The 2014 season for the Washington Redskins holds some intrigue in light of the events of the last two years and the changes the team has made this offseason. Analysts, fans and even other teams will be watching to see if the league gives Washington any national games; especially during the late November/December timeframe when division games will be the most important and flex scheduling comes into play.
Redskins quarterback Robert Griffin, III is now almost a year and a half removed from his injury, Jay Gruden is the new head coach of the team and former Philadelphia Eagles’ wide out DeSean Jackson is now a teammate.
The defense, which was ineffective at times last year, is still under the guidance of coordinator Jim Haslett, who scores of people thought should be fired when (former head coach) Mike Shanahan was given his pink slip. People want to know if the rumors about his hands being tied by his former boss are true or not.
Special teams are now going to be led by former New York Jets Teams’ coach Ben Kotwica. Last season his unit ranked among the top 10 in the NFL in kickoff return yards and 17th on kickoff coverage. The Redskins’ special teams will no doubt improve if for no other reason than anything would be an improvement over last year.
Washington will of course play their NFC East Division rivals — the Dallas Cowboys, New York Giants and Philadelphia Eagles — twice. They also play the NFC West Seattle Seahawks, San Francisco 49ers, Arizona Cardinals and St. Louis Rams; and the AFC South Indianapolis Colts, Tennessee Titans, Jacksonville Jaguars and Houston Texans. Finally, because they finished last in the NFC East last season, they play the two last-place teams from the NFC that aren’t in the NFC West. These are the Minnesota Vikings and Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Of these opponents then, they play the following at home:
The Dallas Cowboys, New York Giants, Philadelphia Eagles, St. Louis Rams, Seattle Seahawks, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Jacksonville Jaguars and the Tennessee Titans.
The teams that the Redskins will face away this season are:
The Dallas Cowboys, New York Giants, Philadelphia Eagles, Arizona Cardinals, San Francisco 49ers, Minnesota Vikings, Houston Texans and the Indianapolis Colts.
The league has not announced the exact regular season schedule but it should be announced later this week. That being said, there are some interesting things to note about Washington’s upcoming opponents and the season.
1) With DeSean Jackson now on the roster, the games against Philadelphia will most certainly be two of the most-watched games of the season. Jackson has openly admitted that he is looking forward to playing his old team. Recently appearing on the Arsenio Hall Show, the wide out commented on the upcoming games.
“Oh yeah, twice, two times,” he said to his host. “Not once, twice. There’s going to be something special about those two games for sure.”
At least one of these games will absolutely be nationally televised.
Let’s hope he catches the pigskin a little more accurately than the fish scales Hall threw to him during the show (watch at 2:37).
2) The Skins will be playing four playoff teams in 2014: the Eagles, the 49ers, the Colts and the Super Bowl champion Seahawks. It is not out of the realm of possibility that, with Griffin healthy and some additional weapons, they have a shot at the post season as well.
3) Fortunately, those Seahawks are coming to Washington to play. The last time they were here was on January 6, 2013 and that was the first (and only) playoff game that the Redskins played two seasons ago when they won the NFC East Division title. If you recall, that was also the game during which Griffin sustained the final damage to his knee which knocked him out of the game and off of the field for nine months. It is definitely better to play Seattle away from their home stadium.
4) It would be nice if the Redskins got their bye later in the season than Week 5. Those early breaks can be tough on a team. In 2013, their bye was in Week 5 and, while it would preposterous to say that this was the reason it was such a bad year, they ended up 3-13.
There is much controversy about whether rest/recovery or momentum is more important during the season but consider that in 2012, the Redskins had their bye in Week 10 and they went on a seven-game win streak to win the division. In 2011, their bye was also in Week 5 and then went 5-11. Just a thought.
5) It would be surprising if Washington didn’t play in at least two or three nationally televised games. With Jackson and a few other upgrades that have been made to the offense and Griffin healthy, the games should be competitive to say the least. Former Dallas Cowboy and defensive end Jason Hatcher was added to what was a struggling defensive line during free agency so that Washington is — on paper at least —a better team.
Robert Griffin has caught the eye of America and the NFL is not blind to that. I can see one of the Eagles matchups on a Monday, Thursday or Sunday night (probably the second game). Perhaps the contest against the Colts as a finally healthy RGIII goes up against his draft buddy — Indianapolis QB Andrew Luck — will be played nationally. Playing St. Louis (who got all of those picks for Griffin’s spot in the draft) could be a compelling game and the rematch against Seattle could be big enough that the NFL will make it national. Certainly, depending on how things go within the division towards the end of the year, one of the NFC East games could be flexed into prime time.
* * * * * * * * * * *
After the circus that the Washington Redskins’ 2013 season turned into, the upcoming year will be a welcome distraction for fans as well as the National Football League.
Hail.