Redskins vs. Seahawks
Wild card weekend is upon us and with it comes a slew of entertaining and exciting match-ups, but none will be as intriguing as the one between the NFC’s two hottest teams, which will meet in Washington D.C. on Sunday.
The Seahawks and Redskins are back in the playoffs and their clash this weekend will be the second-ever playoff game to start two rookie quarterbacks. Not only are they rookies, but they have been two of the top performers at the position all season, creating one of the most talked about and highly anticipated match-ups on this weekend’s slate.
Since winning the Heisman Trophy last season with Baylor, Washington starter Robert Griffin III hasn’t skipped a beat, posting incredible numbers in his rookie season. He set the record for the highest quarterback rating for a rookie in a single season (102.4) and the record for rushing yards by a rookie QB with 815.
“The one thing our coaches did was they didn’t baby me, they weren’t going to make it baby steps, they made me learn on the fly, they were really hard on me in OTAs and training camp and it’s paid off,” Griffin said, according to ESPN.com.
Russell Wilson may not have set any records this season because he debuted the same year as Griffin, but he certainly impressed by throwing for more than 3,100 yards and by posting a 100.0 QB rating. And he also tied Peyton Manning’s rookie quarterback record with 26 TD passes.
“I really like Russell, he’s really got a lot of the intangibles you look for in a quarterback,” said Redskins coach Mike Shanahan.
The two teams feature similar quarterbacks in similar offensive systems. Both teams love to establish the running game and work play-action off of its effectiveness, as the Skins boasted the top ranked run game in the league, while Seattle came in close, ranked third.
With both teams evenly matched on offense, the game will likely be decided on the defensive side of the ball, where the Seahawks have a decided advantage. Seattle’s D allowed just 15.3 points per game this season, whereas the Redskins gave up more than 24 per contest.
However, the Seahawks have had a tough time on the road this year, going 3-5. Washington’s home crowd might affect the Hawks enough to swing the edge back in the other direction.
Bovada is giving Seattle the three point edge here, but I like the Redskins and RG3 at home in this one. Seattle’s defense has been stellar this year, but they haven’t faced a quarterback like Griffin and they have struggled at times on the road. It will be close, but take Washington to cover +3 this week and win outright to advance to the divisional round.
