Malcolm Kelly leaps, catches the ball and everyone’s attention. It happened on the first day of practice, with Kelly outjumping two smaller defensive backs. That’s exactly what the Redskins envision.
They also know they’ll have to live with the flipside of rookie receivers. On the first day of practice, Devin Thomas displayed his talents, making a nice grab on a slant. Too bad he pushed off on the play. Fans applauded; coach Jim Zorn didn’t, knowing a flag would have been thrown.
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“Everything wasn’t polished,” Zorn said of the rookies. “They’re trying new things they haven’t learned before. We’re satisfied with where they are today, but they have to get better to compete in the NFL.”
But that’s to be expected. It’s hard enough for first-round rookie receivers to make an impact, let alone two chosen in the second round.
“It’s the route-running,” Kelly said. “You have to get in and out of breaks in a split second. Your margin for error is very small.
“You have to pay more attention to details now that you’re on this level. But if you study your playbook, man, in the end it’s all football. I really don’t see why it’s that hard for a receiver to grasp it like that.”
Their size — Thomas is 6-foot-2, two inches shorter than Kelly — was needed. They use that size to their advantage.
“Both are powerful,” Zorn said. “If a DB is coming up to press them, and if they’re smaller, they have to play it perfect to get a jam on these guys. They can use their hands. For young guys, that’s very impressive.
“I’m excited about their physical capabilities. [But] it will take time before they’re comfortable with the offense.”
Staff Writer Brian McNally contributed to this report.
