Cousins is in Minnesota, leading a bona fide Super Bowl contender that reached the NFC championship game behind Case Keenum and a dominant defense a year ago. In the hours leading up to kickoff Sunday in Arizona, go ahead and allow yourself to believe that Washington could crash the NFC playoff party in January, and maybe even square off against its former QB.

In that spirit, here are five things that the Redskins probably won’t (but maybe will!) accomplish this season:

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1. Adrian Peterson will rush for at least 1,200 yards.

Why it’s preposterous: As my colleague Barry Svrluga noted in his pump-the-brakes column last month, NFL running backs have produced 590 1,000-yard seasons over the past 50 years. Exactly four of those seasons were registered by running backs 33 or older. Peterson, who turned 33 in March, has a history of knee injuries and was signed off the scrap heap during the preseason shortly after rookie Derrius Guice tore his anterior cruciate ligament, has rushed for 601 yards over the past two seasons combined. That’s two fewer yards than Samaje Perine rushed for last season, an unimpressive total that led the league’s fifth-worst rushing attack. The Redskins haven’t had a 1,000-yard rusher since Alfred Morris in 2014. This could be Shaun Alexander in 2008 all over again, and the former Seahawks great was “only” 31 when he played four ineffective games for Washington that year.

Why it could happen: There’s precedent for older running backs putting up big numbers in Washington. John Riggins rushed for a career-high 1,347 yards — and 24 touchdowns — during his age-34 season in 1983. Riggins eclipsed 1,200 yards again the following season. Two years ago, Frank Gore rushed for more than 1,000 yards as a 33-year-old with the Indianapolis Colts. Peterson looked good in his one half of preseason action and told SiriusXM this week that he hasn’t ruled out breaking Emmitt Smith’s career rushing record. While that’s preposterous, another 1,200-yard season behind what could be one of the NFC’s better offensive lines isn’t outside the realm of possibility.

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2. The Redskins will convert at least 45 percent of their third downs.

Why it’s preposterous: The Redskins couldn’t run the ball effectively on third and short, and excelled at completing passes one yard shy of the sticks last season, when they converted 32.4 percent of their third downs. Only Miami (31.7 percent) was worse. What’s more, no team had a greater than 45 percent success rate on third down last season; Atlanta led the league at 44.7 percent.

Why it could happen: You only have to go back two seasons to find the last time Washington eclipsed this mark. In 2016, the Redskins’ 45.2 percent success rate on third down ranked fifth in the NFL. Having reliable wide receiver Pierre Garcon certainly helped, but another key to the offense’s success in keeping drives alive that season was Jordan Reed. The oft-injured tight end played in 12 games, compared to only six last year. After offseason toe surgeries, Reed is healthy again to start 2018. The Redskins also welcome back third-down running back Chris Thompson, who missed the last six games of last season with a knee injury.

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3. Alex Smith will throw at least 30 touchdown passes.

Why it’s preposterous: Only three quarterbacks — Russell Wilson, Tom Brady and Carson Wentz — threw at least 30 touchdown passes in 2017. Smith, 34, is coming off a career year in Kansas City but finished four touchdown passes shy of that arbitrary mark last season. Smith’s offensive weapons with the Chiefs included all-pro tight end Travis Kelce, lightning-fast wide receiver Tyreek Hill and dynamic rookie running back Kareem Hunt. In Washington, his most accomplished receiver is Jamison Crowder. Cousins rewrote many of the Redskins’ single-season passing records over the past three years, but he topped out at 29 touchdown passes in 2015. The only quarterback in Redskins history to throw at least 30 touchdown passes in a season was Sonny Jurgensen (31 in 1967).

Why it could happen: Eleven quarterbacks threw at least 30 touchdown passes as recently as 2015. That group included Blake Bortles and Ryan Fitzpatrick. (Bortles threw 35!) While the Redskins would prefer to have a balanced attack, there’s a chance, given their questionable situation at running back, that they’ll have to rely on Smith’s arm as much as they did Cousins’s. Smith has carried large rocks on the ocean floor “for fun.” He’s got a 30-TD season in him.

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4. The Redskins will lead the league in turnover differential.

Why it’s preposterous: The Redskins had 27 turnovers last year, which was tied for the sixth-most in the league. Their minus-4 turnover differential was tied for 23rd. The fewest turnovers Washington has had under Coach Jay Gruden was 21 in 2016. It’s hard to finish anywhere near the league lead in turnover differential when your offense is that generous with the football. The last time the Redskins had a positive turnover differential was 2015, when their plus-5 mark tied for 10th in the league. Also, Perine is still on the roster.

Why it could happen: Smith threw five interceptions last season, which was one of the main reasons the Chiefs had a league-low 11 turnovers. The last time he threw double-digit picks was 2010. Cousins threw at least 11 interceptions in each of the past three seasons. Defensively, coordinator Greg Manusky’s unit could generate even more pressure on the quarterback than it did last year, when Washington’s 42 sacks tied for seventh-most in the league.

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5. Jay Gruden will receive votes for the AP’s Coach of the Year award.

Why it’s preposterous: Gruden, who is 28-35-1 in four years and has yet to win a season opener, has better odds of being the first coach fired than he does of winning Coach of the Year honors. It’ll take more than a two-win improvement to win the award presented by the Associated Press, which hasn’t gone to a Redskins coach since Joe Gibbs in 1983. A 10-win season for this team is asking a lot.

Why it could happen: It’s the NFL, which means at least a few teams that are flying under the radar at the start of the season will come out of nowhere and make the playoffs. Last year, Gruden’s former assistant, Rams Coach Sean McCoy, won the award after leading Los Angeles to an 11-5 record in his first season at the helm. If the Redskins outperform expectations — and it won’t take any of the previous four preposterously positive predictions coming true for that to happen — Gruden will at least be in the conversation. If they falter, he could be looking for a new job.