Redskins Mailbag: Ask John

Rich: Yes, I agree that both Williams and Davis should return. I know character matters, but so does talent. My concern is whether or not this is habitual. Clearly they lacked discipline because they’ve been tested quite a bit and haven’t been able to kick their habit. That’s a bad sign. If they stay clean they’re both worthwhile. It’s a bit of a gamble, but they’ll also look at it in terms of it being a gamble to sign or draft a player who has been hurt a few times. As for the QB, yes they need to have a veteran who can handle the position until the rookie is ready. I’d take Rex Grossman every time in that situation over John Beck. Grossman is a good backup, which is what he eventually would be.

JK

John: Now that we have lost our starting LT and TE, I am thinking that changes our draft strategy. We now need another TE behind Davis/Cooley/Paulsen because I feel Davis can’t be trusted. It was obvious we need a stronger backup LT but with the latest events, I think that should rise up the charts as well.(Unless Willie Smith is a gem in hiding).  What are your thoughts?

Amani in LA. 

Amani: Cooley’s return would soften the blow of losing Davis to a possible year-long suspension, should that happen. Another playmaking receiver and a better QB would help too. This is not a great draft for tight ends, so I’d only take one late. They have a lot of needs along the line, depth at tackle being high on the list. If Smith develops this would help tremendously. If not, they have to find another veteran backup or keep picking guys late and trying to groom them. If they take another tackle high (third or higher), they’d better be able to start at right tackle. That’s probably the better solution: find a good, young right tackle who could slide over there if necessary.

JK

John: I have heard conflicting things about Leonard Hankerson’s injury, I understand he won’t need surgery but at the same time a reporter on the radio said recently this can be a career ending injury, what you have heard?

Mike

Mike: I have not heard anything about career ending. All I know is that he doesn’t need surgery right now. That could change if it doesn’t heal properly, but for now that’s the plan. Brandon Marshall had a similar injury and he seems to be doing OK.

JK

John: 1.  If you’re the Redskins Brass, who has the talk with Trent Williams and Fred Davis about their recent suspensions and what’s expected of them moving forward? Do you think both  in light of their suspensions will get the message? Trent is a Captain…Wow!! 2.  Jammal Brown’s play at RT is inconsistent. Do the Redskins look to upgrade the position in the draft, or is Brown a part of the team’s plans going forward. I know you mentioned QB is what the Redskins should target with their top pick. Would you object to taking an elite G or T and moving Trent to the Right side, maybe an RGIII is gone or Barkley doesn’t come out of USC?

t10condos

T10: 1. Mike Shanahan spoke with them; Dan Snyder did not. I think he should have given that he’s the owner, but I know he’s trying to keep a low profile. But this has to be eating him up. What’s expected? Staying clean. Gonna be tough considering how many times they tested positive, but that is the only solution here. 2. I would never take a guard that high. Ever. And I wouldn’t take a right tackle in the top five either. After the past three games I don’t think I’d move Trent to RT just yet. This was his best stretch. But in light of his suspension and potential for a one-year ban, I’d be all for finding another athletic tackle and start him off on the right side knowing he might be needed on the left eventually. But I wouldn’t do that with the first pick. They need playmakers on offense. Safety also might have two holes so add that to the list of needs.

JK

John: 1) It appears from your “Duds” posting today that you do not expect Logan Paulsen to be someone we should expect to be a major contributor for the last 4 games (sad that he is not a good blocker as I thought that was basically why he was on the roster) and Darrel Young seems to be injury and mistake prone. I had asked you earlier in he season why we kept Mike Sellers around and your response was that he offered needed depth at TE and FB and was still a good special teams player. Good call by you! Do you think Paulsen has a future with the team and how would you grade Young so far? Also do you think Sellers can take advantage of the current situation and be an offensive asset down the stretch? God knows we need it.

2) You have been critical of Will Montgomery several times this year, but mostly when he plays center. I suppose we will acquire a legitimate center in the off-season but is Montgomery worth keeping around as a guard in the future? It seems like for every hole we knew needed to be filled, another crops up like an old wooden boat in a storm.

3) With all the holes that it seems we have to fill, do you think that between the draft (in which I believe we will a full stock of picks for a change) and free agency we can be competing for a playoff berth this time next year.

Thanks again,

Charlie C

CC: 1) Paulsen can be an adequate third tight end; not in love with his feet and he is limited. But he did have some excellent blocks on the first series last week. His blocking is inconsistent – maybe playing more will help him. But I still view him as a backup. As for Sellers, he can only help so much. Even a few years ago he was limited here. The more he touches the ball the more likely it is that the offense is having a tough day.  2) I’ve been more critical of Will when he plays guard. I think he’s been OK at center, but his shotgun snaps are a problem. They were much slower than, for example, the Jets’ Nick Mangold. The difference might be minimal on a stopwatch (.22 seconds to .40) but that could be the difference between getting a pass off and getting sacked. My hunch is that they’ll target center in the offseason. I think Will’s best spot is probably center. Tough kid.  3) Depends what they do and who they fill the holes with – more veterans or young guys? The defense is good enough to make the playoffs now. Offensively? Too many questions to even know what sort of improvement they’ll make. But there’s a difference between competing for a playoff spot and being a playoff team. If by competing you mean hovering near .500 next year at this time, sure. But let’s see what they do first.

JK

John: Appreciate the work. While I’d like to ask why Kyle Shanahan trusts Rex Grossman more than a working rushing attack game in a game the Redskins were leading in the 2nd half, my big question is about the running game itself, specifically, the back-to-back toss plays (right then left) that Kyle called four times in the game. After the first couple times I thought, maybe Kyle is setting up another play . . . but he never worked off the toss that I saw. I’m at a loss that a supposedly innovative coordinator would continue to call the same exact plays over and over, in the same exact order, especially when the toss left never seemed to be blocked well and we never made yards off of it, except for one time that Helu broke 3 tackles.

I can understand running a play that is working over and over (such as the toss right) that’s what good coaches do, but by the third time running first the toss right and then the toss left it was obvious that even Rex Ryan’s grandmother was expecting it. Why in the world did we run the give-up left four times immediately after a working toss right, and why didn’t we just once run a toss right then a play-action toss left? (Notice, I feel strongly enough about it I would be okay with Kyle running a play action fake toss and throwing the ball with Rex)

It’s amazing that the Houston Texans can call 42 rushing plays with a rookie quarterback and win a game against a quality opponent in Atlanta, but we can’t do the same with Rex Grossman. (Granted, Houston’s offensive line and running backs are better, but the point is valid). Can someone point that out to Kyle?

Thanks,

Chris

PS. I have to ask this too, I’m just frustrated. Why does Kyle trust a QB that has thrown 15 Int’s and fumbled 5 times over a running back and offensive line that were physically punishing a defense?

Chris: I’m going to first suggest a good massage and a good meal. That’ll do wonders after this season.

And my guess is that Kyle has received the message that there is displeasure from fans over his play calls. My basic answer on the play-calling is that with better talent the same plays will work more often. The line was OK vs. the Jets; but Helu gained 69 of his 100 yards after contact. But they did have their moments and there were a couple times when I wondered why they didn’t use it a little more for the same reason you said. Rex wasn’t having a good day and that was very evident. However, part of the problem on some runs was not as much the predictability on some runs as it was guys just losing blocks. One of them was by Logan Paulsen on… a toss to the left. Led to a four-yard loss. The big issue is I’m not sure what run play is a lock to work now. This is not a good run-blocking line and now they lost their best run blocker in Trent Williams. I think I agree with your basic premise though: they did not have a good rhyhtm in that game and it was reflected in the calls.

JK

John: Question about the future of the Redskins secondary. With Atogwe being a relative disappointment, especially considering his age, injuries, and his cap hit, and LaRon Landry never seemingly have “made” it AND being a contract year, what’s the likelihood that we’ll see a major overhaul for the safety position?

Personally, I’m wondering about seeing DeJon Gomes at strong safety and Kevin Barnes going back to free safety.  I’m not sure Barnes is good enough to overtake Hall as a starting cornerback, but he seemed to fill in well as a starting safety for a chunk of last season.  Both guys seem to play well near the line of scrimmage and Barnes seemed sharp in cover as a safety.

Also, what’s the word on Brandyn Thompson?  It seems like Shannahan likes him, but has not gotten to see any action as yet.

Either way, with Hall, Atogwe and Landry, there seems to be a serious need for an upgrade for the weakest unit on the defense.  Thoughts?

Aaron

Aaron: Barnes’ stint at free safety was not a good one (would say the coaches agree with this assessment). Not his fault; he was an emergency fill-in. But at one point in the offseason he started gaining weight in case they wanted him to play that spot. They did not. He would need to add 15-20 pounds to play there; I just don’t think he’d hold up otherwise. Gomes and Barnes would be a very thin tandem and wouldn’t work. So, yes, I could see an overhaul at this spot if Landry doesn’t return. As for Thompson, they like him but clearly don’t think he’s ready to play. They’re not going to put him ahead of Josh Wilson or DeAngelo Hall or even Barnes in the slot. And Byron Westbrook will be active because of his special teams play.

JK

John: As another crappy season comes to a close I’m conflicted on my feelings about the Redskins. Part of me thinks progress is happening, that they had a tough mandate after years of Vinny the cupboard was very bare. They’ve built the nucleus of what looks like a good defense, they had what appears to be a fantastic draft, and if they can find a QB then things could get better quickly.

Then the other part of me has a really hard time rooting for this team.  A coach who is a jerk in every interview, a team that jawjacks and preens for the camera like they’re super bowl bound when they’ve had 2 winning seasons in the last 11 years, an owner who is petty & done nothing but made this franchise a league-wide punchline, and now the news that two of the team’s best players can’t put the bong down for 30 days when they know the test is coming costing themselves millions…. I mean really, what’s to like here?

Talk me off the ledge John, give me some optimistic thoughts please!

Jack in Raleigh

Jack: Optimism? OK, how’s this: There are only four games left in a lousy season. How’s that? Not what you’re looking for? OK: The defense should be good again next year and they’ll add Jarvis Jenkins who looked really good in camp before his knee injury. Their front seven should be excellent next season. I’m not going to just blame Vinny for what this team is doing now. The Redskins have had two offseasons to work with and have yet to construct an adequate offense. Not good. Injuries haven’t helped, but the QB play has been erratic too and their choices at this position haven’t succeeded. They seemed to treat their first year as a way to weed out who they wanted and didn’t want. So this almost became the first year they really started building toward what they wanted. They will be aggressive in the offseason and there should be some interesting QB choices in the draft. But legitimate hope on offense is found in QB.

JK

John: Is there a rational explanation for the (a) poor clock management, (b) poor execution of a 2 minute offense and (c) poor uses of time outs for a team (with veteran coaching) this far along in the season?

  I am continuing to be underwhelmed by the absolute lack of physical play (and resultantly, the lack of y.a.c.) by the wide receivers.  Seeing as how all hope is lost for this year, is it too much to ask to work some of the young guys into the WR rotation?

Finally, what are the solutions for replacements for the Skin’s version of Cheech & Chong?  Can they be replaced on the roster placing them on some “reserved -non injury” list?

 

Thanks John, I always enjoy your insight.     

Steve

Steve: Thanks… No, no excuses. As for the receivers, they already have played Niles Paul, Leonard Hankerson and Terrence Austin. Paul is more of a blocker right now; Hankerson showed promise in one game and then got hurt and Austin had chances and didn’t get the job done. So back to the bench he went. Aldrick Robinson was a raw project this summer and will stay on the practice squad unless there are a few injuries. So there’s not a lot of young options. I would never just play young guys because they’re young; you have to show legit talent to develop into something too. But, yeah, yards after the catch is an issue for them. It’s a little bit about speed and a little bit about not having a big guy capable of breaking tackles. The Redskins replaced Davis and Williams (C&C to you) with Chris Baker, a nose tackle, and Dominique Byrd, a tight end.

JK