1. It’s impossible to get a good feel for how guys are really doing, with nobody in pads. And it’s hard to tell if a player is just rusty or struggling if he’s not doing well. So keep that in mind and don’t go into hysterics when you hear that John Beck was misfiring on his deep passes. In fact, he didn’t hit any. Some passes were wobbly; others were just overthrown or wide. On one, he ran a bootleg to the right and threw back deep left for a wide open Anthony Armstrong. I mean wide open. But he missed him by a good 10 yards. Missed on several other deep throws, too. In some cases there was good coverage (particularly from DeAngelo Hall). Beck nearly connected on another one to Armstrong. But the ball caused Armstrong to wait for a split second and that gave Chris Horton enough time to recover and break up the pass. Just file this away as something to watch as camp progresses.
2. One reason O.J. Atogwe is going to help: his ability to cover in the slot. He’s done that a couple times already in practice. Why is that important? When teams run spread looks you need your safeties to be able to cover. As ex-Redskin and current National Football Post analyst Matt Bowen talked to me about when they signed Atogwe, this enables the defense to stay in their base – and to be more versatile.
3. Again…no pads. But Artis Hicks had a rough go of it in the one-on-one work. Gotta let these guys get back into football shape and even vets need to re-learn the fundamentals, but the problem is that Hicks had a tough time of it last year too. Adam Carriker got inside of him twice and rookie Jarvis Jenkins one time bull rushed him several yards deep. Jenkins appears to have some power, though Will Montgomery was able to anchor against him.
4. Love watching Brian Orakpo in the one-on-one work against offensive linemen. Not sure Selvish Capers would agree. He would have been flagged for holding after he grabbed Orakpo around the neck on one rush. Another time he knocked him off-balance and drew another hold. Vonnie Holliday got Capers later. Yes, Capers will need to look better in pads. This is where the lack of offseason work has hurt him. In essence, what he’s going through now is what he would have worked out back in May.
5. Anyway, back to Orakpo who was matched against Trent Williams much of the time. Orakpo stays so low that he can explode into a player’s chest. But this is where Williams excels; he can get knocked off-balance and recover, which he did on a couple occasions this morning. Once, Orakpo stayed low – real low – trying to get around the end. Against some tackles that would result in an advantage. But Williams was able to bend his knees without losing any quickness and prevented Orakpo from getting the edge. Another time Orakpo knocked Williams back, but he was able to right himself. It’s not like he was handling Orakpo, but he was recovering.
6. The Redskins have spent the first two days working a lot on their bootleg passes and stretch-zone runs. Sort of go together, no? But this is why they must be able to run well.
7. Just an observation, but they’re trying not to waste any time out here. So when the horn goes off to signal an end to a drill, they move to the next. Once, it went off just as the offense was coming to the line in an 11-on-11 drill. Rather than squeeze in one more play, they ended the drill. Now you know.
8. After practice, Beck had some fun tossing a little football around with his two little boys, both of whom appeared to be under 4 years old. Both were in Redskins shirts (and when they left, they had plastic Redskins helmets) and were wearing eye black (not sure if it was the sticker kind). Say what you want about Beck, but this stuff is always fun to see.
9. Meanwhile, receivers Leonard Hankerson and Niles Paul ran routes and caught passes after practice. Undrafted free agent tackle Willie Smith worked on his pass sets by himself after practice.
