Washington has nothing to play for in Sunday's game against the Dallas Cowboys, but head coach Jay Gruden doesn't plan to give his starters the day off. They have already won the NFC East with an 8-7 record and winning or losing on Sunday won't change who they wind up playing as they are locked into the fourth seed, but it's probably a good idea to keep Kirk Cousins, still a young and developing quarterback, fresh and in a gameday state of mind.
Washington vs. Cowboys 2016 live stream: Start time, TV schedule and how to watch online
Washington won’t rest its starters against a bad Cowboys team that handed them a loss earlier in the season.
Despite the playoff berth, Washington still has plenty of question marks and Gruden’s job isn’t the most secure in the league. He will definitely get another season after making the postseason, but owner Dan Snyder will likely want to see the team playing as hard as it can every single week, though it wouldn’t be unexpected if Cousins and the rest of the starters don’t play a full game.
Washington has won its last three games, and has averaged 32.3 points and 407.7 yards per game during said winning streak. Cousins has thrown 20 touchdowns against just three interceptions and has thrown for 285.6 yards per game as a starter for Washington. He has been the starter all season, giving Washington surprising stability given all of the drama that happened surrounding Robert Griffin III.
The RGIII era is almost certainly over in Washington. Cousins may never reach the highs that Griffin promised after his rookie season, but he is much more consistent and for an organization in near-constant disarray, Cousin’s play is a welcome change.
Washington has won four of its last five games, but the loss in that group came against the Cowboys, who sit at 4-11 on the season. The loss was a low-scoring affair, with Cousins completing a decent 22 of 31 passes for 219 yards and a touchdown. He did not throw an interception in that game, and Washington only managed 73 total rushing yards in support of the passing game.
That game saw the struggling Cowboys, who were still in the playoff race, start Matt Cassel at quarterback. They got 97 yards out of the rushing game, while Cassel completed 16 of 29 passes for 223 yards with no touchdowns or interceptions.
Since that game, Dallas has benched Cassel. They have gone from Tony Romo to Brandon Weeden to Cassel and now will start Kellen Moore in the finale against Washington.
Moore started the team's last game, a 16-6 loss at the hands of the Buffalo Bills. He completed just 41.9 percent of his passes for 186 yards with no touchdowns and an interception. Against the New York Jets the week previously, Moore completed 15 of 25 passes for 158 yards and a touchdown with three interceptions.
It’s the first significant regular season playing time of his career, in his fourth year in the NFL. The Cowboys hope Romo will recover sufficiently this offseason to be the starter next year, but Moore, a career third-string quarterback, could make a strong case for being Dallas’ backup going forward if he plays well against Washington’s starters.
How to watch
When: 1 p.m. ET Sunday
Where: AT&T Stadium, Arlington, Texas
TV: FOX
Commentators: Chris Myers, Ronde Barber
Online: Watch NFL Live
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