Here is what you need to know on this Wednesday, October 18, five days before the Washington Redskins visit the Philadelphia Eagles on Monday night football.

Timeline

Today’s schedule: No media availability

Days until:



—Cowboys @ Redskins (10/29) 11

—Redskins @ Seahawks (11/5) 18

—Giants @ Redskins Thanksgiving (11/23) 36

Redskins facing the MVP favorite on Monday

The Redskins will be going up against one of the hottest players in the NFL on Monday night. In fact, Carson Wentz is now the betting favorite to become the league’s MVP.

Take a look at these odds via Bovada.lv:

Yes, the second-year quarterback is at the top of the list, right ahead of 13-year veteran Alex Smith and GOAT Tom Brady.

And while you may wonder why Wentz is at the head of the class ahead of such stalwarts, it’s hard to deny that he is having a stellar season. He is the main reason the Eagles have the best record in the NFC at 5-1.

The big challenge the Redskins will face on Monday is holding Wentz and the Eagles in check on third down. Wentz has a passer rating of 130.5 on third down, the best in the NFL.

Wentz was even better than that on the money down in Week 1 against the Redskins. He completed 9 of 11 passes, eight for first downs, for 148 yards and two touchdowns. That’s a perfect passer rating of 158.3.

Don’t be surprised to see a ton of No. 11 Wentz jerseys in the stands on Monday. Dick’s Sporting Goods is reporting that his is the highest-selling jersey in its stores nationwide.

Carson Wentz after 7 TDs over last 2 games 🔥🔥



Has highest selling jersey in NFL, according to @DICKS #FlyEaglesFly pic.twitter.com/vo8FY8p5mJ — John Clark (@JClarkNBCS) October 16, 2017

It’s hard to imagine Wentz keeping this up over the course of a full season. But he only needs to do it for one more game to put a serious crimp in the Redskins’ division title hopes. If the Eagles protect their home field, the Redskins will be 2.5 games back in the division with Philly holding the tiebreaker via the head-to-head sweep.

The impact of Allen’s injury

JP Finlay, special guest John Keim of ESPN, and I recorded a podcast yesterday (if you don’t subscribe, you can find it right here) and we discussed the impact of the injury to Jonathan Allen. On a scale of 1 to 10, with 10 being Aaron Rodgers out for the season, JP and John came up with a seven.

I agreed and disagreed with that assessment. Allen was playing very well and his absence will be felt on the defensive line for the three or four games he will miss. But he should be back at around the halfway point of the season. Assuming he is close to as good as he was before the injury the line will be fine when he returns.

If that happens, then we’re not talking about anything near the impact of the loss of Rodgers to the Packers. Allen is good but he’s not the best in the league at the most important position on the field. To be sure, if the Redskins lose a game because they were unable to get pass rush up the middle, that loss could be very damaging. And, as John pointed out, if you pile the loss of Allen on top of the other injuries on defense the impact could be magnified. But the Redskins should be able to survive Allen being out for the next month or so.

Stay up to date on the Redskins. Rich Tandler covers the team 365 days a year. Like his Facebook page Facebook.com/TandlerNBCS and follow him on Twitter @TandlerNBCS.

Tandler on Twitter

In 7 games against the Eagles, Chris Thompson has 122 receiving yards. That’s his most against any team except the Raiders (150 in 2 games). — Rich Tandler (@TandlerNBCS) October 17, 2017

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