NEWSLETTER NFL Futures Prediction From Alan Harris
Take Washington Redskins ‘Under’ 6.5 Wins
The Washington Redskins were a dismal 4-12 in 2014, and they didn’t make any improvements in the offseason that make us think they will be three wins better than the team they put on the field last season. They had a chance to blow it all up and start over, but they decided to keep things status quo going into training camp with Jay Gruden still having a job and QB Robert Griffin III still taking the snaps under center. Things quickly changed for Washington as Griffin was injured during the preseason and then wound up losing his job to Kirk Cousins, even though it seems as if Griffin will be ready for Week 1. The team had a chance to cut him when the rosters were trimmed down to 53 last Saturday, but they decided to keep him as a backup, which in our eyes will only make things harder for the organization to move forward. The Skins do have some decent weapons on offense in DeSean Jackson and Alfred Morris, but Cousins isn’t really a starter in our eyes even though he’s shown flashes at points in his career. Those flashes were when teams either weren’t prepared to face him or really didn’t have any tape on him, so now that they know he’s starting and that teams know his tendencies we can really see him struggling here in 2015. It’s a known fact that the Gruden/RG3 combo doesn’t work in the NFL, and we’re not convinced Gruden will be any better with Cousins taking the snaps. The defense will be a bit improved, but by no stretch of the imagination will they be ranked in the top half of the league on that side of the ball. Cousins is a below-average QB in the league, and because of this the Redskins are far and away the worst team in the NFC East. Throw in the fact that they get to play a tough AFC East Division in addition to the Eagles, Cowboys and Giants twice, and we’ll tab the under for the Redskins season wins this week as our number have them as a five-win team at best here in 2015.