Question: How can the Redskins take advantage?

Answer: They kept it fairly basic. They did show some different looks up front, but not nearly as much as they did vs. Green Bay and Indy. Didn’t need to as the Bears struggled with non-creative rushes. One of the interceptions was a result of the pressure. Hall’s 92-yard pick for a TD was set up  by the pressure as Cutler felt pressure from Brian Orakpo (who beat RT J’Marcus Webb) and CB Carlos Rogers, blitzing from the Redskins right side. Cutler threw off his back foot, had no zip on his pass and Hall swooped in for the pick.

Question: What impact will Albert Haynesworth have?  

Answer: Wasn’t sure entering the game simply because he had a two-week layoff. But knew against this front he could do damage. He did. Haynesworth was terrific; one of his best games in a Redskins uniform. Maybe his best. He made plays at opportune times – the stop of Cutler at the goal-line (though if Chicago had challenged…). His power sack in which he shoved the guard into Cutler was impressive. He had two tackles for a loss. I also liked that he worked within the framework of the defense. A couple times he slanted in unison with others simply to open up a lane for another rusher. Haynesworth was freed from run responsibility and that role suits him well.

Question: How dangerous is the passing game?

Answer: The Bears averaged 8.52 yards per pass attempt entering the game; but only averaged 7.025 vs. Washington. The Bears tried to go underneath to offset the rush and the blitzes, but the key for Washington’s D is that it tackled well. The interceptions were great by Hall, but his tackling also was very good in the open field. Even if a couple catches resulted in first downs, they were short gains. Devin Hester and Matt Forte did very little after the catch. The Bears did move the ball when the used more three-step drops, but that enabled the Redskins to eventually use tighter coverage. It’s why Hall was in position to intercept the slant vs. Johnny Knox. That and Knox quit on the play.

Question: How good is Matt Forte?

Answer: He’s good, but he’s not scary by any means. Forte finished with 73 yards of combined offense. He entered the game averaging 12.9 yards per catch and only gained 6.4 on five grabs vs. the Redskins. Again, open field tackling. He was open once vs. London Fletcher, but Cutler was off-target. He averaged 4.1 yards per run, but only carried the ball 10 times. The Redskins ability to mostly pressure with four enabled them to rarely have guys one-on-one in space.

Question: Who will win the battle of punt returners?

Answer: A draw. Devin Hester had only 12 return yards, but his presence forced Washington to kick it out of bounds five times on seven punts. But the Bears offense was so bad – and the Redskins D stiffened – that they could not capitalize when they got good field position. The real key is that  the Redskins often punted from favorable spots, so only once did the Bears start a drive beyond their own 30-yard line. Brandon Banks did nothing against an excellent coverage unit.

Question: Will the Redskins be able to run this week?

Answer: I thought it would be harder than it was vs. Indy simply because I expected the Bears to tackle better. It helped Washington that Bears LB Lance Briggs left early in the game with an ankle injury. He’s a good run-stopping outside linebacker. But, still, the Redskins ran much better than anticipated with Ryan Torain finishing with 125 yards on 21 carries. He gained 45 on two runs in the fourth, but even taking those away he still averaged more than 4.0 yards per carry against one of the better run defenses. The tight ends did a good job neutralizing Julius Peppers on some runs. And using the offset I enabled Mike Sellers to get around the edge quicker and seal the end or get a linebacker.

Question: How good is the pass rush?

Answer: Didn’t think it was a very good one, but it did cause some issues. The Bears blitzed a decent amount and DE Israel Idonije was better than anticipated. He beat LT Trent Williams on occasion. Peppers had some pressure, but, again, the TEs were assigned to work vs. him. Guessing it’s because their footwork is better (especially than Jammal Brown who once more struggled). The Bears did a good job keeping Donovan McNabb contained in the pocket; he’s best when he escapes wide and he was unable to do that Sunday. McNabb was only sacked twice, but he threw an interception that was returned for a score thanks to the pressure. By the way, had D.J. Moore not picked that pass, Brian Urlacher would have. Needed to eat that one.

Question: Will Donovan McNabb light it up in his hometown?

Answer: Thought it would be a win-ugly game for McNabb and the offense and indeed it was. McNabb did have a couple passes dropped, including one by Anthony Armstrong deep in Bears territory. But he was off-target as well. Makes you wonder if he’s anticipating pressure. McNabb threw two interceptions and finished with a 56.8 passer rating. It was nearly three picks but a delay of game nullified another pick for a score. McNabb never saw Moore drop into coverage. Yep, it was an ugly game by the offense.

Question: Who will win?

Answer: OK, permit me to brag just a bit because, well, this doesn’t happen all that often. But I thought the difference would be that they would pick Cutler. Of course, I didn’t anticipate one guy doing so four times. And… I thought the Redskins would win 17-14. Bingo. This rarely happens for me so … I will now go play the lottery.

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