For the second time in three weeks, the Washington Redskins face a shorter week than usual to prepare for their next opponent.
After playing on the national stage Monday night against the Seattle Seahawks, the Redskins next travel on Sunday to Glendale, Ariz., to take on the Arizona Cardinals – a team Washington has dominated in its history, but has certainly seen things turn around under second-year head coach Bruce Arians.
Scenes from the Sept. 18 game between the Redskins and the Arizona Cardinals at FedExField.
Rex Grossman is smiles during pre-game warm ups
Redskins head coach Mike Shanahan and Cardinals head coach shake hands before the game.
Tim Hightower is met by the Cardinals defense in the first quarter.
Rex Grossman is ready at the line of scrimmage to snap the ball.
Tim Hightower rushes downfield.
Santana Moss dives forward for extra yards in the first half.
Brian Orakpo gets to Kevin Kolb for the sack.
Tight end Fred Davis scores a touchdown in first half.
Fred Davis celebrates his first half touchdown with Tim Hightower
Rex Grossman looks downfield in the second half.
Roy Helu tries to break a tackle in the second half.
Cornerback Byron Westbrook tackles Chansi Stuckey, and forcing a fumble in the final minutes of the game.
Graham Gano celebrates making the game winning field goal.
The Cardinals this year are 3-1, and are coming off their first loss of the season, a 41-20 loss to the Broncos Sunday in Denver.
In that game, Arizona allowed 568 yards to the potent Denver offense, the most yards they've allowed since 1973. They also saw their quarterback, Drew Stanton, leave the game due to a concussion, forcing former Virginia Tech star Logan Thomas into the game for his first-ever NFL action.
Thomas finished the game 1-for-8 passing, and his lone completion was an 81-yard touchdown play to running back Andre Ellington.
Prior to leaving the game, Stanton – filling in for an injured Carson Palmer – had completed 11-of-26 passes for 118 yards with no touchdowns or interceptions. Ellington led the way in rushing (16 attempts for 32 yards and a touchdown) and receiving (four receptions for 112 yards and a touchdown) for Arizona.
The Cardinals' defense, meanwhile, was led by cornerback Jerraud Powers, who had seven tackles and an interception of Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning, who was also picked up by defensive end Calais Campbell.
Sunday's game against the Cardinals ended their three-game winning streak to begin the 2014 campaign. Prior to losing to Denver, Arizona had defeated the San Diego Chargers (18-17), the New York Giants (25-14) and the San Francisco 49ers (23-14).
Through four games, the Cardinals rank 29th in total offense (305.5 yards per game) and 24th in total defense (379.2 yards allowed per game).
The Cardinals are coming off one of their more successful seasons in recent memory. Although they did not qualify for the playoffs, they finished 10-6, which was only the second time in the past 37 seasons Arizona had posted a season with double-digit victories.
Redskins dominantThe Redskins have simply dominated in their series history against the Cardinals.
The Redskins are 74-44-2 all-time against the Cardinals. Using the formula for winning percentage adopted by the NFL in 1972 to include ties, the Redskins' .625 all-time winning percentage against the Cardinals is Washington's highest against any opponent with a minimum of 50 games played.
Here's some more Redskins-related notes about their Oct. 12 matchup against the Cardinals:
- The Redskins' current eight-game winning streak against the Cardinals is the team's longest active winning streak against an opponent. Washington has won their last eight games against the Cardinals dating back to Dec. 24, 2000.
- The Redskins' eight-game winning streak against the Cardinals is one of five active NFL winning streaks against an opponent of at least eight games (Denver vs. Cleveland, 10; Philadelphia vs. NY Jets, 9; San Francisco vs. Detroit, 9; NY Jets vs. Tampa Bay, 8).
- The Redskins have won seven straight home games against the Cardinals dating back to Dec. 12, 1999.
- The teams' last meeting came on Sept. 18, 2011. The Redskins overcame an eight-point deficit in the final six minutes to earn a 22-21 win.
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