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Redskins hope to hand Eagles their first loss Sunday
By: Zach Cohen - StatFox
Published: 9/21/2014  at  5:39:00 AM
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WASHINGTON REDSKINS (1-1)
at PHILADELPHIA EAGLES (2-0)

Kickoff: Sunday, 1:00 p.m. ET
Line: Philadelphia -6.5, Total: 50.5

The Eagles look to improve to 3-0 when they host the Redskins on Sunday.

Here is the BetDSI Sportsbook betting preview for this matchup:

Washington lost QB Robert Griffin III indefinitely to an ankle injury early in its Week 2 game against the Jaguars, but backup QB Kirk Cousins was more than ready to take over the team and threw for 250 yards with two touchdowns in a 41-10 blowout. The Redskins won’t hold anything back for Cousins as they attack a very beatable Philadelphia secondary. The Redskins also have a below-average secondary, and that will be a problem against Chip Kelly’s fast-paced offense. The Eagles won-and-covered in both matchups between these teams last year and are 5-2 SU in the past seven meetings between the teams. However, Washington is 5-2 ATS in its past seven trips to Philly. Over the past three seasons, the Eagles are 4-13-1 ATS in home games, but are 4-1-1 ATS (5-1 SU) in the past six home tilts. They will, however, be up against a Redskins team that is 1-6 ATS in its past seven road games, and 3-11 ATS as an underdog over the past two years. WR DeSean Jackson (shoulder), TE Jordan Reed (hamstring) and RB Darrel Young (back) are listed as questionable for Washington in this game, while the only new injury for Philadelphia is little-used WR Josh Huff (shoulder).

Will the banged-up Redskins be able to hang with the high-flying Eagles? For the answer, connect to NFL Best Bets for all the StatFox Experts picks throughout the 2014 regular season and playoffs. During the 2013 campaign, the experts combined for a 52% ATS success rate in NFL Best Bets, highlighted by Brian's 60% ATS mark (41-27-6). Scott had a 54% ATS accuracy (36-31-3) on NFL Best Bets, while Gary was 53% ATS (26-23-3). Scott also thrived with his NFL Totals, finishing at 56% (40-31), capped off by a perfect 5-0 run in the postseason. Brian started the 2014 season with a perfect 6-0 record on NFL Totals.

The Redskins head to Philadelphia on Sunday with a chance to get over .500. QB Kirk Cousins is now the starter, and he gives this team a more poised presence under center. Cousins is a strong pocket passer and will use his accuracy to pick apart a weak Eagles secondary. One player who really benefited from this quarterback change was RB Alfred Morris. With the Redskins’ franchise quarterback sidelined last week versus the Jaguars, the team leaned heavily on the run, and Morris certainly delivered. He carried the ball 22 times for 85 yards and two touchdowns in the game, and has rushed for 338 yards (4.0 YPC) and 2 TD in four career meetings with this division foe. Facing an Eagles defense that allows a lot of points, Morris could be in for another solid game for Washington. Where this team will need to be better is defensively. Although the Redskins have allowed just 16 points this season, they are not a good defensive unit. They have been fortunate to face both the Texans and Jaguars in the early going of this season, but playing against the Eagles will be a whole other animal. Last season, the Eagles scored 28.5 points per game against the Redskins, and Washington will need to hold them to much less than that to secure a win.

Philadelphia is 2-0 this season and the scariest part about it is that the club has not played anything close to its best football yet. The Eagles went into halftime in both of their games down by double-digits and ended up putting up huge numbers in the second half. QB Nick Foles is second in the league this season with 653 passing yards, as head coach Chip Kelly is letting him throw the ball as much as he wants, but the quarterback will need to be better going forward. He’s been a little sloppy at times with four turnovers (2 INT, 2 fumbles lost), and although this Washington defense has not been tested by a great quarterback yet, it is allowing just 165.5 yards per game through the air (3rd in NFL). That number is not indicative of the actual talent that this secondary has, but Foles cannot afford to play as poorly as he has at times this season. Last season, he completed 17-of-26 passes for 298 yards in a 24-16 win over the Redskins. RBs Darren Sproles and LeSean McCoy should have a lot of room to run in this game, as the duo has combined for 250 rushing yards (4.5 YPC) and 3 TD with 230 receiving yards (11.0 avg) this year. McCoy has racked up more than 110 total yards in each of his past five meetings with Washington, totaling 712 yards (142.4 per game) and 4 TD in this timeframe. The Philadelphia secondary has done a solid job early in the year, allowing just 207.0 yards per game (11th in NFL), but the unit has given up some big plays for touchdowns. The Eagles will need to shore up the back of their defense as they go up against a very aggressive play caller in Redskins head coach Jay Gruden.


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