Washington took an early lead over a NFC East rival on Sunday when they jumped ahead of the Cowboys 7-0, but they didn’t have any more luck protecting that lead than their 17-0 edge over the Eagles in Week One.

They wound up getting outscored 31-14 by Dallas over the final 44 minutes of the game and they ended the contest with 255 offensive yards while the Cowboys racked up 474 of their own. Washington has struggled to run the ball in both games while injuries and left tackle Trent Williams‘s holdout have sapped the team of some key talent.

It’s a less than ideal state of affairs, but it isn’t one that’s leading head coach Jay Gruden “to hit the panic button yet.”

“We played two games, and [we’ve] got to keep [issues] in-house and stay together. A lot of people are going to try to tear us apart . . . and deservedly so, probably,” Gruden said, via the Washington Post. “But we’ve played two very good football teams. . . . We have a young team that’s going to develop and grow. We need veterans to step up and take this team by the throat. I think it will happen. I still feel very optimistic about the future of this football team.”

They’ve lost two games against 2018 playoff teams by a combined 15 points, so it certainly seems premature to talk about panicking even if there’s real reason to wonder if Washington’s going to get appreciably better with the hand they’re playing this season. Next Monday against the Bears will provide some answers on that front.