The 0-1 Washington Redskins suffered a tough 32-27 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 1. Head coach Jay Gruden’s team showed some promise but couldn’t finish the job after holding a 20-7 lead at the half on the road. In Week 2, things only get tougher as they take on another NFC East division foe in the 1-0 Dallas Cowboys.
The Burgundy and Gold will need to put together a solid performance in all three phases of the upcoming game. But they will also need production from some of their key players to pull out a victory against the defending divisional champs at FedEx Field.
To follow are three players to watch in this week’s home match up:
1). QB Case Keenum
Washington needed their signal-caller to be better than former starting QB, Alex Smith, and Keenum proved to be so against the Eagles. The Texas native completed 30 of 44 pass attempts for 380 yards and three touchdowns against a tough Eagles defense.
“I thought he was efficient with the ball,” Gruden said in his Monday afternoon presser. “[He] made some good decisions, made some good, pure progression reads… threw the ball accurately. I thought he played an excellent game for the first time in a Redskins jersey.”
The Redskins will need a repeat performance against an aggressive Cowboys defense that likes to get after the quarterback. Dallas did allow the New York Giants to complete 68.75 percent of their passes but were stingy on third down, allowing only an 18.18 percent conversion rate. It will be interesting to see if Keenum can have another solid outing against a defense that is consistently in the top 10.
2). RT Morgan Moses
They say that ‘once is chance, twice is a coincidence and a third time is a pattern.’ For Moses, holding penalties have become an awful habit that must be broken. In 2018, the former Cavalier had 14 penalties. While the six-year pro feels that he is being targeted by the refs when it comes to holding, Moses still needs to do whatever necessary to avoid getting these costly penalties.
Last Sunday the right tackle had several penalties that hindered drives for the Redskins, putting them in long down-and-distance situations. It will be intriguing to see if he can make the adjustments needed to avoid these drive-killing infractions.
3). TE Vernon Davis
Davis, in his 14th NFL season, continues to defy the odds and show that he still can put stress on an opposing team’s secondary. In the Redskins Week 1 loss, the 35-year-old tight end managed to take a short pass intended to get a first down and he turned it into a 48-yard touchdown. Last week against the New York Giants, the Cowboys’ defense gave up 11 receptions for 116 yards and a touchdown to Giants’ TE Evan Engram
With Jordan Reed (concussion) out for the second straight game, it will be interesting to see how the Redskins incorporate Davis into the game plan. The former Terp could be a secret weapon that could unlock the passing attack for his teammates on the outside.