The New England Patriots and Washington Redskins are playing in Week 1 of the NFL preseason on Thursday and the game is live at 7:30 pm ET and is streaming online and has Tom Brady facing off with Robert Griffin III at FedEx Field in Landover as both teams kick off the 2014 campaign with their first game of the season.
The Patriots and Redskins held a joint practice this week and now the teams will prepare for the season with their first preseason game. Tom Brady and Robert Griffin should play for a couple series and then it likely will be Ryan Mallett coming in to take over and Jimmy Garoppolo could also get some time. The Patriots are looking like division favorites again and they have some players that could be primed for big seasons, including Danny Amendola, Stevan Ridley and Rob Gronkowski if he can stay healthy for once.
The Patriots are relying hard on Gronkowski heading into this season and if he is healthy they have the chance to win the division and go deep in the playoffs. Losing Gronkowski was a major blow last season and the Patriots cannot afford to lose him for half the season again and neither can fantasy football owners. The Patriots are perennial winners in the AFC East and this year they should be the favorites again, as the Jets are solid on defense but terrible on offense, while the Bills are a major question mark and the Dolphins haven't proven they can win anything this year with Ryan Tannehill at the helm.
Tom Brady is looking to have another strong season and he will get 2014 started against the Washington Redskins, who have a new look with head coach Jay Gruden. The Patriots have been one of the most consistent teams over the past 10 years and the Redskins want to emulate that and now the two teams face off. The Patriots went 4-2 against their division last season and got a great year from Julian Edelman and now the team is hoping that Danny Amendola can stay healthy for Tom Brady in the offense.
The Redskins dealt with injuries to Griffin last season and had a terrible year, somehow finishing behind the Giants despite New York starting 0-6 on the season. The team went 3-13 and dealt with plenty of issues and now Griffin is coming back strong and there is a new coaching staff and offense coming in. Alfred Morris is looking to have another strong year and he is a player tow watch all season for fantasy owners and Washington fans, as he has been wildly productive in his first two years.
The Patriots ranked in the top 10 in passing yards and rushing yards last season and the way they run things they likely will do it again. The team has high hopes for Brady and the offense this year and in the summer they worked on defense as the team ranked 30th in rushing yards allowed per game. The team should be better against the pass, as they now have Darrelle Revis in the fold.
Check here for the New England Patriots and Washington Redskins live coverage.