After last weekend's subpar showing against the Green Bay Packers, I'm interested to see how we look tonight when we take on the Washington Redskins. Here's a few things I will be keeping my eye on as I watch with my good friend Skin Patrol, the blogger for the Washington Redskins.

*How long and well well will Big Ben play tonight. I'd expect him to go longer than the one or two series we saw in the first two games.

*Can Gary Russell keep up his stellar play this preseason. Russell was leading the NFL in preseason rushing yards last week. With Willie Parker still not 100 %, Russell should again get the opportunity to prove that he should be our #2 running back.

*Can Max Starks block anybody tonight? Play all along the line has been less than solid so far, so the onus doesn't fall solely on Starks, but he in particular has looked lackluster thus far. After the loss last week, Tomlin said he hoped the L would motivate his team to work hard this week. Let's see if the offensive line comes out and tries to play with more agression this week.

*Will our first unit defense continue its dominant play? The first-teamers have surrendered little to nothing so far in limited action. As opposing teams leave their teams out there longer in the third and fourth preseason games, it will be interesting to see if our defense is able to continue shutting down opponents at will.

*Can Santonio Holmes make another big play? He's made at least one in both games so far. I'm starting to really like this guy.

*Any special teams improvement? They haven't been poor by any means, but the ST haven't really stood our either.

Me and Skin Patrol from Hogs Haven will be around during the game shooting the breeze. Stop by if you're around and watching the game.

Happy Saturday to all and GO Steelers!