5 Things: What The Redskins Must Do To Win In Dallas

The Redskins biggest game of the season is this weekend against the Cowboys. Obviously any game against the Cowboys is an important one but this time around it is even bigger. The Redskins sit at 1-3 and yet are only 1 game behind 1st place. The Eagles
hold the tiebreaker over the Skins but a win against the Cowboys on Sunday night would be a huge step toward taking control of the division. Here are the keys to the game.

1. Run the ball effectively. RGIII has improved but he is still not where he was last year and even if he was it would still be the game plan to run the ball early and often. The Cowboys offense is filled with talent and if the Redskins want to win on the road the will need to shorten the game and take the crowd out of it. Alfred Morris needs to be the heart of the offense in this game. It may not be pretty but the Ravens win over the Dolphins is a good blueprint of what the Skins should do. Feed Morris the ball.

2. Convert on 3rd down. During the first two games of the season a big problem for the Redskins was keeping drives moving and they only converted five 3rd downs. The best way to solve this problem is to either never get to 3rd down or to make sure they don't have to convert a 3rd and long.

3. Start fast on offense. If you watched the Cowboys vs Broncos game then you know the Cowboys have the ability to put up some points. The Redskins have the advantage of knowing the Cowboys and Tony Romo much better than the Broncos do but that won't be enough to win. RGIII can not allow this offense to start like it has so far this season. Essentially the Redskins need to do what the Cowboys did against Denver. Have a long 7 minute drive down the field and put up some points even if it's not a touchdown. While the execution will be important Kyle and Mike Shanahan need to make sure they script the first few plays with some creativity.

4. Stop DeMarco Murray. Dez Bryant and Tony Romo will get a lot attention from fans and media after Sunday's performance but Murray is the real key. Dez is the best WR in the NFC East and the Skins will need to plan for him. However, if the Redskins can slow Murray it will put more pressure on Romo which often leads to him making mistakes. How do you slow Murray down? Well fortunately the Redskins will have Jenkins back on the defensive line and Cofield has emerged as one of the best nose tackles in the game. However, the real key is for the linebackers and the secondary to make plays in the run game. Missed tackles can't continue to plague this team.

5. Win the turnover battle. This is kind of a cop out because this can be said about any game. But in this one it seems even more important. If RGIII can protect the ball and avoid a turnover the Redskins should win this game. The Redskins defense will likely be able to cause a couple turnovers so RGIII can't give the ball back. The Cowboys defense is not much better than the Skins' so it's likely RGIII and co. will be able to move the ball for much of the game but turnovers could kill this team like they did against the Lions.