Our game-by-game preview of the Eagles' 2016 schedule continues with Philadelphia's Week 6 opponent: the Washington Redskins. (Click here for the Week 1 - Week 2 - Week 3 - BYE - Week 5 - previews.)
Washington is the first NFC East opponent that the Eagles will play in 2016. These two teams last met late in Philadelphia late last December. Washington beat the Eagles by a final score of 38 to 24 in order to clinch the division. The Birds went 0-2 against Washington last year, so they'll be looking to right that wrong this season.
Washington isn't a super imposing team just because they were the best of a bad division last year. They didn't beat a single team with a winning record all season. Washington got blown out at home in the first round of the playoffs. Starting quarterback Kirk Cousins has to prove his 2016 season wasn't just a one-year wonder performance. Cousins has never beaten a single team with a winning record in his career (0-6). He's 1-8 against teams that are .500 or better.
Here’s a more in-depth look at Washington from our fellow SB Nation writers over at Hogs Haven.
Notable free agent additions:
CB Josh Norman, DL Kendall Reyes
Notable free agent departures:
QB Robert Griffin III, RB Alfred Morris, DT Terrance Knighton, LB Keenan Robinson, WR Andre Roberts
Trades:
N/A
Draft picks expected to contribute as rookies:
WR Josh Doctson, S/LB Su'a Cravens, CB Kendall Fuller
Biggest offseason addition:
It would be hard not to call the acquisition of an All-Pro CB our biggest addition of the offseason, especially when the secondary has been one of the biggest weaknesses of this Redskins team over the last few seasons. The importance of the insertion of Josh Norman into this defense can not be understated.
Biggest storyline heading into training camp:
Will Kirk Cousins play on the franchise tag, and more importantly, will he take a step forward from his meteoric finish to the 2015 campaign? He threw for 23 touchdowns and three interceptions over the last ten games of the season last year en route to both the playoffs and a firm grasp on the locker room. If he continues evolving from there, Washington can call itself a true contender.
Under-the-radar storyline heading into training camp:
What is our safety position going to look like? DeAngelo Hall returns as likely the most certain member of our starting safety duo, which doesn't exactly inspire fear in opposing passing offenses. David Bruton and Duke Ihenacho will certainly factor heavily in the training camp battle to fill out the backside of our defense, but all eyes will be on rookie Su'a Cravens, the hybrid safety/linebacker. If he is able to log meaningful minutes at the strong safety position and make the kinds of plays our coaches feel confident he can make, this secondary could be exponentially better than it has been for years.
Notable injuries heading into training camp:
Junior Galette continues to heal from his Achilles injury suffered in August 2015, and all reports seem to lean toward an impressive recovery. Should he regain his pass-rushing form from two seasons ago, it would be the equivalent of adding a top free agent from our own roster. First-round draft pick Josh Doctson is also being held out of a lot of workouts so far to allow a tender Achilles to heal fully before training camp.