Redskins vs. Giants, round two: Matchups to watch, score prediction

Redskins defense vs. Giants offense

The Redskins defense is still an enigmatic entity; nothing’s changed since Week 4, in that regard. The unit has talent, but various factors have weighed it down all season, from Greg Manusky, to player-player communication, and to a lack of consistent development by position coaches.

The Giants can provide a bit of a respite from the Redskins defense’s traditional roller coaster ride, but how Washington will fare depends a lot on who starts at quarterback. Daniel Jones is a bit more dynamic than Eli Manning at this stage of his career, but the Redskins were able to exploit his lack of comfort back in Week 4, when they forced two interceptions on the Duke product.

Jones is volatile, but he’s ultimately dangerous in Shurmur’s offense; he has three games with four total touchdowns this season, and with 11 games under his belt, he’ll be more polished this week, just as Haskins is.

For the Redskins, using the front seven to take away Saquon Barkley can help with minimizing Daniel Jones’ potential. Jones’ performance notably dipped when he was without Barkley from Weeks 4 to 6, and Barkley is one of the few dynamically versatile threats on the offense. The Redskins should make Jones or Manning beat them; of course, even there, they’ll have explosive rookie WR Darius Slayton to worry about, who’s caught 44 passes for 690 yards and eight touchdowns.

The Giants may be accompanying Washington in the gutter right now, but they have talent, and a defense like Washington’s could be what they need to have one last confidence booster in 2019.