Colts and Redskins locked in tight division races: Indianapolis Colts vs. Washington Redskins preview
It may come as a shock that both of these teams are 3-2 ,but each is a surprise for different reasons. It’s a surprise with the Colts because everybody expected them to be 4-1 or 5-0 by now. As for the Redskins, they’re at 3-2 and at the top of the NFC East
because their new head coach and quarterback have brought leadership to a franchise that’s been lacking that for years.
Coach Mike Shanahan and Donovan McNabb have changed the entire complexion of the Redskins. While McNabb fills their long-time role of a franchise quarterback, Shanahan provides experience with a no-nonsense attitude and has given Washington some direction.
The Colts are where they are after two divisional losses to the Texans and the Jaguars. Peyton Manning is still having a Manning-like year, but inconsistencies on defence and an unbalanced offensive attack have led to both of their defeats.
For Sunday night’s game, the Redskins have to play the same great defence they’ve been playing, but they need their passing game to get going. The Kansas City Chiefs proved last week that you could keep the game close with the Colts if you play great defence,
but eventually you need to make some plays in the passing game. That’s what ultimately cost the Chiefs last week, so the Redskins have to take a lesson from that.
Indianapolis will need a strong outing from their defence. This unit has shown they can play lights out football and they can play peewee defence. It will depend which unit shows up in Washington on Sunday.
McNabb and the offence have struggled at times this season, but sometimes they’ve shown flashes of explosiveness. They’ll need to be explosive if they want to keep up with the Colts’ heavy passing attack. Manning not only has Reggie Wayne as a go-to target,
but Austin Collie has emerged as an excellent possession receiver. Dallas Clark is always a safe option at tight end as well.
The Redskins’ defence has given up the most yards in the league, but only 18.2 points per game. The reason for that is they’re so stingy in the red zone. The Redskins have some talent on defence with DeAngelo Hall, LaRon Landry and London Fletcher. They’re
becoming fierce tacklers and it’s hard to get by them.
McNabb will look to utilize Santana Moss and Anthony Armstrong against the Colts. His pass protection will have to be spot on, as the Colts have a great pass-rushing duo in Dwight Freeney and Robert Mathis up the middle. The Redskins would like to get some
kind of running game going, but Clinton Portis is still out and Ryan Torain is still finding his way.
Winning this game could prove that the Redskins are indeed for real, while it can prove that the Colts have some serious problems. Their passing game has saved them time and time again, but the Colts need to play with consistency on both sides of the ball.
That’s why they got off to a 14-0 start last year. The Redskins just have to keep winning ugly. That’s what’s gotten them to this point and a win over the defending AFC champions on Sunday would establish the Redskins as a serious contender in the NFC.
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