Game Preview, Week 12: Lions at Redskins
November 22, 2019
by Steve Thomas
With apologies to the Cincinnati Bengals, our beloved Redskins have truly become the worst team in the NFL, by a long shot. No other franchise currently has Washington’s unique combination of horrible front office situation, bad coaching, lack of talent, lack of in-game effort, and nonstop drama. This is the darkest of dark times for the Redskins right now, with no relief in sight. In the midst of all of this negativity comes the Detroit Lions, a team that even an average NFL franchise ought to be able to beat. Alas, Washington isn’t an average NFL franchise, or even close to it; they are a trainwreck of epic proportions right now, as in “worst season in franchise history” type of bad. You’d be foolish to pick the Redskins to win this game despite the Lions’ limitations, but our job is to preview this game, so here it goes.
Game time & location: Sunday, November 24, 2019, 1:00 p.m. ET, Jack Kent Cooke Stadium, Raljon, MD; Gates open 11:00 a.m. ET; Red Zone parking lots open 8:00 a.m.; all other parking lots 9:00 a.m.
Television: Fox
Television announcers: Kenny Albert, Ronde Barber, Lindsay Czarniak
TV broadcast map: Click here
DC-area radio: The Team 980
Redskins radio network: Click here
Lions radio network: Click here
Satellite radio: XM: 232 (Redskins broad.) Sirius: 119 (Redskins broad); internet: 831 (Redskins broad.)
Redskins roster: Click here
Redskins depth chart: Click here
Lions roster: Click here
Lions depth chart: Click here
All-time head-to-head record vs Lions: 27 – 14 (last 10: 4 – 6) (streak: 0 – 4)
Last meeting: L, October 23, 2016, 17 – 20
Early odds: Lions, -2.5
3 KEYS TO THE GAME
Get off to a strong start on both sides of the ball
The Redskins have essentially been out of contention right from the jump in every game except the Eagles in week one and the Dolphins. If they’re going to have any chance of getting a win this week, they simply can’t let the Lions get out to a strong start and build a lead early in this game. The Redskins have shown no ability to be able to mount any sort of comeback, even against a medicore at best team like the Lions. What that means is that a strong start on offense, including first quarter touchdowns, and a defensive stand or two, is mandatory. I shudder to think about how this fanbase is going to feel if the Lions jump all over the Redskins at home and win big.
Dwayne Haskins needs to continue to make progress as a passer
The Lions have the potential of being a pretty good matchup for Haskins. Detroit most likely isn’t going to show the same type of exotic blitzes as did the Jets; in fact, the Lions just don’t blitz much, period, and they have not generated much pass rush at all this season. The more “normal” things look to Haskins, the better chance he has at having a good game. If there’s a week for Dwayne to take another jump forward in his development, it’s probably this week, against a poor, vanilla defense like what Detroit features. This needs to happen, not just to win this game, but for the good of the franchise.
The secondary needs to be a competent NFL unit
Good lord, the Redskins secondary has been terrible this year. The Jets game featured multiple coverage busts, much like almost every game this season. The Lions feature multiple receivers with talent, and all of whom have the ability to make life miserable for Washington if Quinton Dunbar, Josh Norman, Fabian Moreau, and the rest of this group continue to put the same trash on film that they’ve repeatedly done in 2019. If they do, the Redskins probably won’t win. If they avoid a slew of huge busts, Washington might just have a chance.
3 KEY MATCHUPS
The Lions defense definitely has its problems and hasn’t had much success this season, but Darius Slay isn’t one of them. Slay is Detroit’s best defensive back and will likely spend a good amount of time matched up with McLaurin. This will be the best matchup of the day to watch and will be critical to the Redskins’ chances for success. McLaurin has been able to beat basically every defensive back he’s faced this season, at least to a certain extent, and this battle will likely be no different. Keep an eye out on this matchup throughout the day.
Trey Flowers and Devon Kennard vs Morgan Moses and Donald Penn
It’s not exactly a revelation to suggest that Moses and Penn had bad games last week against the Jets, particularly Moses. Dwayne Haskins needs a clean pocket this week in order to have the best chance of success. The Lions have not been able to put much pressure on opposing quarterbacks this year, so there’s no reason why this game should be any different absent another lousy day from the Redskins’ offensive line. Moses seemed to have trouble with basic, day one install-type slide protections last week, so watch for more offensive line mixups leading to sacks. Kennard and Flowers each have five sacks on the year thusfar.
Josh Norman vs Kenny Golladay and Marvin Jones
Josh Norman seems to always be a key matchup in these previews, and the reason is that he’s the Redskins’ starting #1 corner and the team needs him to perform, although he’s obviously not had a good season. Both Golladay and Jones have the potential to make big plays, so the Redskins can’t afford to have another round of big coverage miscues. Norman, as the leader of the unit, needs to finally start setting the tone, taking accountability, and performing up to the level he’s shown in the past. If he doesn’t, we’re probably going to see Golladay and Jones running free in the defensive backfield.
OFFICIAL INJURY REPORT (as of Thursday (active roster only)) (starters in bold)
LP – limited practice FP – full practice DNP – did not practice
NIR – not injury related Q – questionable O – out
D – doubtful NL – not listed
| Redskins | Lions |
| DT J. Allen, ankle/knee; Wed: DNP; Thurs: LP; Fri: FP | CB J. Agnew, ankle; Wed: DNP; Thurs: DNP; Fri: DNP; game: O |
| DT D. Payne, ankle; Wed: DNP; Thurs: DNP; Fri: DNP; game: D | DE T. Flowers, concussion; Wed: DNP; Thurs: DNP; Fri: DNP; game: O |
| RB A. Peterson, toe; Wed: DNP; Thurs: DNP; Fri: LP; game: Q | DL D. Hand, hand; Wed: DNP; Thurs: DNP; Fri: DNP; game: O |
| TE V. Davis, concussion; Wed: LP; Thurs: LP; Fri: LP; game: O | P S. Martin, abdomen; Wed: DNP; Thurs: LP; Fri: LP |
| S M. Nicholson, ankle; Wed: LP; Thurs: FP; Fri: FP | OL F. Ragnow, concussion; Wed: DNP; Thurs: DNP; Fri: DNP; game: O |
| WR P. Richardson, hamstring; Wed: LP; Thurs: FP; Fri: FP | QB M. Stafford, hip/back; Wed: DNP; Thurs: DNP; Fri: DNP; game: O |
| DT T. Settle, hamstring; Wed: LP; Thurs: FP; Fri: FP | DB T. Walker, knee; Wed: DNP; Thurs: DNP; Fri: DNP; game: O |
| RB C. Thompson, toe; Wed: LP; Thurs: LP; Fri: LP; game: Q | S C.J. Moore, hamstring; Wed: LP; Thurs: LP; Fri: FP |
| S. D. Everett, ankle; Wed: FP; Thurs: FP; Fri: FP | T R. Wagner, concussion; Wed: LP; Thurs: FP; Fri: FP |
| LB C. Holcomb; Wed: FP; Thurs: FP; Fri: FP | DT D. Harrison Sr, rest; Wed: NL; Thurs: DNP; Fri: LP |
| WR T. McLaurin; Wed: FP; Thurs: FP; Fri: FP | CB R. Melvin, ribs; Wed: NL; Thurs: NL; Fri: LP; game: Q |
| CB J. Norman, hamstring; Wed: FP; Thurs: FP; Fri: LP; game: Q | |
| P T. Way, right shin; Wed: FP; Thurs: FP; Fri: FP | |
| T M. Moses, thumb; Wed: NL; Thurs: FP; Fri: FP |
TEAM STATISTICS
Redskins:
The Redskins offense remains mired in the statistical graveyard, having not improved at all under interim head coach Bill Callahan. The franchise remains last in the NFL in points scored, passing yards, and time of possession, and second to last in total yards, yards per game, third down conversions, and red zone efficiency. The only slightly redeeming quality of this offense is that the run game continues to at least be mediocre (21st in yards per rushing attempt), so there’s that. Tress Way continues to be the NFL’s best punter.
From a statistical point of view, Washington’s defense doesn’t stink quite a badly as the offense, but it’s still pretty darn awful in some ways. The Redskins are 21st in points surrendered, which is the most important stat, 21st in total yards, 26th in passing yards, and 28th in rushing yards. It takes talent and effort to be the second-worst team on offense on thirds downs and the worst in the NFL on defense on third downs, but that’s where we are. Abandon all hope ye who enter here.
Record: 1 – 9 (4th) (Home: 0 – 5; NFC: 0 – 6)
All-time franchise record: 601 – 599 – 28
Offense
| Offensive rankings | 32 (points) / 31 (total yards) / 31 (yards per game) / 29 (yards per play) / 32 (passing yards) / 25 (passing yards per att.) / 26 (rushing yards) / 21 (rushing yards per att.) |
| Points for | 125 |
| Yards per game | 255.7 |
| Passing
|
294 att (31st); 190 comp; 64.6% comp per. (14th); 6.7 Y/A; 1698 net yds; 11 TD; 10 Int |
| Passing leader | Keenum (188 att, 1343 yds (31st), 67.0% comp perc (10th), 9 TDs / 4 Int, 94.8 QB rating (15th); Haskins (79 att, 498 yds, 58.2% comp per., 2 TDs / 5 Int, 58.9 QB rating) |
| Receiving leader | McLaurin (566 yds (35th), 56 tgts (59th), 35 rec (64th), 5 TD, 16.2 YPC) |
| Rushing | 206 att (31st); 859 yds; 4.2 Y/A; 85.9 Y/G (26th); 2 TD |
| Rushing leader | Peterson (124 att (19th), 516 yds (19th), 1TD, 4.2 Y/A (29th), long 29) |
| Sacks surrendered / rank | 32 / 24 |
| Ave time of possession / rank | 26:34 / 32 |
| 3rd down conversion rate / rank | 26.17% / 31 |
| TD percentage in red zone / rank | 35.0% / 31 |
Defense
| Defensive rankings | 21 (points) / 21 (total yards) / 22 (yards per game surrendered) / 19 (yards per play) / 15 (passing yards) / 26 (passing yards per att.) / 28 (rushing yards) / 12 (rushing yards per att.) |
| Points against | 253 |
| Yards per game surrendered | 369.5 |
| Opponent’s passing | 315 att (5th); 225 comp; 71.4% comp perc. (32nd); 7.9 Y/A; 2356 net yds; 19 TDs; QB Rating 102.8 (27th) |
| Opponent’s rushing | 323 att (31st); 1339 yds; 4.1 Y/A; 9 TD; 133.9 Y/G (28th) |
| Sacks / rank / Sack leader | 23 / 25 / Ioannidis (4.5) |
| Tackles leader | Collins (84) |
| Int / rank / Int leader | 9 / 10 / Dunbar (3) |
| Opponent 3rd down conv rate / rank | 49.28% / 32 |
| Opponent TD percentage in red zone / rank | 56.76% / 17 |
Special Teams
| Kick returns | 22.6 Y/R (15th), 24 returns, long 45 yards (16th), 0 TDs |
| Punt returns | 6.1 Y/R (22nd), 12 returns, long 15 yards (30th), 0 TDs |
| Kick return defense | 26.0 Y/R (27th), 8 returns, 0 TDs |
| Punt return defense | 9.8 Y/R (27th), 23 returns, 0 TDs |
| Punting | 48.9 Y/P (1st) |
Turnovers (lost by O / recv’d by D / net / rank): 15 / 13 / -2 / 22
Penalties (total accepted # / rank): 76 / 22
Lions:
The Lions are 12th in points scored, 10th in total yards, and 6th in passing yards; of course, quarterback Matthew Stafford has been out due to injury for the past two games and replaced by Jeff Driskel, so the Lions have temporarily lost an elite passer. The Lions run game is generally poor, ranked just 20th in total yards and 26th in yards per attempt, and many of their peripheral numbers are medicore, such as time of possession (17th), third down conversions (13th), and red zone efficiency (14th).
Detroit’s defensive statistics are mostly bad, so an average offense – which the Redskins are definitely are not – should be able to take advantage of them. The Lions are 27th in points surrendered, 29th in total yards, and 30th in passing yards, but slightly better in rushing yards (23rd) and rushing yards per attempt (21st). They are terrible on third downs (30th) and in the red zone (28th).
Record: 3 – 6 – 1 (4th) (Away: 1 – 3 – 1; NFC: 2 – 4 – 1)
All-time franchise record: 562 – 664 – 33
Offense
| Offensive rankings
|
12 (points) / 10 (total yards) / 8 (yards per game) / 8 (yards per play) / 6 (passing yards) / 5 (passing yards per att.) / 20 (rushing yards) / 26 (rushing yards per att.) |
| Points for | 244 |
| Yards per game | 379.9 |
| Passing | 363 att (13th); 229 comp; 63.1% comp per. (19th); 8.2 Y/A; 2812 net yds; 22 TDs; 6 Int |
| Passing leader | Stafford (291 att, 2499 yds (13th), 64.3% comp per., 19 TDs / 5 Int, 106.0 QB rating (5th)) |
| Reception leader | Jones (655 yds, 67 tgts, 51 rec (24th), 8 TD, 12.8 Y/C); Golladay (731 yds (16th), 76 tgts (22nd), 39 rec, 8 TD, 18.7 Y/C) |
| Rushing | 263 att (13th); 987 yds; 3.8 Y/A; 98.7 Y/G (19th); 4 TDs |
| Rushing leader | Johnson (92 att (35th), 308 yds (46th), 2 TDs, 3.3 Y/A (46th), long 14 yds) |
| Sacks surrendered / rank | 23 / 15 |
| Ave time of possession / rank | 29:44 / 17 |
| 3rd down conversion rate / rank | 41.48% /13 |
| TD percentage in red zone / rank | 60.71% / 14 |
Defense
| Defensive rankings | 27 (points) / 29 (total yards) / 30 (yards per game surrendered) / 31 (yards per play) / 30 (passing yards) / 26 (passing yards per att.) / 23 (rushing yards) / 22 (rushing yards per att.) |
| Points against | 272 |
| Yards per game surrendered | 412.8 |
| Opponent’s passing | 382 att (27th); 234 comp; 61.3% comp per. (5th); 7.9 Y/A; 2886 net yds; 22 TD; QB Rating 102.0 (23rd) |
| Opponent’s rushing | 277 att (24th); 1242 yds; 4.5 Y/A; 10 TD |
| Sacks / rank / Sack leader | 20 / 29 / Kennard, Flowers (5.0) |
| Tackles leader | Walker (72) |
| Int / rank / Int leader | 3 / 32 / Coleman, Slay, Walker (1) |
| Opponent 3rd down conv rate / rank | 46.15% / 30 |
| Opponent TD percentage in red zone / rank | 62.50% / 28 |
Special Teams
| Kick returns | 24.1 Y/R (7th), 20 returns, long 100 yards (3rd), 1 TD |
| Punt returns | 5.8 Y/R (25th), 18 returns, long 32 yards (13th), 0 TDs |
| Kick return defense | 21.9 Y/R (9th), 40 returns, 0 TDs |
| Punt return defense | 3.3 Y/R (2nd), 16 returns, 0 TD |
| Punting | 43.5 Y/P (29th) |
Turnovers (lost by O / recv’d by D / net / rank): 12 / 13 / +1 / 15
Penalties (total accepted # / rank): 81 / 27
* Statistics courtesy of www.pro-football-reference.com, www.nflpenalties.com, www.nfl.com, www.teamrankings.com, www.espn.com, www.sportingcharts.com