Seattle Seahawks @ Washington Redskins NFL Playoff Prediction 1/6

The 2013 NFL playoff picks are going to be difficult to make, and in this one, the Seattle Seahawks and the Washington Redskins are set to do battle with one another. Check out our Seahawks vs. Redskins predictions and the keys to the game for Seattle vs. Washington.

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#6 Seattle Seahawks @ #3 Washington Redskins
Seahawks vs. Redskins Location: FedEx Field, Landover, MD
Seahawks vs. Redskins Date/Time: Sunday, January 6th, 4:30 p.m. (ET)
Seahawks vs. Redskins On TV: FOX

Key #1: Home has to be where the heart is for the Redskins
You have to go back to 1999 to find the last time that the Redskins even played a playoff game here in DC. Interestingly enough, it has been almost three decades since Washington has lost a postseason tussle at home, and that’s a stat that is definitely worth noting in this one. To find the last Seattle win in the postseason on the road, you have to go all the way back to 1983 against the Miami Dolphins, and that was when the Seahawks were in the AFC. History isn’t on the side of either of these teams though, and that has to change for the winner. Seattle is a team that historically doesn’t play all that well away from home, especially all the way out on the East Coast, several thousands of miles away from home. Washington went over 400 days without a home victory, a streak that only ended this year the middle of October. There aren’t many better fan bases than the one in Washington though, and the Redskins know that they are going to need to put together a heck of an effort in front of their hometown crowd if they are going to take down the Seahawks.

Seahawks @ Redskins Odds at Diamond Sportsbook
Seattle Seahawks -2.5
Washington Redskins +2.5
Over/Under 46
Click Here to Bet Your Seahawks vs. Redskins Picks!

Key #2: Youth has to be served
There isn’t a game here in the playoffs with more riding on the backs of the rookies than this one. QB Russell Wilson and QB Robert Griffin III are obviously both rookies that are playing well beyond their years, but these aren’t the only rookies that are worth watching in this game by any stretch of the imagination. One of Seattle’s best defensive players is LB Bruce Irvin, who is often the key to a fantastic pass rush that helped the team become the No. 1 scoring defense in America. Washington’s leading rusher is the unheralded RB Alfred Morris, who came out of literally nowhere to rush for 1,610 yards and 13 TDs on the campaign. Morris isn’t the flashiest runner in the world, and he has never played in a game on this magnitude in his career. Still, the Florida Atlantic back was really the main reason, not RG3, that this team ranked No. 1 in the game in rushing at 169.1 yards per game, as he contributed more to the ground game by himself than a lot of teams came up with in the 2012 season. Still, it’s never easy for rookies to step right into their first playoff game and perform, and whichever set of rookies can do that job better will be the ones that lead their team to victory on Sunday afternoon.

Key #3: The Washington defense needs some stars to rise up on defense
This magical run for the Redskins this year has truly been remarkable, if for nothing else, LB Brian Orakpo and DE Adam Carriker have been out for basically the whole season. That’s a solid portion of the defense for sure, and others have had to step up in their places. LB London Fletcher had one of the best years of his entire career, picking up five picks and three sacks, while LB Perry Riley was the second leading tackler on the team and had 3.5 sacks. The question is in the secondary, where DB DeAngelo Hall and S Madieu Williams have had some major problems this year. This unit ranks 30th in the game, allowing 281.9 passing yards per game. If the Redskins don’t ultimately figure out how to stop the passing game, QB Russell Wilson can take real advantage of this unit. It’s really tough to win games in the playoffs, because that’s when your best players are supposed to make their biggest plays. With Orakpo and others out of the fold, someone is going to have to step it up for the hosts to survive.