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3 Keys to victory in Redskins Week 9 clash with Seahawks

By Jacob Camenker

LANDOVER, MD - OCTOBER 29: Head coach Jay Gruden of the Washington Redskins walks off the field after losing to the against the Dallas Cowboys at FedEx Field on October 29, 2017 in Landover, Maryland. (Photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images)
LANDOVER, MD - OCTOBER 29: Head coach Jay Gruden of the Washington Redskins walks off the field after losing to the against the Dallas Cowboys at FedEx Field on October 29, 2017 in Landover, Maryland. (Photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images) /
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LANDOVER, MD – OCTOBER 15: Chris Thompson #25 of the Washington Redskins runs for 49 yards after a catch to set up a field goal in the second quarter of a game against the San Francisco 49ers at FedEx Field on October 15, 2017 in Landover, Maryland. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images)
LANDOVER, MD – OCTOBER 15: Chris Thompson #25 of the Washington Redskins runs for 49 yards after a catch to set up a field goal in the second quarter of a game against the San Francisco 49ers at FedEx Field on October 15, 2017 in Landover, Maryland. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images) /

2. Get Chris Thompson involved early

Chris Thompson is going to be a key cog for the Redskins passing attack this week. As I said in the Bold Predictions from this week, Thompson’s skill set matches up well against the Seahawks, and the Redskins should use this to their advantage.

"The Seattle front is a physical one that will look to bottle up runners at the point of attack. At the same time, they can also be overaggressive, which will set up golden opportunities for Thompson in the screen game. If the Seahawks line is bearing down on Cousins on a screen, all he has to do is dump the ball off and Thompson can do the rest. And if Scherff is ready to play, then the screen game will be even better. Should the Redskins be able to take advantage of the screen game, that will open up other areas for Thompson to do damage. When he’s on the field, the Seahawks will have to respect that ability and won’t be able to stack the box on every play. That will open running lanes [for Thompson]."

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Despite this apparent strength, the Redskins are still going to have to work to get Thompson involved. They have to make sure that they get the ball in his hands early and often. If they wait too long, it will take the offense a while to get going, and it’s quite possibly that they could have a couple of three and outs.

One mistake the team can’t afford to make is to roll with Rob Kelley for too long. While Kelley has proven to be a strong back at times this season, he hasn’t been 100 percent healthy in weeks, and he is a poor matchup against the Seattle defense. The Redskins need to work in Thompson earlier than they normally would and use him in non-obvious passing situations in order to ensure that he will be productive.

The Redskins can’t merely throw Thompson on the field midway through the first quarter and expect him to produce. He should see the start and touch the ball at least twice in the first few downs of the contest. If they do that, they will have a chance to get Thompson going and he could have a huge game as a result.

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