Redskins have a lot to overcome By Scouts, Inc.
Why To Watch
Washington has won six in a row, including a hard-fought, physical wild-card game last week at Tampa. The last month and a half has more or less been a playoff scenario for the Redskins; one loss would have pretty much eliminated them from the postseason. There is no question that this team is rolling and peaking at the right time of the year. However, fatigue and injuries are sure to begin to take their toll sooner or later, especially on a cross-country road trip to Seattle, where the Seahawks are 8-0 this season.
The Seahawks lost their final game of the season but won a whopping 11 in a row before that to run away with home-field advantage throughout the NFC playoffs. It's not easy to win in Seattle, and Washington is at a distinct disadvantage. These teams met in Washington in Week 3 when the Redskins pulled out a 20-17 victory. Redskins coach Joe Gibbs is an amazing 17-5 in the postseason with three Super Bowl victories, but Seattle has the league MVP, the league's second-ranked total offense, strong red-zone defense, home-field advantage, an excellent head coach with extensive postseason experience and a well-rested, talented squad.
When the Redskins have the ball
Rushing: The Redskins' offense has some balance with deep threat Santana Moss and underneath option Chris Cooley, but Clinton Portis and the running game are the backbone. Portis was suspiciously on the sidelines more than he is accustomed to last week and will be fighting a shoulder injury. The Redskins are hopeful this won't be an issue this week since they will surely have to lean on him in a big way.
In recent weeks, the Redskins have done a much better job of calling plays to utilize Portis' strengths with more zone-blocking schemes and stretch plays where he can use his excellent vision and explode through cracks in the defense. Out of a variety of personnel groupings and formations, Washington has begun running much more to the weak side, a contrast to the strong-side running attack they predominantly ran early in the season. Portis has been playing at a very high level and is running with conviction, never stopping his feet and attacking the line of scrimmage.
Ladell Betts will see time on third down and should spell Portis on a few occasions, particularly if Portis' shoulder becomes a problem. Betts is a powerful north-south runner who keeps his shoulders square to the line of scrimmage, can deliver a punishing blow and does a nice job as a receiver out of the backfield.
Seattle allows just 3.6 yards per rush and has yielded only six runs over 20 yards all year. The interior of the Redskins' offensive line is massive, but it's heavy-footed and should really struggle to get to the second level and get a body on MLB Lofa Tatupu and OLB LeRoy Hill, both rookies who are fast, playing with veteran presence and having excellent freshman seasons.
Seattle also rotates its defensive tackles effectively, keeping them fresh for the fourth quarter. SS Michael Boulware has great size and is a force against the run. Expect him to spend a lot of time near the line of scrimmage this week to tip numbers in Seattle's favor in the running game. For Washington to have a chance to pull off the upset, it must win the time of possession battle and keep Seattle's dangerous offense on the sidelines by running the football early and often.
Passing: The Redskins defeated Tampa Bay last week despite scoring only 10 points on offense and generating a paltry 41 passing yards. That won't get it done against the Seahawks, who are sure to put up substantial points at home. Mark Brunell continues to fight a knee injury on his plant leg that has affected his ability to move in the pocket, create plays with his legs and generate velocity on his throws when trying to fit the ball into a small window.
Washington lacks a legitimate wide receivers outside of Moss, who is as explosive and dangerous as any player in the league. Moss is sure to demand an awful lot of attention from Seattle's secondary, much like he did last week in Tampa Bay. Washington should throw Moss some quick hitches, slants and run reverses or other trick plays to get the ball in his hands. H-back Cooley has done an exceptional job of picking up the slack and is a tall, reliable target who Brunell looks to in the middle of the field.
SS Boulware has very good size and overall ability for the position. Boulware and Seattle's faster linebackers should do a good job of challenging the versatile, but inexperienced Cooley. Seattle's pass defense has allowed too many big plays, but its secondary should be well-rested and healthier than it has been in a long time. Seattle has produced 50 sacks this season and is sure to get pressure on Brunell, especially up the middle of the field. Seattle doesn't have one elite pass rusher and instead has many defenders who play their role well, hustle to the whistle and generate pressure from just about every position on their defense. This dilemma will be magnified for the Redskins due to extreme crowd noise that will make communicating very difficult.
When the Seahawks have the ball
Rushing: It is no secret that Seattle's offense goes through NFL MVP Shaun Alexander. Needless to say, Alexander was spectacular this season, leading the NFL in rushing with a gaudy 5.1 yards per attempt average and setting the all-time touchdown record. He runs behind Pro Bowl FB Mack Strong and an excellent offensive line, utilizing these blockers extremely well with his superb vision and patience. Alexander is one of those special runners who makes the game look effortless. As a pure running threat, he is pretty much without weakness and has the ability to break long runs with speed and quickness or grind out the tough yards with power.
As impressive as Alexander is, he might not see his typical ultra-heavy workload to begin this game, as Washington's front seven is among the top groups in the league and does a great job of slowing the run. The Redskins have very good size, are physical, gap-sound and well-coached, making it difficult to cut runs back against the grain. Alexander will see plenty of action as the game wears on, but early, he might make his biggest impact as a decoy on play-action passes that result in long gains downfield. If Seattle gets a substantial lead, it will use Alexander to punish Washington's front and seal a victory.
Passing: Seattle has four very solid receiving options that complement their fantastic running game, and QB Matt Hasselbeck is playing the best football of his career. Hasselbeck is very efficient and has thrown just nine interceptions in 449 attempts this season, so don't expect him to take unnecessary chances this week. The Seahawks have an excellent offensive line led by LT Walter Jones, the best offensive lineman in the league. This unit has allowed only 27 sacks this season and Washington lost starting LDE Renaldo Wynn to a broken arm last week.
DT Cornelius Griffin is very disruptive and could cause some problems for the right side of Seattle's line with his long arms, explosive first step and overall power. The Redskins' top cornerback, Shawn Springs, didn't play last week with a groin injury and his status for this week is up in the air. Do not be surprised to see all four of Seattle's top weapons, TE Jerramy Stevens and WRs Bobby Engram, Darrell Jackson and Joe Jurevicius, all on the field at the same time to force Washington to dig deep into its depleted secondary and put very ordinary football players on the field to match up against this proficient group while Hasselbeck picks and chooses mismatches.
FS Sean Taylor is a heat-seeking missile who must be accounted for on every play. Physically, he has no weaknesses, and with Seattle's variety of options, Hasselbeck would be wise to stay clear of the up-and-coming superstar. Washington is an attacking defense that loves to bring extra pass rushers on clear throwing downs, but expect Seattle's offensive line to hold up well and Hasselbeck to make quick precise throws when facing a heavy blitz. If Springs is unable to play (he missed last week's game), defensive coordinator Gregg Williams may have to be more conservative that he would like with his blitz packages.
Why To Watch
Washington has won six in a row, including a hard-fought, physical wild-card game last week at Tampa. The last month and a half has more or less been a playoff scenario for the Redskins; one loss would have pretty much eliminated them from the postseason. There is no question that this team is rolling and peaking at the right time of the year. However, fatigue and injuries are sure to begin to take their toll sooner or later, especially on a cross-country road trip to Seattle, where the Seahawks are 8-0 this season.
The Seahawks lost their final game of the season but won a whopping 11 in a row before that to run away with home-field advantage throughout the NFC playoffs. It's not easy to win in Seattle, and Washington is at a distinct disadvantage. These teams met in Washington in Week 3 when the Redskins pulled out a 20-17 victory. Redskins coach Joe Gibbs is an amazing 17-5 in the postseason with three Super Bowl victories, but Seattle has the league MVP, the league's second-ranked total offense, strong red-zone defense, home-field advantage, an excellent head coach with extensive postseason experience and a well-rested, talented squad.
When the Redskins have the ball
Rushing: The Redskins' offense has some balance with deep threat Santana Moss and underneath option Chris Cooley, but Clinton Portis and the running game are the backbone. Portis was suspiciously on the sidelines more than he is accustomed to last week and will be fighting a shoulder injury. The Redskins are hopeful this won't be an issue this week since they will surely have to lean on him in a big way.
In recent weeks, the Redskins have done a much better job of calling plays to utilize Portis' strengths with more zone-blocking schemes and stretch plays where he can use his excellent vision and explode through cracks in the defense. Out of a variety of personnel groupings and formations, Washington has begun running much more to the weak side, a contrast to the strong-side running attack they predominantly ran early in the season. Portis has been playing at a very high level and is running with conviction, never stopping his feet and attacking the line of scrimmage.
Ladell Betts will see time on third down and should spell Portis on a few occasions, particularly if Portis' shoulder becomes a problem. Betts is a powerful north-south runner who keeps his shoulders square to the line of scrimmage, can deliver a punishing blow and does a nice job as a receiver out of the backfield.
Seattle allows just 3.6 yards per rush and has yielded only six runs over 20 yards all year. The interior of the Redskins' offensive line is massive, but it's heavy-footed and should really struggle to get to the second level and get a body on MLB Lofa Tatupu and OLB LeRoy Hill, both rookies who are fast, playing with veteran presence and having excellent freshman seasons.
Seattle also rotates its defensive tackles effectively, keeping them fresh for the fourth quarter. SS Michael Boulware has great size and is a force against the run. Expect him to spend a lot of time near the line of scrimmage this week to tip numbers in Seattle's favor in the running game. For Washington to have a chance to pull off the upset, it must win the time of possession battle and keep Seattle's dangerous offense on the sidelines by running the football early and often.
Passing: The Redskins defeated Tampa Bay last week despite scoring only 10 points on offense and generating a paltry 41 passing yards. That won't get it done against the Seahawks, who are sure to put up substantial points at home. Mark Brunell continues to fight a knee injury on his plant leg that has affected his ability to move in the pocket, create plays with his legs and generate velocity on his throws when trying to fit the ball into a small window.
Washington lacks a legitimate wide receivers outside of Moss, who is as explosive and dangerous as any player in the league. Moss is sure to demand an awful lot of attention from Seattle's secondary, much like he did last week in Tampa Bay. Washington should throw Moss some quick hitches, slants and run reverses or other trick plays to get the ball in his hands. H-back Cooley has done an exceptional job of picking up the slack and is a tall, reliable target who Brunell looks to in the middle of the field.
SS Boulware has very good size and overall ability for the position. Boulware and Seattle's faster linebackers should do a good job of challenging the versatile, but inexperienced Cooley. Seattle's pass defense has allowed too many big plays, but its secondary should be well-rested and healthier than it has been in a long time. Seattle has produced 50 sacks this season and is sure to get pressure on Brunell, especially up the middle of the field. Seattle doesn't have one elite pass rusher and instead has many defenders who play their role well, hustle to the whistle and generate pressure from just about every position on their defense. This dilemma will be magnified for the Redskins due to extreme crowd noise that will make communicating very difficult.
When the Seahawks have the ball
Rushing: It is no secret that Seattle's offense goes through NFL MVP Shaun Alexander. Needless to say, Alexander was spectacular this season, leading the NFL in rushing with a gaudy 5.1 yards per attempt average and setting the all-time touchdown record. He runs behind Pro Bowl FB Mack Strong and an excellent offensive line, utilizing these blockers extremely well with his superb vision and patience. Alexander is one of those special runners who makes the game look effortless. As a pure running threat, he is pretty much without weakness and has the ability to break long runs with speed and quickness or grind out the tough yards with power.
As impressive as Alexander is, he might not see his typical ultra-heavy workload to begin this game, as Washington's front seven is among the top groups in the league and does a great job of slowing the run. The Redskins have very good size, are physical, gap-sound and well-coached, making it difficult to cut runs back against the grain. Alexander will see plenty of action as the game wears on, but early, he might make his biggest impact as a decoy on play-action passes that result in long gains downfield. If Seattle gets a substantial lead, it will use Alexander to punish Washington's front and seal a victory.
Passing: Seattle has four very solid receiving options that complement their fantastic running game, and QB Matt Hasselbeck is playing the best football of his career. Hasselbeck is very efficient and has thrown just nine interceptions in 449 attempts this season, so don't expect him to take unnecessary chances this week. The Seahawks have an excellent offensive line led by LT Walter Jones, the best offensive lineman in the league. This unit has allowed only 27 sacks this season and Washington lost starting LDE Renaldo Wynn to a broken arm last week.
DT Cornelius Griffin is very disruptive and could cause some problems for the right side of Seattle's line with his long arms, explosive first step and overall power. The Redskins' top cornerback, Shawn Springs, didn't play last week with a groin injury and his status for this week is up in the air. Do not be surprised to see all four of Seattle's top weapons, TE Jerramy Stevens and WRs Bobby Engram, Darrell Jackson and Joe Jurevicius, all on the field at the same time to force Washington to dig deep into its depleted secondary and put very ordinary football players on the field to match up against this proficient group while Hasselbeck picks and chooses mismatches.
FS Sean Taylor is a heat-seeking missile who must be accounted for on every play. Physically, he has no weaknesses, and with Seattle's variety of options, Hasselbeck would be wise to stay clear of the up-and-coming superstar. Washington is an attacking defense that loves to bring extra pass rushers on clear throwing downs, but expect Seattle's offensive line to hold up well and Hasselbeck to make quick precise throws when facing a heavy blitz. If Springs is unable to play (he missed last week's game), defensive coordinator Gregg Williams may have to be more conservative that he would like with his blitz packages.
