Redskins (5-3) at Bucs (3-5)
W...at New Orleans... 48-40 W ..... Philadelphia ..... 27-21 L ....... Pittsburgh ....... 30-27 L ........ atChicago ........ 48-10 Oct. 7 ................ Bye ............... L ........ at Atlanta ........ 34-29 W... Cleveland... 26-23 (OT) L ...... at Cincinnati ...... 37-34 L ....... at Carolina ....... 42-28 Nov. 11 ..... Washington ..... 1 Nov. 18 ...at N.Y. Giants ... 1 Nov. 25 ...San Francisco ...1 Dec. 2 ......... Carolina ......... 1 Dec. 9 ..... New Orleans ..... 1 Dec. 16 .... at Baltimore .... 1 Dec. 23 ........ at Dallas ........ 1 Dec. 30 ........ Atlanta ......... 1
Sunday, 1 p.m. ET, Raymond James Stadium, Tampa, Florida TV: Fox
Danny Sheridan’s line: Buccaneers by 1
Redskins’ keys to victory: The blueprint to beat the Bucs is to start quickly on both sides of the ball, forcing early mistakes on defense and capitalizing with scoring drives. If the Redskins are able to mount a sizable lead behind veteran QB Alex Smith, they need to keep their foot on the gas and play for a blowout win. Tampa Bay struggled with trick plays and complex schemes by Carolina’s offense in Week 9, and coach Jay Gruden should give the Bucs defense more of the same.
Buccaneers’ keys to victory: While the Bucs’ penchant for dramatic second-half comebacks has been entertaining, they wouldn’t be necessary if Tampa Bay would play at a similar level in the first half. QB Ryan Fitzpatrick’s big numbers will be useless unless this team dramatically improves its -15 turnover margin (worst in the league).
Matchup to watch: Redskins TE Jordan Reed vs. Buccaneers LB Lavonte David. Tampa Bay historically struggles defending playmaking pass-catchers at tight end, and Washington has one of the league’s best in Reed even though he’s at less than full strength. David is one of the most athletic linebackers in the league, but his abilities will be tested if he’s left in man coverage against Reed, a savvy route runner who has fantastic chemistry with Smith.
Who wins? Fitzpatrick gives the Bucs a chance to win every week, and they just might if the defense can hold an opponent to a manageable points total. But Tampa Bay has proved this season that it’s incapable of doing that.
Redskins, 38-27