WASHINGTON — The Washington Redskins and Green Bay Packers will meet Sunday night at FedEx Field. It’s a prime-time rematch of the 2016 Wild Card Game in January, a game that Green Bay won 35-18.
It’s no secret that the Redskins’ prime-time record since Dan Snyder took over is not good. They are just 20-36, to be exact. In fact, anytime the Redskins name pops up on the schedule in prime time, fans cringe. Since 2008, the Redskins are 5-20 in prime time and haven’t won a home prime-time game since the 2012 finale against the Cowboys, when they clinched the NFC East. That seems like a lifetime ago.
The Redskins lost to the Steelers on opening night and are 0-1 this year under the lights. The Packers are 2-1 in prime time this season already.
The Redskins have a chance to quiet a lot of the talk of their history with a win over Green Bay Sunday night. The Packers have lost four of five and are dealing with a number of injuries. The Redskins are actually favored by 2.5 points in this one.
Even though they are struggling, the Packers still have Aaron Rogers. Rogers has thrown 22 touchdowns this season — third most in the league — with just seven interceptions. He’s as good as anyone and the Redskins defense knows it’s going to have its hands full.
On the other side of the ball, the Packers defense comes in ranked 10th in overall defense, giving up 339 yards a game, but 24th in scoring defense, yielding 26 points per contest.
Over the last two games, Kirk Cousins has thrown for 720 yards and four touchdowns. Will Cousins be able to continue his hot streak against that defense?
The Redskins could very well have DeSean Jackson back in the lineup this week. He’s returning from a shoulder injury and has practiced to some extent this week. Anytime he’s on the field, teams have to account for him, no matter his health.
With Cousins and Rogers playing at a high level right now, this game could very well be a shootout. The Redskins are one of just five teams averaging over 400 yards per game, but are scoring fewer points (23.6) on average than Green Bay (24.8).
At 5-3-1, this is yet another big game against an NFC foe for the Redskins. This is also a chance to strengthen their hold on a playoff spot with a Thanksgiving trip to division rival Dallas, on a short week, on the horizon.
