Here is what you need to know on this Sunday, August 20, 13 days before the Washington Redskins cut their roster to 53 on September 2.
Timeline
The Redskins last played a game 231 days ago; they will open the 2017 season against the Eagles at FedEx Field in 21 days.
Today’s schedule: Off day
Days until:
—Preseason national TV vs. Bengals (8/27) 7
—Redskins @ Rams (9/17) 28
—Sunday night Raiders @ Redskins (9/24) 35
Stock up-Stock down vs Packers
Up—NT Phil Taylor not only is going to make this team, he likely will be the starting nose tackle. I would not have believed this at the beginning of training camp. But he has followed up a strong camp with two good preseason games. Tonight a sack for a nine-yard loss was his only tackle but he consistently did his job clogging up the middle. It could be a great story for a guy who has been out of the game for two years
Down—QB Kirk Cousins finished with decent statistics but there is that thing about lies and damn lies. He was hesitant and inaccurate while going up against the Green Bay first team and the only scoring drive came against Packers backups. He is not one you should worry about but he does need to play better.
Up—CB Fabian Moreau hustled down on the first two punts, helping create a turnover on one and stopping the returner dead in his tracks on another. He also played solid coverage in his first NFL game.
Down—The starting O-line did not play well. The Redskins managed just 10 yards rushing in the first half, on 11 attempts. You can’t blame Rob Kelley for this since the line got no push. They need to put the Hogs 2.0 nickname back in the barn until they show they can get the job done.
Up—RB Samaje Perine bounced back from a nervous debut against the Ravens last week in a big way. He led the team in rushing with 45 yards on eight carries, looking more like the decisive back we saw a lot in training camp and not the tentative runner spotted in Baltimore. He also made a nice play in the receiving department, turning upfield after catching a wheel route and gaining 29 yards.
Down—Last week, DE Stacy McGee negated a missed Justin Tucker field goal by lining up illegally. The Ravens got a first down and scored a touchdown. Last night Aaron Rodgers caught him getting off the field too slowly and got a first down instead of a third-down incompletion. The Packers drove in for a touchdown. Sure, it’s preseason but this needs to get cleaned up quickly.
Also up—OLB Preston Smith, RB Chris Thompson, S Montae Nicholson, TE Niles Paul
Also down—QB Nate Sudfeld, ILB Chris Carter
Stay up to date on the Redskins. Rich Tandler covers the team 365 days a year. Like his Facebook page Facebook.com/TandlerCSN and follow him on Twitter @Rich_TandlerCSN.
Tandler on Twitter
Not quite sure this OL group has earned a stories nickname. Need to push some people back on short yardage.
— Rich Tandler (@TandlerNBCS) August 20, 2017
In fact, I'm sure that they haven't.
— Rich Tandler (@TandlerNBCS) August 20, 2017
In case you missed it
- Five big takeaways from Redskins-Packers
- Jamison Crowder scored and still wasn't happy with himself
- Redskins starters still catching up in preseason
- Pryor: It's preseason, 'we're not game planning'
- Niles Paul showed his versatility vs. the Packers
- Redskins' offense looks clumsy again vs. Packers
- Pryor feels he's in the same boat as Cousins with 1-year deal
- Josh Norman found a way to do his illegal celebration
- Redskins-Packers preseason live blog
- Preseason Week 2 Redskins vs Packers; 3 things to watch
- Five Redskins under pressure vs. the Packers