PRESEASON WEEK 1
STEELERS (0-0) @ Redskins (0-0)
The Redskins host the Pittsburgh Steelers on Friday, Aug. 12 in the presason opener for both clubs at FedExField. Kickoff is 7:30 p.m. ET.
FedExField is a natural grass surface. The stadium seats 85,000.
The Redskins' all-time preseason record is 112-117-2.
Last year, the Redskins were 2-2 in preseason play.
Friday night's preseason game vs. Pittsburgh is the first of four exhibition contests.
The Redskins play road games against the Indianapolis Colts on Aug. 19 and the Baltimore Ravens on Aug. 25. They close out preseason at home against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sept. 1.
Last year, Washington finished at 6-10 and in last place in the NFC East. Pittsburgh finished at 12-4 and in first place in the AFC North en route to an appearance in Super Bowl XLV, where they lost to the Green Bay Packers 31-25.
The Redskins-Steelers game will be televised on NBC-4 and Comcast SportsNet. Kenny Albert calls the play-by-play and former Redskin Joe Theismann provides color commentary. Another former Redskin Rick 'Doc' Walker reports from the sidelines.
On radio, the game will be broadcast locally on the Redskins Radio Network. Larry Michael calls the play-by-play with former Redskins and Hall of Famers Sonny Jurgensen and Sam Huff adding color commentary. Chris Russell reports from the sidelines.
PROJECTED STARTING LINEUPS
**OFFENSE** | ||
**Pos.** | **Redskins** | **Steelers** |
WR | 89 Santana Moss | 17 Mike Wallace |
LT | 71 Trent Williams | 72 Jonathan Scott |
LG | 78 K. Lichtensteiger | 68 Chris Kemoeatu |
C | 63 Will Montgomery | 53 Maurkice Pouncey |
RG | 66 Chris Chester | 73 Ramon Foster |
RT | 77 Jammal Brown | 61 Chris Scott |
TE | 47 Chris Cooley | 83 Heath Miller |
WR | 10 Jabar Gaffney | 88 Emmanuel Sanders |
QB | 8 Rex Grossman | 7 B. Roethlisberger |
FB | 36 Darrel Young | 85 David Johnson |
RB | 39 Tim Hightower | 34 R. Mendenhall |
**DEFENSE** | ||
**Pos.** | **Redskins** | **Steelers** |
DE | 94 Adam Carriker | 96 Ziggy Hood |
NT | 96 Barry Cofield | 98 Casey Hampton |
DE | 72 Stephen Bowen | 99 Brett Keisel |
OLB | 91 Ryan Kerrigan | 56 LaMarr Woodley |
ILB | 52 Rocky McIntosh | 51 James Farrior |
ILB | 59 London Fletcher | 94 L. Timmons |
OLB | 98 Brian Orakpo | 92 James Harrison |
CB | 23 DeAngelo Hall | 24 Ike Taylor |
CB | 26 Josh Wilson | 20 Bryant McFadden |
SS | 37 Reed Doughty | 43 Troy Polamalu |
FS | 20 O.J. Atogwe | 25 Ryan Clark |
**SPECIAL TEAMS** | ||
**Pos.** | **Redskins** | **Steelers** |
P | 6 Sav Rocca | 9 Daniel Sepulveda |
K | 4 Graham Gano | 6 Shaun Suisham |
H | 6 Sav Rocca | 9 Daniel Sepulveda |
LS | 57 Nick Sundberg | 60 Greg Warren |
KOR | 16 Brandon Banks | 24 Antonio Brown |
PR | 16 Brandon Banks | 24 Antonio Brown |
SERIES HISTORY
The Redskins and Steelers have met a total of 19 times in preseason, with Washington holding a 12-6-1 edge.
The two franchises last faced off in the preseason in 2009, with the Steelers pulling out a 17-13 victory at FedExField.
In the regular season, the Redskins and Steelers have played 76 times, with Washington holding a 42-31-3 edge in the series.
The last time the two clubs met in the regular season was Nov. 3, 2008, when the Steelers defeated the Redskins 23-6 in a Monday Night contest at FedExField.
The Redskins jumped ahead 6-0 on a pair of Shaun Suisham field goals in the first quarter, but the Steelers responded with 23 unanswered points. Ben Roethlisberger scored on a 1-yard dive, but he later suffered a shoulder injury. He was replaced by Byron Leftwich, who guided the Steelers to two second-half touchdowns.
Jason Campbell completed 23-of-43 passes for 206 yards and two interceptions. He was sacked seven times by the ferocious Steelers defense.
TALE OF THE TAPE
**REDSKINS 2010 RANKINGS** | ||
**Offense** | **Rank** | **Yards/Game** |
Total Offense | 18 | 335.9 |
Rushing Offense | 30 | 91.3 |
Passing Offense | 8 | 244.6 |
**Defense** | **Rank** | **Yards/Game** |
Total Defense | 31 | 389.2 |
Rushing Defense | 26 | 127.6 |
Passing Defense | 31 | 261.7 |
**STEELERS 2010 RANKINGS** | ||
**Offense** | **Rank** | **Yards/Game** |
Total Offense | 14 | 345.3 |
Rushing Offense | 11 | 120.2 |
Passing Offense | 14 | 225.1 |
**Defense** | **Rank** | **Yards/Game** |
Total Offense | 2 | 276.8 |
Rushing Offense | 1 | 62.8 |
Passing Offense | 12 | 214.1 |
FAMILIAR FACES ON THE STEELERS
Free safety Ryan Clark played for the Redskins from 2004-05 and established himself as a starting caliber defender with the Redskins.
Kicker Shaun Suisham played for the Redskins from 2006-09. He is club's all-time leader in field goal percentage (minimum 100 attempts). He converted 81-of-101 field goal attempts, an 80.0 percent clip, in four seasons with the Redskins.
Running backs coach Kirby Wilson served in the same capacity with the Redskins in 2000.
REDSKINS-STEELERS NEWS & NOTES
-- How the 80-Man Roster Was Built
The Redskins have 30 players on the roster that the team drafted, including each of the first-round draft picks (Ryan Kerrigan, Trent Williams and Brian Orakpo) of the last three years.
Washington has used free agency to acquire 34 players, including Mike Sellers in 2004, London Fletcher in 2007, DeAngelo Hall in 2008, Rex Grossman in 2010 and Barry Cofield and Stephen Bowen in 2011.
Nineteen Redskins players were acquired as undrafted rookie free agents. This group includes cornerback Byron Westbrook, running back Keiland Williams and tight end Logan Paulsen.
The team has acquired six players via trade: Santana Moss (Jets) in 2005, John Beck (Ravens), Jammal Brown (Saints) and Adam Carriker (Rams) in 2010 and Jabar Gaffney (Broncos) and Tim Hightower (Cardinals) in 2011.
The Redskins have claimed just one player off waivers: defensive tackle Doug Worthington.
-- Tomlin's Background
Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin began his coaching career in 1995 at Virginia Military Institute in Lexington, Va.
He entered the NFL as a defensive backs coach with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2001. Tomlin moved on to defensive coordinator of the Minnesota Vikings in 2006.
As a player, Tomlin was a three-year starter at William & Mary froom 1990-94 and he finished his career with 100 receptions for 2,046 yards and a school-record 20 TD catches.
Tomlin was born in Hampton, Va. He attended Denbigh High School in Newport News, Va.
-- FedExField Attendance
FedExField is the largest stadium in the NFL, currently with 85,000 seats.
It is more than 2,400 seats ahead of the second biggest stadium, New Meadowlands Stadium where the New York Giants and New York Jets play.
Cowboys Stadium has an 80,000 seating capacity, but is expandable to seat up to 100,000.
Prior to the removal of upper deck seats last offseason, FedExField had 91,704 seats.
In a Dec. 30, 2007 game against the Dallas Cowboys, the Redskins set a single-game attendance record of 90,910. In that contest, the Redskins defeated the Cowboys 27-6 to secure a Wild Card playoff berth.
-- What's Next?
The Redskins travel to Indianapolis to take on the Colts at Lucas Oil Stadium on Friday, Aug. 16.
Kickoff is 7 p.m. The game will be televised locally on NBC-4 and Comcast SportsNet.
The Redskins and Colts played in the regular season last year, with the Colts prevailing 27-24 at FedExField.