ASHBURN — The bigger the matchup, the better for Washington Redskins nose tackle Terrance Knighton.
In last week’s 25-19 overtime loss to Atlanta, offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan, who was with the Redskins from 2010-13, used an outside zone attack to neutralize Washington’s inside defenders.
That left the 354-pound Knighton in an unfavorable matchup against the Falcons’ athletic interior linemen.
On Sunday, Knighton and the Redskins’ defensive line will see a much different attack from a Jets team that rushes up the gut.
New York left guard James Carpenter weighs 321 pounds, 18 heavier than Falcons left guard Andy Levitre. Right guard Willie Colon tips the scale at 315 pounds, 12 heavier than Falcons right guard Chris Chester. Jets center and six-time Pro-Bowler Nick Mangold is 307 pounds.
Behind a bulking line like that, Jets running back Chris Ivory has rushed for 314 yards on 63 carries.
“We have to do a good job neutralizing the run,” Knighton said. “Their inside guys are just as big as me. It will be a fun game. I look forward playing against a power back that will challenge guys like myself.”
The Redskins’ defensive line know they need to be better after last week’s performance, when they gave up 176 rushing yards to the Falcons, including 153 to Devonta Freeman.
“They’re a prideful group,” defensive coordinator Joe Barry said. “They’re like, “No, coach, you don’t need to make excuses for that. There’s no way [Freeman] should’ve had 100 yards.”
While Knighton favors the inside matchup, Redskins defensive end Ricky Jean Francois doesn’t have a preference. All that matters is improving on what they were unable to do against Atlanta, which was stop the run.
“I’ll take the outside zone or the inside, but this week, they’re a team known for running that ball up the middle,” Jean Francois said. “That’s a big challenge. They have big linemen, great linemen to get those gaps open for Ivory. This is the type of game you wait for. It’s not about what we can hang our hats on from last week. It’s about how we corrected all our mistakes.”
The Redskins used fullback Darrel Young on the scout team in practice to simulate Ivory’s running style. Young is nearly 30 pounds heavier than Ivory, but Barry wanted the defense to practice tackling a bigger body.
“DY gave us a good look at that,” Barry said. “[Ivory] is a very physical, hard runner. He’s had that ever since he was in New Orleans. I think he’s if not the leader, one of the tops in the league as far as yards after first contact. He’s always been that style of back. He’s a big, physical, downhill runner.”
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