Washington @ Green Bay preview

Last Meeting ( Oct 10, 2010 ) Green Bay 13, Washington 16

Feeling a sense of urgency after dropping their season openers, the Green Bay Packers and the visiting Washington Redskins square off on Sunday in a battle of NFC contenders. The Packers were shredded by San Francisco's Colin Kaepernick, who ditched the read-option and picked apart the Green Bay secondary on the way to a 34-28 win. Green Bay now must prepare for another of the league's young dual-threat quarterbacks when it faces Robert Griffin III and the Redskins.

Griffin, who didn't take a preseason snap, was clearly rusty in Washington's loss against the Philadelphia Eagles last week but it was the Redskins' dreadful start which proved fatal. Washington's defense couldn't slow down the Eagles' frenetic offense, falling behind 33-7 before mounting a huge second-half rally in a 33-27 loss. The Redskins will have their hands full at Lambeau Field, where the Packers have won 20 of their last 21 regular-season games.

TV: 1 p.m. ET, FOX. LINE: Packers -7.5. O/U: 49.5.

ABOUT THE REDSKINS (0-1): For the most part, Griffin looked like a player who missed virtually the entire preseason on Monday night. The speedy former Heisman Trophy winner was relegated to a pocket passer, perhaps by design, as Washington looked to protect his surgically repaired knee. Griffin finished strong with a career-high 329 yards and a pair of touchdowns but the Redskins lacked a running game and turnovers (two by Alfred Morris) were costly.

ABOUT THE PACKERS (0-1): Aaron Rodgers was sharp in Green Bay's opener, throwing for 333 yards and three touchdowns, but aside from a couple flashes of speed out of the backfield from rookie Eddie Lacy (14 carries, 41 yards), the Packers were forced to resort to their familiar one-dimensional air attack. Rodgers is nearly unbeatable at Lambeau Field, winning 19 of his last 20 starts there while throwing 54 TDs over the span. Green Bay could be without tight end Jermichael Finley, who missed practice during the week due to a toe injury.

EXTRA POINTS

1. Green Bay lost last season's home opener to San Francisco but bounced back to beat the Bears by 13 in Week 2.

2. The Packers have won four of the last five games in the series.

3. Redskins FS Brandon Meriweather returned to practice following knee surgery and is questionable for Sunday's game.

PREDICTION: Packers 31, Redskins 17.