Here is what you need to know on this Friday, November 23, 10 days before the Redskins take on the Giants at FedEx Field.
Morris on first down a key
The ever-humble Alfred Morris is happy to take a back seat to Robert Griffin III when it comes to glory and accolades but his part in the Redskins’ 38-31 win over the Cowboys should not be overlooked.
The rookie was particularly helpful to the Redskins on first down. He had 14 first-down carries for 72 yards, a healthy average of 5.1 yards a pop. Second and five is a great place to be on a consistent basis. It opens up almost the entire playbook for Kyle Shanahan. It is no coincidence that after Morris’ successful first-down runs the Redskins converted on 50 percent of their third downs (6-12).
Morris played a key role in giving the Redskins more breathing room as halftime approached. With 10 minutes left in the second quarter he powered one yard for a touchdown to give the Redskins a 14-3 lead. The, with 17 seconds left he popped one up the middle that moved the Redskins from the Dallas 22 to the six. That put them close enough to the end zone to allow them to take a shot at a touchdown before kicking a field goal. Griffin found Santana Moss for six and the Redskins took a 28-3 lead into the locker room.
For the day, Morris carried 24 times for 113 yards, his fourth 100-yard game of the year. For the season he is just 18 yards shy of hitting the 1000-yard mark as he has 208 attempts for 982 yards.
Points soaring
The Redskins have now scored 30 points or more in five games this season. While doing that is routine for many NFL franchises, that is a positively dizzying pace for this team.
In the five seasons from 2007-2011 the Redskins scored 30 or more in a game a total of five times. So, in 11 games this year they have as many 30-plus games as they did in the previous 90 games.
The Redskins last scored 30 or more five times in 2005. The last season where they had more was in 1996 when they had six.
Today’s schedule
3:00—Mike Shanahan news conference conducted via telephone
No player availability
In case you missed it
RG3 takes care of business at his homecoming
Days until: Monday night Giants @ Redskins 10; Ravens @ Redskins 16; Cowboys @ Redskins 37
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