The Washington Redskins managed to slow one of the league's best offenses last week. They will be hard pressed to do it again.
The surprising Redskins will look to remain atop the NFC East when they host Peyton Manning and the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday night.
Washington (3-2) has faced a slew of potent offenses this season in the Dallas Cowboys, Houston Texans and Green Bay Packers, which is among the reasons the Redskins have surrendered more yards than any team in the league.
Most troubling for Washington is a pass defense that ranks 30th out of 32 teams, an ominous sign with Manning coming to town.
The Colts (3-2) are the league's second-highest scoring team with 136 points, although they struggled in a 19-9 home victory over the Kansas City Chiefs last week.
Manning failed to throw a touchdown pass for the first time this season and finished 26 of 44 for 244 yards and an interception.
Despite playing with a running game that has been abysmal, Manning already has a pair of 300-yard games and a 400-yard performance this season. If he reaches 300 yards again Sunday, Manning will join Dan Marino and Brett Favre as the only quarterbacks in NFL history with 60 300-yard games.
A lack of offensive balance has forced Manning to attempt over 40 passes in each of the last three games. He is third in the league with 1,609 yards and has thrown 11 touchdown passes against only two interceptions.
Indianapolis’ defense, which had been mauled in road losses to AFC South rivals Houston and the Jacksonville Jaguars, held the Chiefs to three field goals and 261 total yards.
The biggest problem for Indy has been an inability to stop the run, which the Redskins will likely try to exploit to keep Manning off the field.
Running back Ryan Torain struggled in his first start in place of an injured Clinton Portis, rushing for just 40 yards on 16 carries in last week’s 16-13 overtime victory over Green Bay.
Donovan McNabb threw for 357 yards on 26-of-49 passing last week, including a 48-yard scoring strike to Anthony Armstrong in the fourth quarter to get the Redskins back in the game. Santana Moss added seven receptions for 188 yards.
In his first season with Washington, McNabb’s numbers have not been great. He’s completing just 56.5 percent of his passes and has thrown four touchdown passes and three interceptions. But he supplies a big-play threat that has been lacking with the Redskins in recent seasons.
Safety LaRon Landry has been the difference-maker on defense. His interception in overtime led to the game-winning field goal last week. Landry leads the league with 52 tackles, including 13 against the Packers.
Washington’s defense will be bolstered by the return of Albert Haynesworth, who missed last week’s game due to the death of his half-brother.