclusion on the team's weekly injury report. But for now, the pain is manageable and the upside has been irreplaceable.

"I still have to get treatment, but it's coming along," Garçon said.  "I'm just out there playing football, excited to be out there.  I'm just giving it my all."

In the last four games Garçon has 340 receiving yards with three touchdowns.  Although he missed six games in the middle of the season, he still is ranked fourth on the team in receptions, third in receiving yards, and second in touchdowns.

Head Coach Mike Shanahan praised Garçon as well as teammate Joshua Morgan for their productivity and playmaking abilities.

"They come out and make yards after the catch," Shanahan said on Monday.  "They all take a lot of pride in blocking; they all are into the game. They are playing at a very high level, so every time they catch the ball, they expect to go the distance and that is what you're looking for."

Garçon has also increased the emotion of the receiver corps, throwing balls to fans in training camp and spinning the football every time he makes a catch in the game.

Even though a misunderstanding led to an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty last week in Cleveland, Garçon's coaches are convinced that the fiery passion is a good thing.

"He's angry out there and I love it," offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan said. "I think it rubs off on everybody. When you see a guy like that who's our top receiver and the way he competes in the run game and the way he fights for every yard, does not mind the contact, I think it bleeds to every receiver in the group.

"I think he's as good as any receiver in this league. He's the No. 1 receiver who can get open and wants to score and tries to score every time he touches the ball."

Both Garçon and Morgan are likely to join fellow receivers Santana Moss and Leonard Hankerson this Sunday as having surpassed 500 receiving yards this season as Morgan needs eleven more yards while Garçon needs just two.

"You're looking for playmakers, guys that believe in themselves," Mike Shanahan continued.  "Once they have the ball in their hands, they have the ability to break tackles and get the ball in the end zone."

There still some uncertainty as to which rookie quarterback will start against the Eagles, however Garçon has faith in the success of Robert Griffin III and Kirk Cousins.

"I don't know who's going to start, doesn't matter.  I know both guys have done well and hopefully they continue to do well," Garçon said.  "They're doing a lot of great things for us.  They're not trying to do too much; they're just winning the games for us."

The Redskins are expecting to play is a hostile environment in Philadelphia.  Garçon acknowledges that just because the Eagles are out of the playoffs, doesn't mean they are going to go down easy.

"Going into Philly is always hard," he said.  "They're going to play hard; they're going to fight hard.  Those guys are NFL players; they have a lot of jobs on the line so they are going to give everything they have."

No matter the situation, Garçon explained that when he is on the field he'll be giving it his all for the entire game.

"That's all I can control is giving it my 100 percent effort and that's what the coaches want is giving 100 percent effort," he said.  "You can't coach that, it's just about the person inside of you."

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