Roster turnover means fewer 30-somethings
ASHBURN — The young legs — and there are more of them this year — provide that extra jolt of energy in practice. Those legs recover sooner. They’re also faster.
It’s no wonder the Redskins wanted — needed — to get younger.
Of course, then there’s this:
“A lot of those young legs don’t know what the hell they’re doing,” Redskins safeties coach Steve Jackson said. “They’re in the wrong spot, but they look fast and good doing it. You see a lot of that.”
And they’ll probably see a lot more of that during the season. The Redskins have undergone a transformation, and it’s not just about getting younger. It’s about turning over the roster.
When the season opened in 2010, they had 10 starters 30 years or older. This season, they might have only six such players, including two on defense. There’s a good chance they’ll have only nine or 10 players 30 or over on the roster and possibly less; for most of last season they had at least 13. Of the 22 projected starters, 16 are different from when Mike Shanahan arrived in 2010, and there could be nine new starters this season.
| Redskins notes |
| » Cornerback Josh Wilson, a DeMatha graduate, said he owned a Mark Rypien jersey and a plastic helmet as a kid, though he also was a fan of Detroit running back Barry Sanders. Family pressure meant he could only root for Sanders, not the Lions or anyone else but the Redskins. “I wasn’t allowed to change my team, or I would have to have watched the game from the outside,” Wilson said. |
| » The Redskins will bring in free agent kicker Shayne Graham to compete with Graham Gano. That’s not a surprise considering Gano made just 24 of 35 field goals last season. His career percentage of .718 is substandard in an era in which 80 percent is average. In fact, Gano’s .686 percentage last season was the worst of any kicker with more than four attempts. Graham, meanwhile, is an 86 percent career kicker. |
| » Defensive end Vonnie Holliday considered retiring after the Redskins traded him to Arizona, but he said Monday he would report to the Cardinals. The Redskins shipped Holliday and a conditional late-round pick in 2012 to Arizona for running back Tim Hightower. |
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| POSITION REVIEW |
| Wide Receiver |
| Brandon Banks |
| Banks’ kick return prowess was well-known last season. He could win a job again this season based on that talent alone. But his receiving ability would be limited to spot duty. At 5-foot-7 and 155 pounds, his size makes it tough to play him more as durability would become an issue. Banks can help from scrimmage at times — and not just on deep balls. Cornerbacks fear his deep speed, which enables him to get open underneath. The coaches also see his electric speed again, something that wasn’t always evident after he hurt his knee midway through last season. |
| Leonard Hankerson |
| The 6-2 Hankerson plays taller than he is, mostly because he extends his arms well. And his big hands help corral passes that go awry, which is what happened Monday. John Beck threw a pass that was high and behind Hankerson in a drill with no defenders. But Hankerson spun to his right and caught the ball one-handed. However, he later dropped a pass over the middle only to grab a deep corner route on another play. |
| Terrence Austin |
| Austin will have a tough time making the roster, particularly after the Redskins added veterans Jabar Gaffney and Donte Stallworth. Austin spent five weeks on the active roster in 2010, and coaches like his footwork. But the reality is who would he beat out for a job? Santana Moss will start in the slot, which is where Austin would play as well. Austin needed to make an impact as a returner last season in order to preserve his future in Washington. But Banks did that instead, and now the Redskins have another receiver, Niles Paul, who can help on special teams. |
That much change can lead to growing pains, particularly when there was no offseason to integrate players into a system. And particularly in a division in which the top teams don’t face such change. So the transformation might take time to yield dividends. It likely will continue over the next year.
But the changes also have led to a different energy surrounding the team.
“It’s not mundane to them,” linebacker Lorenzo Alexander said. “Everyone’s out there hungry to get their spot. Even guys coming in, they’re trying to establish who they are on this team. … You definitely see the energy change in that.”
It’s not as if the Redskins are playing all young guys. Defensively, seven likely starters are between 26 and 30 years old. Offensively, they have five such players. In theory, they should be entering their prime. But it’s not as if they’re going completely young. Since the lockout ended, the Redskins have added five players 30 or over — Jabar Gaffney, Donte Stallworth, Santana Moss, Jammal Brown and Phillip Buchanon — and signed O.J. Atogwe, 30, before the lockout.
They also drafted 12 players in April.
“You want a little bit of balance, and I think we have that on our team,” Redskins coach Mike Shanahan said.
One reason why is because, as Alexander said, “Everyone has young legs now. It’s when you get around weeks six or eight that veteran guys know their legs might be going out. But the young guys hit that wall because they haven’t played that long.”
And the mix is noticeable to the players. With fewer older players, there are fewer days off for veterans trying to save their legs.
“You know with a veteran team during camp you have to look out for the older guys as far as watching how many reps they’re doing and cutting out periods,” linebacker Brian Orakpo said. “With younger fresher legs, we can just take it full-go from the start of the whistle to the end. There’s no excuses. It’s a new energy.”
