We end Week Four with what might be the best game on the schedule. The Washington Redskins (2-1) travel to Arrowhead Stadium to take on the undefeated Kansas City Chiefs (3-0) on Monday Night Football.
The game will be broadcast on ESPN at 8:30 p.m. EST. As always, I’ll be riding with you with the Get More Sports live blog right here on the site.
The Game: Washington Redskins at Kansas City Chiefs (-7)
O/U: 49.5
The History
Considering that both teams have been in existence for at least the last 57 years, it’s a surprise that they’ve only met nine times. Their first game was on October 24, 1971 with the Chiefs winning 27-20.
Kansas City winning is a recurring theme in the match up. The Chiefs hold a 8-1 advantage with their most recent victory coming on December 8, 2013. Kansas City won 45-10 at FedEx Field in Landover, Maryland. Alex Smith was 14 of 20 for 137 yards and two touchdowns and then running back Jamaal Charles (now with the Denver Broncos) carried the ball 19 times for 150 yards and a touchdown.
WASHINGTON REDSKINS (2-1)
The Redskins enter this game off of what might be their biggest win in two seasons. They absolutely curb stomped the Oakland Raiders last Sunday night, beating them 27-10 in a game that wasn’t even that close.
Kirk Cousins showed that his early struggles are probably behind him. Unfortunately for Daniel Snyder’s bank account, Cousins completed 25 of 30 passes for 365 yards and three touchdowns. That’s right. He only threw two more incompletions than touchdowns. It was a damn good day.
What made the offense work so well was the implementation of running back Chris Thompson into the passing game. Thompson caught six passes and turned them into 150 yards and a touchdown. That’s averaging 25 yards per catch. Cousins also got second year wide receiver Josh Doctson involved, throwing him a 50-50 ball down the right sideline that Doctson grabbed over a defensive back’s head and took into the end zone for a 52 yard touchdown.
As impressive as the offense was, it was the defense that shut the high powered Raiders offense down. They forced two early interceptions from Derek Carr, sacked him four times and got 8.5 tackles for a loss.
KANSAS CITY CHIEFS (3-0)
The Chiefs can stake an early claim to being the best team in the NFL. They’ve absolutely dominated two teams on the road this season, one of them them defending Super Bowl 51 champion New England Patriots. Last week they strolled into the StubHub Center and casually whipped up on the Los Angeles Chargers, 24-10.
No one has figured out how to stop Kareem Hunt yet. He carried the ball 17 times for 172 yards and a touchdown last week and caught one pass for 11 yards. Tyreek Hill continues to prove all my thoughts from the preseason on his ability as an outside receiver wrong. Against the Chargers he caught five passes for 77 yards and a touchdown.
Kansas City’s defense will be without the services of Dee Ford this week who is listed out with a foot injury. That just reopens a starting spot for Tamba Hali opposite Justin Houston. Houston is on pace for 16 sacks this season with four in just three games.
With Seattle suddenly surrendering monster plays in the secondary, the Chiefs may get to claim the best defensive backfield in football, even with safety Eric Berry lost for the season. Marcus Peters is a shut down corner and Terrance Mitchell is solid on the other side. Last week he led the team in tackles. The No. 2 guy in tackles? Berry’s replacement Daniel Sorenson, who recorded eight tackles and half a tackle for a loss.
The Pick
Nobody is going undefeated this season, but I don’t think this Chiefs ride is over just yet. Washington has been a nice surprise here in the early part of the season, but going to Arrowhead and beating this Chiefs team with all their weapons on both sides of the ball is asking a little much. Chiefs 27, Redskins 17
This week
Straight up: 1-0
Against the spread: 1-0
Last week
Straight up: 7-9
Against the spread: 6-10
Season
Straight up: 28-19
Against the spread: 22-25
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