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Even though it's so early in the season, it's almost a must win for Philly, and it isn't at all for Washington. That alone gives Philly a big advantage, imo.

When I've watched Philly, their run defense has been awful - and they have a super talented secondary. So, it's vital that Washington runs early and often - sprinkling in just enough passes to keep the defense honest. I think Wash keeps it close, but Philly takes it 24-20. Torain has to have 100 plus yards for the good guys. Did he look like a stud or what against the Rams?

^Torain's best game last year was against Philly, so I would expect him to blow up on Sunday. Whether that results in a win or not, I'm not sure. Philly will be desperate and they will definitely test Washington's secondary. All it will take is a couple big plays to put the Skins on their heels and then let Philly's corners start jumping routes.

I"m also finding myself leaning towards Philly winning. Haven't made my final prediction yet, though.

I think the Eagles will win this one, but hopefully the Skins can put up a fight. This has all the makings of a let down game for us.

Just remember, a division win counts for 2 wins. Giants play Buffalo, Cowboys play the Patriots. We win this, we're 4-1, Cowboys are 2-3, Giants are 3-3, and Eagles are 1-5. It would be huge.

darnit, I thought I was going to be all original and predict the Iggles winning and you guys beat me to it.

I am very scared of this game. A win would be huge not only because of separation from the the rest of the division but also a nice morale boost going forward.

The eagles at this point almost seem like a team that has nothing to lose anymore. I don't have the numbers of preseason predictions at hand, but I am sure there was a significant amount of analysts and experts who didn't see Philadelphia losing 5 games all season, so getting their 5th loss in week 6 would be borderline catastrophic. That spells a very dangerous opponent to me. A part of me somewhat hoped for them to win last week so they'd get that angry, desperate win out of their system.

Washington on the other hand reminds me a lot of the Chargers this season. Both teams are sitting at winning records, but neither has actually shown football that would promise similar Win-Loss ratio to continue.

On paper our remaining schedule is said to be the 5th easiest, but I am not sure at all i buy into that. We've got 4 games against teams that are all currently 1-4 (Philly twice, Carolina and Minnesota) and i don't think that in any of those cases that reflects the actual strength of the team.

Despite all that I'm still cautiously optimistic going forward, but this weeks game will be very telling in what we can expect from the rest of the season.

It's absolutely amazing how terrible the team looks. The last two seasons under Shanny/Hase-lett the Redskins come off a bye, against the Eagles at home and look completely lifeless. Both blow outs and total domination by a divisional opponent. The preparation by the coaching staff is embarrassing. I'm embarrassed to be a Redskins fan.

Our defensive is much improved and our top 10 standing is justified after today.

Grossman can take a **** hike, get lost and fall of a cliff. He is the dumbest QB I have ever seen.

The fact that Beck got in and will presumably start next week makes this game totally worth it. Beck clearly had some jitters, but his athleticism really adds a dimension this team has lacked. Can't wait to see him after a full week of taking all the reps with the first team!

Oh-well, we all predicted a Philly win, but did anyone predict this mess? Look forward to seeing what the new QB can do.

The fact that we lost by only 7 is a miracle in itself. We were AWFUL. Grossman needs to take a seat on the bench and not get up. Ever.

We also lost our starting left guard, and Cooley is out 6 weeks. I think Cooley is pretty much done at this point, but whatever.

Boy, the Skins really had an opportunity to effectively end Philly's season and put themselves in a comfortable 4-1 situation, but as was said - maybe this was for the best in the long run. Now, there's no illusions that Grossman is the QB, and Beck can get a test run - though I really doubt he's the answer, either - at least the coaching staff will see - one way or the other. And the lack of depth on the O-line is getting exposed - so they know they'll have to address that in the offseason.

We are what I thought we were - a lower echelon team now but with some good moves, we have a bright future. We're on the right track, but it's painful.

I don't get the hoopla about how this is like the Zorn years. Been reading about that on the web this morning. We're in a lot better position than we were 2 years ago.

Agreed, Rafael. Skins have upgraded their roster quite a bit. They still have needs, but so does everyone. And they'll have an offseason and money to spend to fill those needs. Plus, the Shanahan team can coach.

And the bad news...
Kory Lichtensteiger out for the year
Chris Cooley out until at least Dec. and probably the year
Trent Williams out 2-3 weeks

When you've got a QB schism the last thing you need is a rash of injuries to blockers. Of course that presumes Cooley actually blocks someone, which is questionable.

Defense is gonna have to carry the water big-time.

Cooley is done, I think. I appreciate all he's done, but the guy can't stay on the field. As harsh as this may sound, his injuries will let us see if Davis is worth keeping around long term. At least Beck can scramble.

BTW sorry about the Ethnic Sluts typo in this week's piece. Honest mistake. Funny thing is I mistype it that way like 75% of the time and I always go thru and check it. Missed it this time, my bad