Thanks as always to those who emailed questions. Good stuff.
John: I expected to see Terrence Austin more involved in the Redskins offense. I think they would be wise to target him a few times a game with plays designed to get him out in space. How do you think he fits in the redskins plans this year?
Leon Reed
Leon: He’s the fourth receiver so it will be tough to get him involved too much. He’s best in the slot, but that’s where Santana Moss plays. They also love using their tight ends, especially with Fred Davis potentially blossoming and Chris Cooley getting healthy. So in four receiver sets, one will almost always be a tight end. Austin will have to be patient. He did get a few snaps in the opener and likely will continue to get some.
JK
John: Assuming guys stay healthy and can play entire season, which players or units have the potential to be a lot better later in the season than they are now? How could adding Otogwe to the secondary make guys like Hall and Buchanan better than before?
Do you see Fox as a Fletcher in training? In preseason he was in there making the pre-snap calls on defense. Can he be long term with the Skins learning from and taking over for Fletcher someday
(hopefully a long time from now)?
Bob Milstead
Bob: I’d say D-line if Jarvis Jenkins had stayed healthy; the easy one is the secondary just because of LaRon Landry’s situation. But I’ll go with linebackers. Rocky McIntosh’s second year in the D should help and Brian Orakpo should be better than last year. And if rookie Ryan Kerrigan is making plays without being anywhere close to a finished product, then what will happen later in the year? Otogwe’s addition will benefit Landry more than the corners, simply because he’ll know what plays give Landry trouble and he can play off that. But it’ll help the corners, too; giving them comfort to know they’ll have a safety in the right place at the right time. So they can play as aggressive as they need to.
And as for the final question, I see Fox as a quality backup. Fletcher shows no signs of slowing down. Fox already is 29 years old. If Fletcher plays two more years, I’d look for a younger player inside. But for now he’s good insurance. He definitely looked like he could help this summer.
JK
John: I was expecting more yards from Hightower. Is this his fault or the offensive line’s fault?
Tim Tribbett
Tim: Me, too, especially because he had 25 carries. He said he was too antsy on some runs, but the blocking was not consistent and the cutback lanes weren’t often available. It wasn’t just the line; saw it with receivers and or tight ends too. On a couple plays it appeared if one more block had been made, a 15-20 yard run would have followed. This offense with him seems more designed to have a bunch of short runs followed by one or two long ones.
JK
John: After further confirmation of Clinton Portis being a locker room cancer what is your opinion of the Champ Bailey and a pick to Denver, and Mike Shanahan, trade?
Jason Milford
Jason: My opinion on this trade hasn’t changed since it happened. Thought they gave up too much at the time (the second-rounder). But they also received a quality running back in exchange for a player who was not going to return. Yes, Portis was a headache at times; he’s not the first Redskins running back – or player — to be considered one. When he was posting big games, that stuff didn’t matter. The problem for Portis wasn’t that he was a headache, it’s that he didn’t always prepare in the offseason the way he should have to stay in the game longer.
JK
John: I’m all in on the Shanaplan of re-uh-structuring (not rebuilding) the roster with younger players, surrounded by veterans with things to prove. In staying with that plan, do you see the Redskins attempting to lock up Fred Davis and Laron Landry prior during the season? I think it’s just a matter of time before Davis passes Cooley on the depth chart (maybe late season or after the season) so wouldn’t it make sense to lock him up for the next few years? With Landry’s recent comments do you think there’s any lingering animosity on either part? John A. Little John: Money overcomes animosity all the time. Trainer Larry Hess hasn’t talked about it, but it’s hard to imagine he was pleased by the comments. And Landry isn’t the first guy to express frustration. As for the contracts, I can’t imagine they do anything during the season. In Landry’s case, why pay a guy who hasn’t played since November? Let him prove he’s healthy. After all, if he comes back and there’s more damage to the Achilles, he’d require surgery. In Davis’ case, while he looked good this summer and in the opener, he still needs to prove himself for a full season. But if I’m Davis, I’d wait to see how this season goes – especially after last week. His value can only increase. He definitely wants to be a starter. Yes, it makes sense for them to want him back. The Redskins don’t have many players who can make big plays. JK |
John: I’ve heard the term “smoke route”used this week, and I’m not familiar with it. Could you describe it for me?
Jean Flory
Jean: Yeah, it was a big deal last week. A smoke route is just a quick toss to the receiver at the line. It allows him to go one-on-one with the cornerback; think of it as an extended handoff. If he shakes the corner it can be a good gain. Last week, Josh Wilson missed two tackles on smoke routes, but they didn’t cause any damage. Also, if a corner starts creeping up closer to defend this, the receiver then could go deep. Teams can’t win just running smoke routes so corners will give those up and just make the tackle.
JK
John: First an observation: Haynesworth didn’t want to play nose tackle in the 3-4 because he wouldn’t get enough of a chance to rush the QB. Funny how it seemed to work out OK for Chris Nield.
My question: Any idea why they had 3 tailbacks active against the Giants, but gave all but 1 carry to Hightower?
Tim Murray
Tim: Good question. I was surprised they kept all three active; last year Mike Shanahan typically went with two backs. But he also has a deeper backfield this season. My guess is, Ryan Torain eventually will get some carries. It’s hard to imagine Tim Hightower getting as much work as he did Sunday when he played all but two plays. It’s not just the 25 carries, it’s the violent collisions in pass protection (and his three receptions). That’s a tough load for a back.
JK
John: Pulling for Rex, not a hater, but I have a question about missing on the long ball in game 1. The pass to AA that was broken up was thrown on the run (and showed great instinct too), so no big deal. But the one to Santana when he was behind everybody was not a good throw. My question – with as sharp as he’s been everywhere else, should we expect poor deep balls? Or was that an aberration that he’ll likely correct i the future? Because I thought going deep was something he was known and praised for in the past. What’s your take?
Thanks, Steve in L.A.
Steve in L.A.: He was inconsistent on the deep ball this summer, but part of Sunday’s problems appeared to be timing. He was too long on the ball to Gaffney and too short on the ball to Moss. I wonder if the more reps Grossman gets with the starters, the better he’ll get in this area. Remember, he lost all the offseason and this summer he missed the first week, then split reps with John Beck.
JK
John: Love your insights so I chose to ask you this question which I think has never been asked. What is the purpose of the NFL inactive list each game in the first place? Those selected 8 inactive players each week are on the regular 53 man roster anyway….They are paid just the same if they are active or not on game day…..they go through pre-game warmups most of the time as they were playing so they are physically there anyway…. There is no unfairness to either team if all 53 players are eligible…. So why does the Iist exist ??!!!!
Freddie from Richmond
Freddie from Richmond: Thanks. And this is a good question, one that is hard to grasp. But part of the reason is that it balances the injury situation. If one team has, say, four or five injuries and the other does not then with a 45-man roster every dressed player is probably healthy. If all the players are active, then one team might have 49 to choose from while the other has 53. Hope that helps.
JK
