WASHINGTON -- From Kirk Cousins zero-TD, two-pick performance and a total of nine penalties to the admittedly misguided coaching decisions and the out-of-its-depth defense, the Washington Redskins did not look ready to open the regular season.So now the question becomes: Can they get their act together in time to host the Dallas Cowboys next Sunday and avoid an 0-2 start?I think we were ready to play, Redskins coach Jay Gruden said Tuesday. We just didnt make the necessary plays to win.Not even close.After winning the NFC East last season despite never beating a team with a winning record, the Redskins opened this season with a dismal 38-16 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers on Monday night.There were all sorts of problems for Washington (0-1).Cousins showed, according to Gruden, that he still has some growing up to do as an NFL starter.There were the two interceptions and also other issues, such as miscommunication with DeSean Jackson on a run-pass option and several poor throws, including a trio early that were too low.Hes going to have some bumps along the way. Thats what all quarterbacks go through, Gruden said. How he responds to those downs will make or break him as a quarterback.The running game, which was not really targeted for improvement in the offseason, flopped early and then was abandoned: Washingtons 12 rushes were a league-low in Week 1. Gruden partially tried to explain that away by saying his team was behind in the second half, so wanted to accumulate chunks of yards via the pass.Thats the approach we took for this week, he said. Next week could be totally different.Gruden acknowledged that there were two bad decisions, in hindsight, on fourth downs in the first half. On fourth-and-1 at the Pittsburgh 40 during his teams opening possession, Gruden opted to punt.Then, later, on fourth-and-6 at the Pittsburgh 38, he chose to go for it -- and Cousins completed a pass to running back Chris Thompson short of the first-down marker.Wasnt good, Gruden said.Those two words apply to Washingtons defense, too.The front seven did not generate much of an effective pass-rush, except Ryan Kerrigans early sack-strip of Ben Roethlisberger, which went for naught when the Steelers wound up recovering the football.The run defense was nonexistent, as DeAngelo Williams replaced the suspended LeVeon Bell and gained 143 yards while scoring two touchdowns. And Antonio Brown was allowed to roam free for eight catches for 126 yards, including a 29-yard TD on a fourth-and-1 play.Brown was mostly covered by Bashaud Breeland, while this offseasons big splash, $75 million signing Josh Norman, stayed on his side of the field.We have just got to go back and look and correct our mistakes and then study Dallas and figure out things that we might be able to do differently from a personnel standpoint, from a coaching standpoint and go from there, Gruden said, speaking generally about his teams defense. But the game is done. Weve got to learn from it and move on.Game notes Gruden said the Redskins were deciding whether to re-sign DE Cullen Jenkins. In preparation for such a move, the team waived C Austin Reiter and released G Nila Kasitati from its practice squad. Reiter could be brought back as a practice squad player.---Online:AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and AP NFL Twitter feed: www.twitter.com/AP-NFL---Follow Howard Fendrich on Twitter at http://twitter.com/HowardFendrich Gordon Hayward Jersey . Burris threw two TD passes, including a key 15-yard fourth-quarter strike to Bakari Grant that effectively countered a Toronto comeback bid and led Hamilton to a 33-19 victory. Danny Ainge Celtics Jersey . The 29-year-old from Port Colborne, Ont., has nothing but good things to say about former U.S. marine Liz (Girlrilla) Carmouche ahead of their co-main event Wednesday on the UFCs "Fight for the Troops" televised card in Fort Campbell, Ky. http://www.celticssale.com/kids-jaylen-brown-celtics-jersey/ .com) - The game was all punts and field goals before Kodi Whitfields catch. Marcus Smart Jersey . -- PGA TOUR Canada member Steve Saunders took a three-stroke lead Saturday in the Web. John Havlicek Jersey . -- There were a lot of firsts for the Edmonton Oilers on Tuesday night. LAWRENCE, Kan. -- Last week, Iowa State coach Matt Campbell told his team that he refused to give up on this years Cyclone squad.Im not looking for next year, Campbell said of his message to the team. Im looking for right now.They took that message to heart. Only the clock could stop Iowa State in the second half as ISU scored on four of its five second-half possessions -- the fifth bleeding the final seconds off the clock -- and beat Kansas 31-24 for its first conference win of the season on Saturday.Jacob Park threw for 205 yards and two touchdowns, Allen Lazard had a career-high 10 receptions for 120 yards and a score for Iowa State (2-8, 1-6 Big 12).Hes a big dude, Kansas Steven Sims Jr. said of Lazard. Hes a big target, big guy. He can run and hes hard to cover. Hes hard, hes physical. Hes trouble for anybodys defense. He had a good game.David Montgomery had a career-high 169 yards rushing for Iowa State.The Cyclones scored on four-consecutive drives, including a 37-yard field goal by Cole Netten that capped the scoring with 2:48 remaining, and Jomal Wiltz intercepted a pass at the ISU 38 to seal it 40 seconds later.Yeah, that wasnt fun to watch, Kansas coach David Beaty said of the game. Weve got to get off the field (on defense). I thought we did some good things first half doing that, and then we didnt sustain our drives in the second half to go put points on the board. You cant kick field goals, man.dddddddddddd Youre not going to be able to kick field goals in this league and win. You cant do that. Youve got to score touchdowns. We didnt do it.Matthew Wymans 37-yard field goal gave Kansas a 17-10 lead early in the second half. Park hit Deshaunte Jones for a 12-yard touchdown and, after a 39-yard TD run by Kansas Keaun Kinner, Mitchell Harger scored on a 6-yard run to make it 24-22 with 10 seconds left in the third quarter.A 46-yard run by Montgomery set up a 1-yard touchdown run by Joel Lanning and gave the Cyclones the lead, 28-24, for good with 12:03 left.Carter Stanley passed for 171 yards and Kinner had 152 yards rushing for Kansas (1-9, Big 12 0-7).INJURY REPORT:Kansas tight end Ben Johnson missed the game with an undisclosed injury.THE TAKEAWAY:Kansas: The Jayhawks have lost 23-straight games against FBS opponents, dating to Nov. 8, 2014, when Kansas defeated Iowa State 34-14 at home.Iowa State: Iowa relied primarily on Jacob Park under center. Joel Lanning, the starter, completed 1 of 4 passes for 15 yards passing and added 9 yards on the ground.UP NEXT:Kansas hosts the Texas Longhorns on Nov. 19. The Jayhawks are still looking for their first conference win since 2014.Iowa State hosts Texas Tech on Nov. 19. ' ' '