The Washington Redskins travel to Lincoln Financial Field to face the Philadelphia Eagles in a crucial NFC East matchup. The Redskins currently sit in first place in the NFC East, and head coach Jay Gruden will look for his team to lock up a playoff spot with a win over the Eagles Saturday night. Philadelphia's playoff lives are on the line, and head coach Chip Kelly will look for his fast-paced offense to score quickly against Washington's defense.
The Eagles are coming off a tough loss to the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday night last week, and they are looking to avoid the season-sweep from Washington. Eagles quarterback Sam Bradford has played well at times in his first season in Philadelphia but has struggled with turnovers. The former first-round pick has thrown 16 touchdowns to 13 interceptions, and Kelly will try to establish a strong ground game with his talented backfield.
Running back DeMarco Murray leads the team in both carries and yards, but he has seen less touches over the past couple games. Kelly will look to feature the hot hand, and with Murray and running backs Darren Sproles and Ryan Mathews, the Eagles have plenty of options. Mathews led the team last weekend with 11 carries for 58 yards and will look to make impact Saturday night.
Washington's defense is ranked 25th in the league in terms of yards per game, and their star pass rusher Ryan Kerrigan is listed as probable with a toe injury. Kerrigan can create havoc for opposing offenses and has 8.5 sacks and two forced fumbles on the year. Kerrigan has gotten a sack in each of the Redskins' two previous games and will look to get after Bradford all Saturday evening.
On offense, the Redskins are led by quarterback Kirk Cousins, who is a having a tremendous season in a contract-year. Cousins has thrown for 3,625 yards with 22 touchdowns to 11 interceptions. The fourth-year quarterback is coming off arguably his best game of his young career, in which he threw for 319 yards with four touchdowns and also ran for another score.
Cousins will look to target tight end Jordan Reed against the Eagles' secondary, as they are currently ranked 24th in the league in terms of passing yards allowed. Reed leads the team in receiving with 778 yards and is coming off a strong two-touchdown performance in the win over Buffalo. In the past two games Reed has caught every pass thrown his way and has 204 receiving yards.
Two teams are fighting for their playoff lives, and Washington is trying to clinch a playoff berth for the first time since 2012. Kelly has lead the Eagles to a winning record in each of his two first seasons in Philadelphia, but a loss on Saturday would end the Eagles' postseason chances and give Kelly his first losing season since arriving. The game starts at 8:25 p.m. Eastern time, and you can watch the live broadcast here. To listen to the Eagles' radio broadcast, click here, and for the Redskins' radio broadcast, go here.
