Redskins at Lions: 3 things we learned
By John Buhler
The Detroit Lions beat the Washington Redskins in Week 7, 20-17. Here are the three biggest takeaways from this NFC showdown on Sunday afternoon.
In one of the better games from the 1:00 PM ET slot, the Detroit Lions were able to beat the Washington Redskins, 20-17 on their final drive. Detroit improves to 4-3 on the year, while Washington falls to 4-3 on the season.
This game came down to the wire between two on-the-rise quarterbacks in Matthew Stafford and Kirk Cousins. The Lions were slightly better at home today. Here are the three biggest takeaways from the Lions’ Week 7 win over the Redskins.
1. The Lions have entered the NFC Playoff picture.
Through seven weeks of the 2016 NFL season, the Lions are 4-3 on the year. As this time, yes, the Lions are in the NFC Playoff picture. With the Minnesota Vikings losing their first game of the season on Sunday to the Philadelphia Eagles and the Green Bay Packers looking bad in a win versus the Chicago Bears, maybe the Lions can win the NFC North?
That might be difficult, but Detroit is able to win close games under head coach Jim Caldwell. Winning by razor-thin margins is a skill in the NFL. Detroit can hang in games it frankly should not be in.
The Lions feel like a team that can go 9-7, maybe 10-6. If they can get above .500, expect the Lions to stay in the NFC Playoffs mix the rest of the way. Incredible win for Detroit over Washington at home in Week 7.
2. Washington is still a good team in the NFC East.
This loss stings for the Redskins, as they let a late Cousins rushing touchdown go to waste. Defensively, the Redskins still have work to do in 2016, but this team can definitely hang in the tough NFC East this year.
The problem is that all four teams in this division have realistic NFC Playoff aspirations. Dallas is 5-1. Philadelphia improves to 4-2. New York and Washington are at respectable 4-3 marks. This division will be decided in the games the four teams play against each other.
Winning in Detroit was going to be tough for the Redskins. That would have been incredible to see them win five in a row this season. Keep in mind that Washington went only 9-7 last season when the Redskins won the NFC East. Not a good loss, but this is still a good team.
3. The NFC Playoffs race is going to be exciting for weeks.
While the AFC is down across the board, the NFC has many exciting teams that will be in the playoff mix until the final weeks. The NFC East has four teams that will be vying for playoff contention. The NFC North will have three. Who knows what is going to happen in the NFC South and the NFC West?
Part of the reason that the NFC should be so compelling the rest of the way is that middle of the pack teams like Detroit and Washington can beat anybody on any given Sunday. They have the early feel of NFC Wild Card caliber teams.
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The only two teams we can safely cross off from the NFC Playoffs mix are the Chicago Bears and the San Francisco 49ers. Besides those two bottom-feeders, the NFC is strong and will put an elite team into Super Bowl LI in Houston in February.