The Redskins travel to Charlotte, N.C., to take on the Carolina Panthers on Sunday, Oct. 23 at Bank of America Stadium. Kickoff is 1 p.m. ET.

Bank of America Stadium is a natural grass surface. The stadium seats 73,504.

Quarterback John Beck is expected to make his debut as the Redskins' starter in the game, replacing Rex Grossman. In his fifth year in the NFL, Beck would make his first NFL start since Dec. 30, 2007 when he was a rookie with the Miami Dolphins.

"I'm definitely excited," Beck said. "There has been a lot of hard work that has gone into this. You never know when your opportunity is going to come and you have to stay ready. I've tried to do that and I just want to go out there and do my best."

The Redskins are 1-1 in road games so far this season. They lost to the Dallas Cowboys 18-16 at Cowboys Stadium in Week 3 and defeated the St. Louis Rams 17-10 at the Edward Jones Dome in Week 4.

The Panthers, in last place in the NFC South, are 1-2 in homes games. They lost to Green Bay 30-23 in Week 2, defeated the Jacksonville Jaguars 16-10 in Week 3 and lost to New Orleans 30-27 in Week 5.

The Redskins-Panthers game will be televised to a regional audience on FOX. Chris Myers calls the play-by-play and Tim Ryan provides color commentary.

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. Former Redskin Rick 'Doc' Walker reports from the sidelines.

PROJECTED STARTING LINEUPS

SERIES HISTORY

Washington and Carolina have played nine times in the regular season, with the Redskins owning a 7-2 series lead.

Eight of the nine Redskins-Panthers games have been decided by four points or less.

The last meeting between the two clubs was on Oct. 11, 2009 at Bank of America Stadium. The Redskins jumped out to a 17-2 lead thanks to a 10-yard touchdown catch by Clinton Portis and a 1-yard run by Portis.

The Panthers came back, though, scoring the game's final 18 points, including 11 in the fourth quarter, to win 20-17. Running back Jonathan Stewart capped the rally with an 8-yard touchdown run.

Washington and Carolina have played five times in the preseason, with the Panthers holding a 4-1 series lead.

The last preseason encounter between the two teams was on Aug. 23, 2008, when the Panthers won 47-3 at Bank of America Stadium. The Panthers compiled 228 rushing yards en route to beating the Redskins.

TALE OF THE TAPE
 

 FAMILIAR FACES ON THE PANTHERS
 

General Manager Marty Hurney was in the Redskins' public relations department in 1988-89. He hails from Wheaton, Md., and attended college at Catholic University. He was a beat writer covering the Redskins for The Washington Times for five years before joining the team he covered.

Defensive backs coach Ron Meeks was the Redskins' defensive backs coach in 2000.

Assistant offensive line coach Ray Brown played for the Redskins from 1989-95 and 2005-06. He also served as an assistant offensive line coach during the 2007 season.

Running backs coach John Settle played running back for the Redskins from 1991-92.

REDSKINS-PANTHERS NEWS & NOTES

-- 'D' Is Back In D.C.

One season removed from allowing an NFC-worst 389.3 yards per game, the Redskins rank sixth in the league in total defense (321.6 yards allowed per game) and third in the NFL in points allowed per game (16.6).

If maintained, the 16.6 points allowed per game would be the franchise's fewest since 2004.

The Redskins are tied for first in the NFL with just eight touchdowns allowed through Week 6. (Baltimore also has eight touchdowns allowed.)

A season ago, the Redskins ranked 25th in the NFL in sacks with 29. Through four games in 2011, the defense has already totaled 17 sacks, tied for third-most in the league.

The Redskins are currently on pace for 54 sacks in the regular season, which would be third all-time in franchise history.

The pass rush has played a key part in the Redskins' current status as the NFL's top-ranked third-down defense. Opponents have converted just 28.8 percent of third downs.

If the Redskins maintain that percentage, it would be the club's best mark since 2004, when they allowed 31 percent of third downs. It would also be the league's lowest since the turn of the century -- the current holders of that title are the Tennessee Titans, who held opponents to 27.7 percent on third-down conversions in 2003.

-- Air Traffic Control

Cornerback DeAngelo Hall and safety Oshiomogho Atogwe patrol the Redskins' secondary as two of the top interceptors in the NFL.

Since 2006, Hall has posted 25 interceptions, fourth-most in that span, and Atogwe has 22 interceptions, fifth-most in that span.

Both Hall and Atogwe logged their first interceptions of the season in the Oct. 16 game vs. Philadelphia.

Atogwe's 44 forced turnovers, which includes 22 forced fumbles, is the most since 2006.

Hall earned his third Pro Bowl nod last year after finishing tied for fifth in the NFL with six interceptions and tied for first with eight total takeaways.

-- 'Rocc'-Star

Sav Rocca, the Redskins' 37-year-old Australian punter, is off to a strong start in his first year in Washington. Overall, he is averaging 44.2 yards per punt.

He leads the NFL with 14 punts downed inside the opponent's 20-yard line.

Rocca enters Week 6 with a 41.2-yard net punting average, which if maintained would be the highest average in Redskins franchise history. Matt Turk currently hold hthe single-season record for net punting, having averaged 39.2 net yards in both 1996 and 1997.

"Net is really the team stat that we look at after my punt," Rocca explained. "If I give it as much hang time as possible for these guys to get down there, then they're not going to have any return yards."

Rocca is also one of four punters in the NFL to have zero touchbacks (in a minimum of 20 punts).

-- How the Redskins' 53-Man Roster Was Built

The Redskins have 25 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 21 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.

Four Redskins players were acquired as undrafted rookie free agents. This group includes cornerback Byron Westbrook, wide receiver Brandon Banks, tight end Logan Paulsen and offensive tackle Willie Smith

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.

-- Redskins' Strength of Schedule

The Redskins have the NFL's 29th toughest schedule in 2011, according to the NFL. (Or, in other words, the Redskins have the NFL's fourth easiest schedule.)

The Redskins' opponents for the 2011 season produced a 121-135 record last year, a .473 winning percentage.

Only the Arizona Cardinals (.441), Baltimore Ravens (.457) and San Francisco 49ers (.465) have easier schedules than the Redskins.

The Redskins play six games against teams who finished .500 or better in 2010. They play five games against 2010 playoff opponents.

In the NFC East, the Dallas Cowboys have the 15th toughest schedule (.504), the Philadelphia Eagles have the 17th toughest schedule (.504) and the New York Giants have the 23rd toughest schedule.

-- On the Road Again

The Redskins will travel 12,342 miles during the 2011 regular season, which is the 22nd most in the NFL. The team's longest road trip of the year is to Seattle on Nov. 27.

The San Francisco 49ers travel the most miles of all NFL teams, at 29,196. Seattle is second at 26,918 and San Diego is third with 26,740. (A trip around the globe is approximately 25,000 miles.)

Among divisions, NFC East teams travel the third-most miles at 61,278, trailing the NFC West (95,346) and AFC West (82,826). Dallas travels the most miles in the NFC East at 20,232.

-- Carolina On My Mind

The Redskins have a host of players and coaches who either grew up or attended college in North Carolina.

Offensive tackle Willie Smith grew up in Smithfield, N.C., and attended East Carolina University.

Offensive tackle Sean Locklear grew up in Lumberton, N.C., and played college football at North Carolina State.

Offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan, coaching assistant Richmond Flowers and strength and conditioning coach Ray Wright attended Duke University.

-- Shanahan File

With the Redskins' Week 4 win over the St. Louis Rams, Mike Shanahan recorded his 163rd career win (regular season and postseason) as a head coach.

Shanahan's career record is 163-114, a .588 winning percentage. That win total is 15th best among all-time NFL head coaches. He surpassed Bill Cowher with the Redskins' Week 2 win over Arizona.

Among active head coaches, Shanahan's record is second only to New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick, who has a 182-101 record.

Shanahan has won games against every NFL opponent. He is 2-1 all-time against the Panthers and 0-1 at Bank of America Stadium.

-- What's Next?

The Redskins go international for the first time in franchise history when they travel to Toronto to take on the Buffalo Bills on Sunday, Oct. 30. Kickoff is 4:05 p.m. ET.

The Redskins last played the Bills in the regular season on Dec. 2, 2007. The Bills won 17-16 at FedExField.

The Redskins are 4-7 all-time against the Bills and have lost the last five meetings.