Can the Eagles run game get revenge against the Redskins?
Will the Eagles run game continue to produce on Monday? Or will they finally be put to a stop?
It has been some time since the Philadelphia Eagles last faced off against the Washington Redskins. Six weeks ago if you want to be exact. Since then, a lot of things have changed for both teams. They have both improved in different areas of the game, while both teams have also suffered key injuries on the way to Monday Night Football in week seven.
Fortunately for the Eagles, they have overcome the key injuries they have suffered and still won games. One of their biggest losses they have dealt with this season was Darren Sproles. He went down with a knee and an arm injury in week three that ended his season within seconds of falling to the ground.
Before that play, Sproles looked like he was going to be the most productive player out of the backfield this season. He may not have been getting many carries, but his production with screen passes was surely effective in previous games. Against Washington, Sproles had five catches for 43 yards. It was clear that at the time the Eagles did not trust their ground game.
No Ground Game:
During the first time these two teams met, the Eagles have not established an identity on offense. It seemed like the offense was built to move the ball on short throws and screen passes. Once they realized that these plays were not working, they had to abandon the gameplan to produce enough points to win the game.
It was shocking to see the Eagles ditch the run game so quickly during week one. It seemed like it was going to be another year of a very unbalanced run/pass ratio. Carson Wentz threw the ball nearly 40 times while the Eagles only ran the ball 20 times between three running backs.
LeGarrette Blount lead the pack with a total of 14 carries for 46 yards. His longest run that day turned out to be seven yards. It was clear that the lack of a run game on the Eagles side gave the Redskins a boost of confidence because once the Eagles struggled to find positive yards that day they ditched the run entirely.
Will it be different this time?
Since the first few weeks of the season, the Eagles run game has improved big time. Blount has been a top ten running back and has had plenty of support behind him with Corey Clement, Kenjon Barner, and Wendell Smallwood. These four running backs have totaled for 604 yards and three touchdowns this season. The Eagles currently have the fourth-most amount of rushing yards total in the NFL.
The Washington run defense is no joke, though. They currently rank 24th in the NFL when it comes to rushing yards allowed. They were clearly able to stop the Eagles before so who is to say they can’t do it again? The difference this time, though, is the key injuries the Redskins have suffered on defense. They will be without cornerback Josh Norman and their 2017 first-round pick, Jonathan Allen.
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This game will be the first true test for the Washington defense. The Eagles offense has been good in all areas of the game, but the run game should be the difference maker in this game. The Redskins will likely be so focused on preventing big plays in the air that they could forget all about the Eagles being productive on the ground this time around. Monday night could be Blount’s revenge on a broke down Washington defense.