The Atlanta Falcons mean business. By annihilating the helpless Houston Texans on Sunday, the Falcons secured their fourth-straight win of the season, thus gaining a share of the top spot in the NFC South. The Washington Redskins, meanwhile, have been surprising a lot of people thus far this season, Expected to be the NFC East’s cellar-dwellers, the Redskins recorded yet another victory on Sunday to keep in step in the division. Will Atlanta extend their unbeaten streak? Or will Washington clip the soaring Falcons’ wings?
Line: Washington Redskins (+7.5) at Atlanta Falcons (-7.5); total: 48.0 – see all NFL lines
TV Broadcast: FOX
Betting on the Washington Redskins
[sc:NFL490Banner ]Who knew that the Redskins would be 2-2 by the time Week 5 rolled around? But that’s the record Washington is sitting on after beating the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday, 23-20. They’ll now travel to A-Town for a matchup with an Atlanta team that is looking unstoppable at the moment.
The Redskins, however, have an underrated defense that has more than a puncher’s chance of defusing Atlanta’s attack. In fact, Washington is seventh in the league in total defense with 383.0 yards allowed per game. Last Sunday, the Redskins held Philadelphia scoreless for in the first half before relaxing in the next two quarters, wherein they were outscored by the Eagles, 21-10. Consistency is what the Redskins should aim for against Atlanta’s no-chill offense.
As for the offense, Washington will have to live and die with Kirk Cousins under center for the foreseeable future. In the Eagles game, Cousins passed for 290 yards and a touchdown with no interceptions. He also rushed for a one-yard touchdown.
It was a solid performance for the quarterback, who remains to work on receiving corps that continues to miss the services of DeSean Jackson. A hamstring injury has kept Jackson off the field for three weeks now. Jackson was supposed to sit two to four weeks, so his status for the next game will be something worth following.
Regardless of Jackson’s situation, the Redskins would be wise to increase their passing plays against Atlanta. The Falcons have the third-worst passing defense in the league, as they’re surrendering 305.2 yards on the air per game. Cousins’ chief targets are tight end Jordan Reed (278 receiving yards, one touchdown) and wide receiver Pierre Garcon (216 yards, two touchdowns).
The Redskins, however, could continue to turn to their backfield. After all, they are third in the NFL with 139.5 rushing yards per game.
On a day that Julio Jones had mediocre numbers, another Falcon rose to the occasion and made sure that Atlanta continues to unleash its soul-crushing offense. That’s second-year running back Devonta Freeman, who had another monster game in Atlanta’s huge 48-21 win over the Houston Texans on Sunday.
With the win, the Falcons improve to 4-0 SU and ATS in four games thus far this season.
Against the Texans, Freeman racked up 68 rushing yards and three touchdowns on 14 touches, thus making him the first player in history to register three rushing touchdowns in each of his first two career starts. In Atlanta’s 39-29 Week 3 win in Dallas, Freeman burned rubber for 141 yards and three touchdowns on 30 carries.
Jones, on the other hand, was humbled following three consecutive weeks of at least 135-receiving yards-games. That said, Jones was only targeted six times by Matt Ryan, who had other weapons to utilize in garbage time. Expect Jones to show up against Washington’s defense that can’t afford to put all its focus on the fifth-year wideout.
For one, the Falcons have an array of talents down field for Washington to worry about. There’s Leonard Hankerson, who had 103 receiving yards and a touchdown on six catches against Houston. Then there’s Freeman, who can also do serious damage in the passing game. Freeman has 196 receiving yards on 11.5 yards per catch this season.
As noted earlier, Atlanta’s not that great defensively. The Falcons have one of the lousiest pass rushes in the league with only 5.0 sacks to show. The secondary isn’t as lifeless, though, with four interceptions to date.
