Washington Commanders

Week 3 Madden Simulation Predicts Washington Redskins Win

Published Jun. 30, 2017 6:28 p.m. ET

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App Trigger predicted the Washington Redskins to emerge victorious last week. Will their simulations produce different results this week?

The Washington Redskins are apparently favored to win in Week 3, according to a Madden simulation done by App Trigger’s Daniel George. The site, which predicted the Redskins to win in a blowout last week against the Cowboys, believes that the game will go into overtime where the Redskins will ultimately win by a final score of 23-17. While the score is certainly a possibility, the way that it happens is somewhat hard to believe.

According to the simulation, the Redskins are going to rely heavily on the ground game in this contest. On the surface, that may seem like a good idea given how Matt Jones played last week. However, the Giants sport a terrific run defense. Damon Harrison and Johnathan Hankins are essentially both nose tackles, and they are the starters on defense. The duo should be able to slow down the Washington backs greatly. As a result, the 137 rushing yards projected seems to be a little optimistic.

Also, the simulation projects the Redskins to record a whopping 35 carries during the game. However, the carries are split between Jones and Chris Thompson relatively evenly. There is no way that the 5-8 Thompson is going to have success running the ball against the Giants. The simulation projects him to record 17 carries for 63 yards. In the game, he would be lucky to reach 20 yards given the poor matchup he is facing.

Kirk Cousins is projected to be a game manager in this contest. He is not going to throw for many yards, but he is also going to make minimal mistakes. George elaborated on Cousins’ performance in the piece:

Kirk Cousins opted for short, efficient passes all game, grabbing just 159 yards on 19 completed passes for a 70% completion rate. Those dump passes led to zero interceptions for the offensively troubled QB, as before the 4th quarter most of the Washington offense was led on the ground.

That style of game would actually hugely benefit the Redskins for this contest. If Cousins can play efficiently, then he will be able to give them at least a chance to win. However, I believe that he is going to need to throw for more than just 159 yards because I think that the run game will give the Redskins issues.

The results of this simulation are certainly possible, but I find it hard to believe that the running game will be what carries the team. Expect the Redskins to put up a fight through the air. If they do that, then they should at least be competitive.