Hurricane Joaquin To Start in Eagles – Redskins Game
Hurricane Joaquin could potentially disrupt an NFC East divisional bout bringing roaring winds and rain on Sunday when the Washington Redskins host the Philadelphia Eagles. According to NFLWeather.com, rain and 15-20 mph winds will be swirling around a soaked FedEx Field on Sunday with temperatures lingering in the high-60s. Joaquin is expected to hit the East Coast late Saturday or early Sunday and could ultimately turn a drizzle into a downpour, casting uncertainty onto NFL game plans, fantasy football line-ups and point spreads.
It doesn’t help that FedEx Field is notorious for having one of the league’s worst playing surfaces in recent years. This is the very same grass surface that was responsible for Robert Griffin III’s catastrophic knee injury. Each of the last two seasons the Redskins have considered having to re-sod the field, finally doing it in 2013.
Eagles at Redskins. Photo courtesy of USA TodayWhen Mother Nature gets as ugly as the sod, so does the Washington (1-2) offense. In three rain games since 2012 according to the NFLWeather.com Historical Analytics, the ‘Skins offense averages only nine points per game for an 0-3 record.
Quarterback Kirk Cousins started one of the three losses, a 20-6 defeat to the New York Giants where Cousins finished 19-for-49 for 169 yards and two interceptions. Only once has Cousins dropped back 49 times or more and that was last week, ironically, against the Giants in yet another loss, 32-21.
With only one rain game under his belt, Cousins shouldn’t be expected to carry the weight of the offense on his shoulders. Since 2012, Washington averages about 20 carries in weather-impacted matchups but if the ‘Skins have any chance of picking up their first rain game win since November of 2011, Alfred Morris and rookie Matt Jones will need to find some seems in the Philadelphia front seven.
The Redskins RB duo shouldn’t have much trouble establishing the run against a Philly defense that has surrendered 454 rushing yards over their last three weather related games, all of which ended in defeats. During that dismal 0-3 run in the rain, the D allowed on average over 28 points and failed to force a single turnover.
In order to have any chance of picking up a muddy road win, the Eagles (1-2) need to get the ground game going early and often. Since 2012, Philly is 3-3 in rain games but 3-0 when the running backs tally 30 or more touches. After a solid outing last week, Ryan Matthews should get a decent number of touches behind Demarco Murray with Darren Sproles sprinkled in occasionally.
Like Washington, the Eagles need to take pressure off Sam Bradford who only has one rain game to his name. In a 2012 loss to New England, Bradford fought through the rain with a 22-for-33 for 205 yards performance. He also tossed one TD and one pick.
According to USA Today Sports, the NFL is considering postponing or even moving the game to Ford Field in Detroit. If the matchup indeed plays out in Landover, the toughest opposition might be battling the nature elements to avoid a 1-3 start.
Hurricane Joaquin could potentially disrupt an NFC East divisional bout bringing roaring winds and rain on Sunday when the Washington Redskins host the Philadelphia Eagles. According to NFLWeather.com, rain and 15-20 mph winds will be swirling around a soaked FedEx Field on Sunday with temperatures lingering in the high-60s. Joaquin is expected to hit the East Coast late Saturday or early Sunday and could ultimately turn a drizzle into a downpour, casting uncertainty onto NFL game plans, fantasy football line-ups and point spreads.
It doesn’t help that FedEx Field is notorious for having one of the league’s worst playing surfaces in recent years. This is the very same grass surface that was responsible for Robert Griffin III’s catastrophic knee injury. Each of the last two seasons the Redskins have considered having to re-sod the field, finally doing it in 2013.
Eagles at Redskins. Photo courtesy of USA TodayWhen Mother Nature gets as ugly as the sod, so does the Washington (1-2) offense. In three rain games since 2012 according to the NFLWeather.com Historical Analytics, the ‘Skins offense averages only nine points per game for an 0-3 record.
Quarterback Kirk Cousins started one of the three losses, a 20-6 defeat to the New York Giants where Cousins finished 19-for-49 for 169 yards and two interceptions. Only once has Cousins dropped back 49 times or more and that was last week, ironically, against the Giants in yet another loss, 32-21.
With only one rain game under his belt, Cousins shouldn’t be expected to carry the weight of the offense on his shoulders. Since 2012, Washington averages about 20 carries in weather-impacted matchups but if the ‘Skins have any chance of picking up their first rain game win since November of 2011, Alfred Morris and rookie Matt Jones will need to find some seems in the Philadelphia front seven.
The Redskins RB duo shouldn’t have much trouble establishing the run against a Philly defense that has surrendered 454 rushing yards over their last three weather related games, all of which ended in defeats. During that dismal 0-3 run in the rain, the D allowed on average over 28 points and failed to force a single turnover.
In order to have any chance of picking up a muddy road win, the Eagles (1-2) need to get the ground game going early and often. Since 2012, Philly is 3-3 in rain games but 3-0 when the running backs tally 30 or more touches. After a solid outing last week, Ryan Matthews should get a decent number of touches behind Demarco Murray with Darren Sproles sprinkled in occasionally.
Like Washington, the Eagles need to take pressure off Sam Bradford who only has one rain game to his name. In a 2012 loss to New England, Bradford fought through the rain with a 22-for-33 for 205 yards performance. He also tossed one TD and one pick.
According to USA Today Sports, the NFL is considering postponing or even moving the game to Ford Field in Detroit. If the matchup indeed plays out in Landover, the toughest opposition might be battling the nature elements to avoid a 1-3 start.
