Today the questions are asked and the answers anticipated; Monday, the questions are answered based off what did happen.
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1. Will the Redskins overlook the Rams? First off, how could they? Does anyone forget that Washington won four games last year? And that the Redskins are only 1-1? And that they’ve missed the postseason the past two years? They’re not as bad as the Rams, but they haven’t exactly been dominant themselves. Besides, their locker room is a strong one; excellent veteran leadership. If they struggle it’s not because they overlooked the Rams, it’s because they’re still not all that good.
2. Will Trent Williams play? Man, after seeing him limping around Wednesday I’d be stunned if he were able to go. He was looking better Friday, but still had a slight limp. Perhaps he could take a cortisone shot to help the pain in his toe, but with what Washington has upcoming — Philly, Green Bay and Indy – I’d make sure he’s right. If I had to guess, I’d say it’s 60-40 that he doesn’t play. But that’s really just a guess. I would expect Albert Haynesworth to play. Not as sure about Chris Horton or Anthony Armstrong and that’s why I think Ryan Torain was promoted; both play special teams and Torain can help in that area.
3. Does it matter who replaces Williams if he doesn’t play? Well, you always want to put the best guy out there. I have two thoughts: one, Chris Long is the Rams best D-end and he plays mostly on the left side. He’s more of a run stopper, so why not leave a stronger player against him. That would be Jammal Brown. However, the Rams love to blitz and that means you need someone more capable of handling that. Brown is better than Stephon Heyer every day of the week in that regard. But no matter where Heyer plays, the Rams will try to exploit him. Heyer has been brutal at left tackle in his career, which is one reason I pause when thinking, “Disrupt the line as little as possible and leave Brown at RT.” If you do that, you should also do a sign of the cross. Next question.
4. What is a sign of trouble for Washington? If they’re not able to contain Steven Jackson. The Redskins couldn’t really do so the past two years in Washington and, guess what, two close games followed. Jackson has carried the ball 41 times in two games and, though he’s averaging just 3.8 yards per carry, he’s limiting pressure on quarterback Sam Bradford. The Rams have a 17-13 scoring margin in the first half this year.
5. How good is Steven Jackson? Real good. Just watch his feet as he goes through the hole. He’s able to cut back well, but for a guy his size he can maneuver through narrow openings because of his feet. Doesn’t waste any movement; able to cut in a small box and when in doubt, he can run through guys. I laughed when Clinton Portis said he understood what Jackson has gone through. Please. It’s not even close. Jackson has been on dreadful teams; Portis has been on mostly mediocre one’s (albeit with unsteady QB play).
6. What are some matchups to exploit defensively? The Rams have a rookie left tackle in Roger Saffold and that forced second-year Jason Smith to right tackle. Smith wasn’t that good at left tackle, so they can definitely go after him, whether with Andre Carter or Brian Orakpo. The Redskins did well last week blitzing up the middle with just about everyone, even Carter. They need to get him going. As for Saffold, he’s a good athlete, but the knock on him is that he isn’t that strong. Orakpo plays with a ton of strength, using his hips to explode into blockers and move them back. Also, Maake Kemoeatu and Kedric Golston need to do a better job vs. the run. Both might be better suited as backups.
7. Will DeAngelo Hall get his wish? I’m guessing they’ll let Hall cover Mark Clayton for a few series at a time. Otherwise, he’ll be bored stiff. St. Louis likes to attack the right side of the defense, which means Carlos Rogers’ side.
8. What should they do vs. Sam Bradford? Obviously confuse the heck out of him. The Redskins move so many guys around that it can be difficult to figure out what they’re doing. LaRon Landry moves around a ton and often has the ability to blitz on his own – if he sees certain things, for example. Also, having Kareem Moore back will enable them to disguise more defensively; he’s just faster than Reed Doughty so they can wait a little longer to reveal their coverage. He also does a good job playing off of Landry; he’s not afraid to veer off a little from what the coaches want. Doughty played it by the book. Anyway, this is a long way of saying they need to get after Bradford. Certainly, the Rams will throw a lot of short passes just to get Bradford some confidence and prevent him from being hit.
9. Who should they fear defensively? Really, the Rams don’t have a lot of playmakers. Middle linebacker James Laurinaitis is one; safety O.J. Atogwe is another. But the Rams will blitz an awful lot; it’s what Steve Spagnuolo does and he’s not afraid to send anybody. It helps having a back like Clinton Portis to help out and the slide protection will be tested.
10. Is this the week the running game gets untracked? If it isn’t, then the Redskins have more serious problems than they’ll care to admit. St. Louis has a solid tackle in Fred Robbins, a good middle linebacker in Laurinaitis and a solid end in Chris Long. But they’re allowing 4.7 yards per carry so far. Even if the Redskins do have a strong running game, I’m not ready to proclaim them having turned a corner. I just see too many issues when facing good fronts. The line is not solid and I’m not sure that’s about to change. I’d like to see more burst from Portis; that’s not about to change. It’d be nice to see him get some explosive runs on cutbacks. And it would be nice to see him not having to cut three yards deep in the backfield. But if they do have a strong game it’ll say less about them than if they fail to post big numbers on the ground.
11. Who will win? You’ll have a hard time finding anyone who picks the Rams in this game and I’m not that adventurous, either. Or stupid. The Redskins are better; they have the better staff, the better quarterback and a stronger defense. They win. Redskins 24, Rams 10.
