The Redskins have lost 7 of their last 8 games and the Patriots are coming to town.  The Patriots have won 5 games in a row by a combined score of 164-83.  Here is a look at the matchups in this game:

When the Redskins have the ball:  The Redskins are going to try to pound the ball on the ground with Roy Helu in an attempt to control the clock and keep the ball away from Tom Brady.  The Patriots are giving up 102.1 yards rushing per game and 4.2 yards per carry, so the Skins could have some success running the ball.  The Redskins need to give Rex Grossman time to throw the ball, because he will be able to make some plays down the field to Santana Moss and Jabar Gaffney against a Patriots’ D that is allowing 310.0 yards passing per game so far this year.  But, throwing the ball also comes with danger as Grossman has tossed 15 interceptions so far this year (against 10 TD passes) and the Patriots already have 17 interceptions this year.

When the Patriots have the ball:  The Redskins are going to have to get a good pass rush on Tom Brady, or he’s going to likely torch their secondary.  If Brady has time to throw the ball, he’s going to spread it around to TE Rob Gronkowski, WR Wes Welker, WR Deion Branch and TE Aaron Hernandez……and that’s going to be big trouble for the Redskins’ secondary.  The Redskins’ front seven is going to have to stop BenJarvus Green-Ellis as London Fletcher will likely be in his face often in this game.

PREDICTION:  PATRIOTS 31, REDSKINS 17

The Redskins have signed 27-year old TE Dominique Byrd.  Byrd played in 1 game for the Seahawks earlier this year but he didn’t have any catches.  Byrd has now played in 15 games (0 starts) in his first three years in the NFL and he has caught 6 passes for 83 yards (13.8 avg) with 1 TD grab.  Byrd will help out with the depth at TE due to the suspension of Fred Davis for the last four games of the 2011 NFL season.

UPDATE:  (12/20/2011) – The Redskins have waived Dominique Byrd.  Byrd played in 2 games for the Redskins this year but he didn’t catch any passes.

22-year old rookie RB Roy Helu has been really solid lately for the Redskins as he is taking over as the #1 RB.  In his last two games, Helu has carried the ball 46 times for 208 yards (4.5 ypc) with 2 TD runs.  He also has caught 11 passes for 96 yards (8.7 avg) in his last two games.  Helu has now played in 12 games for the Redskins so far this year and he has carried the ball 97 times for 456 yards (4.7 ypc) with 2 TD runs.  He has also caught 42 passes for 309 yards (7.4 avg) so far this year.  Helu is just further proof that Mike Shanahan can make almost any RB a good one in his system.

The NFL has suspended 25-year old TE Fred Davis and 23-year old LT Trent Williams, ending their seasons.  These are huge blows to the Redskins’ offense.  Davis has played in 12 games for the Redskins this year and he has caught 59 passes for 796 yards (13.5 avg) with 3 TD grabs.  He has now played in 55 games in his first four years with the Redskins and he has caught 131 passes for 1,648 yards (12.6 avg) with 12 TD grabs.  Davis was the Redskins’ best receiver this year, so he won’t be able to be replaced.  23-year old LT Trent Williams played in 10 games (all starts) this year for the Redskins.  He has now played in 24 games (23 starts) in his first two years with the Redskins.  They both violated the NFL’s substance abuse policy.

The Redskins folded up in the 4th quarter yesterday when the Jets dropped 21 points on them.  Rex Grossman was overmatched yesterday as he completed 19 of 46 passes for 221 yards with 0 TD passes and 1 INT.  Roy Helu led the way on the ground for the Redskins yesterday with 100 yards rushing on 23 carries (4.3 ypc) with 1 TD run.  He also caught 4 passes for 42 yards (10.5 avg) in this game.  TE Fred Davis (6 rec, 99 yards) and WR Santana Moss (5 rec, 42 yards) led the Redskins in the passing game.  The Redskins finished up with 100 yards rushing on 23 carries (4.3 ypc) and they also completed 19 of 46 passes (41.3%) for 204 yards as they had possession of the ball for 27:48.

The defense was pretty solid for the Redskins despite the final score.  LB London Fletcher led the way for the Redskins on D in this game with 17 tackles.  LB Perry Riley (8 tackles, 1 tackle for a loss and 1 fumble recovery) and safety Reed Doughty (8 tackles) also pitched in for the Redskins on D yesterday.  The Jets finished up with 101 yards rushing on 30 carries (3.4 ypc) and they also completed 19 of 32 passes (59.4%) for 165 yards in this game.  The Redskins are now 4-8 on the year.

The Redskins snapped a six game losing streak last weekend with a nice 23-17 on the road against the Seahawks.  The Jets snapped a 2- game losing streak last weekend in beating the Bills 28-24 in New Jersey.  Only one of these two teams are going to keep the good vibrations after this game is over.  Here is a look at the matchups in this game:

When the Redskins have the ball:  The Redskins would like to be more balanced than usual tomorrow.  With that in mind, this could be the game that they hand the ball off to Roy Helu 20-25 times.  The Jets are giving up 114.1 yards rushing per game but only 3.9 yards per carry so far this year, so Helu is going to have to fight for every yard he gets.  The Redskins are hoping that the O-Line gives Rex Grossman time to throw the ball tomorrow.  If he is under a lot of pressure in this game, bad things are going to happen.  CBs Darrelle Revis and Antonio Cromartie are likely to be looked up with WRs Santana Moss and Jabar Gaffney, and that’s not good for the Redskins’ passing game.  But, not all is bad as TE Fred Davis is going to have a size advantage over the Jets’ safeties, so he could have a big game for the Skins tomorrow.

When the Jets have the ball:  The Jets are probably going to come out conservative early in this game.  That means the front seven of the Redskins are going to have to shut down power runner Shonn Greene of the Jets.  The Redskins are going to have to also get after QB Mark Sanchez, because, like Rex Grossman….he has really good and really bad days.  If they get a good rush on Sanchez, he might make some big mistakes.  WRs Santonio Holmes and Plaxico Burress will be Sanchez’ favorite targets down the field, but TE Dustin Keller will probably have the most catches.

PREDICTION:  JETS 17, REDSKINS 13

25-year old TE Fred Davis has really stepped up this season with Chris Cooley on the shelf due to injury.  Davis has played in 11 games for the Redskins so far this year and he has caught 53 passes for 697 yards (13.2 avg) with 3 TD grabs.  Redskins’ QBs have completed 53 of 75 passes (70.7%) thrown in Davis’ direction, and that is pretty amazing when you consider that Rex Grossman and John Beck are the guys throwing him the ball!  Davis has now played in 54 games in his first four years with the Redskins and he has caught 125 passes for 1,549 yards (12.4 avg) with 12 TD grabs.