The Miami Dolphins and Washington Redskins are matching up on the NFL Week 1 schedule on Sunday and the game starts at 1 pm ET from FedEx Field. The Redskins have Kirk Cousins starting despite Robert Griffin III's face being on the ticket for this game and RG3 likely will not see the field, while Ndamukong Suh makes his debut for the Fins.
DeVante Parker could see some time in the game after having surgery this summer and he is one player that the Dolphins are hoping to have back at full strength soon. The Dolphins have some big expectations for this season and they start off on the road against the Redskins. Ryan Tannehill signed a contract extension this offseason and Suh is coming in after getting a record deal and it could be playoffs or bust for the team this season.
The Redskins have been a mess over the past month, with the status of RG3 fluctuating quite a bit and he now will be relegated to backup status for the time being. Kirk Cousins is the starter and that could mean the end of Griffin in Washington depending on how things play out. Griffin would have been in the line of fire with Suh and a tough Dolphins front and now Cousins will have to deal with that on Sunday.
Griffin had a rough game in the preseason that left him with a concussion and while he was cleared, Gruden felt more comfortable with Cousins under center moving forward. The Dolphins brought in Suh and they already had some strong players in Cameron Wake and Olivier Vernon and they are hoping Suh gives the team a boost in stopping the run as well as sacking the quarterback.
This game could have featured a matchup of 2012 drafted QBs, but Griffin is out and that leaves Tannehill as the successful player to watch after he signed for just under $100 million. Tannehill had his best season last year and the Dolphins see him as the franchise QB moving forward after finding it hard to get a consistent QB for many years.
The rushing game should be solid with Lamar Miller and Jarvis Landry comes in after a breakout rookie season. The rushing game could also help with Tannehill getting sacked, which he has been at a high rate over the last three seasons. The team is getting Branden Albert back and they need better work from the unit as a whole this season.
Check here for the Dolphins and Redskins live coverage.
Check here for the stats, play-by-play and updates for the game.
