The Washington Redskins were unable to come up victorious in the opening game of their season. And still the Steelers managed to put up 26 points every week on their way to a second straight playoff berth.
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The game airs September 12, 7:00 p.m. EDT on ESPN or online through the NFL Game Pass.
Roethlisberger then guided Pittsburgh 87 yards down the field, finishing the drive with a 29-yard touchdown pass to Brown on a gutsy fourth-and-1 call from the Washington 29.
With Wheaton out, the Redskins can key their entire pass defense scheme to shutting down Antonio Brown.
The Redskins are coming off a season that saw them win the terrible NFC East with a 9 and 7 record. Said Redskins defensive coordinator Joe Barry: “You see undersize linebackers or (defensive backs) literally just fall off him and bounce off him”. Williams rushed for 11 touchdowns and 907 yards on 200 carries last season. The bigger difference between Bell and Williams comes in the passing game, where Bell evolved into arguably the best receiving running back in the National Football League in 2014. Williams looks as fresh as ever. I think this is a winnable game for the Redskins and if I had any confidence in their ability to run the ball I might pick the upset. “You want a guy who is going to step up and be ready to go, try not to miss a beat”. We’ll certainly get some of that mystery uncovered tonight as they go up against DeSean Jackson and Jamison Crowder. Six of those third down catches resulted in touchdowns, which easily led the Redskins offense in that statistical category. Last he checked, the goal was to score as often as possible.
Pittsburgh’s test will be an unfamiliar one. Functional would be fine for most of the defense too, but a standout Washington debut from cornerback Josh Norman and a serious pass rush from Preston Smith and Ryan Kerrigan would help too.
The lack of a steady run defense in Washington will set up an intriguing matchup next week with the Dallas Cowboys and Alfred Morris, who the Redskins didn’t make an effort to re-sign this offseason.
Washington enters the season coming off an improbable division title in 2015 and, maybe, with a franchise quarterback in place.
Even with the season-long suspension of Martavis Bryant, the Steelers will have one of the NFL’s top passing attacks. That number includes 16 interceptions by Roethlisberger, his most since 2006.
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Rich Tandler: I’ve been trying to come up with a prediction for this game ever since the schedule came out. It will be the most interesting one to watch that is for sure.
