Run Redskins Run
By Jay Evans
June 14, 2019
“You can’t coach speed.” The ye ole axiom of sport. Since 2017, the Redskins have made a concerted effort to add two unteachable traits through the draft and free agency. One trait is the unmeasurable intangible of leadership. The second trait is universally desired and rarest of all; speed, where millimeters per second matter and can ultimately be the difference between wins and losses.
The Redskins fastest player on the 2016 roster was DeSean Jackson, but following his departure the lack of team speed was noticeable. The offense, defense and special teams all struggled with consistency because they were always a step behind.
John Keim wrote in 2017, “[Keith] Marshall becomes the fastest Washington player. A 2016 seventh-round pick, he ran the 40-yard dash in 4.31 seconds at the 2016 combine and is just ahead of rookie corner Fabian Moreau, who ran a 4.35 at the combine. The Redskins hope all of Marshall’s speed returns after he missed last season with a knee injury. He will need an impressive camp to make the roster.” Marshall never cracked the roster, but he signified the beginning of a trend.
After Jackson signed with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, the fastest player on the offense was 33-year old tight end Vernon Davis who ran a 4.38 more than a decade ago at the NFL combine. Coming off two subpar years, Davis was signed for veteran experience and depth. Not as the speed threat he was when drafted in 2006.
Equally slow footed was the plodding defense. The swiftest player was middle linebacker Zach Brown, who ran a 4.4 at the NFL combine. Three of the starting defensive backs from 2017, Josh Norman, D.J. Swearinger and Bashaud Breeland, ran in the 4.6’s at their respective NFL combines.
Play speed and track speed are two separate concepts, but I can find three gym rats at the local YMCA that could run with the 2017 defensive secondary. Even the cataract eyes of the most faithful burgundy and gold patriots could see the Redskins were slow.
Acquiring speed has been the utmost importance in recent years. The additions in the past two seasons have the possibility of adding a game breaking dimension to the offense, which has been missing from the team since Jackson left, and complementing a young aggressive defense.
In the past two seasons the Redskins have moved on from players without significant speed such as Jamison Crowder (4.56), Robert Kelley (4.73), Ryan Grant (4.64), and Maurice Harris (4.56). None of these players put fear into the minds of opponents and, at least compared to other NFLers, their foot speed is relatively pedestrian.
2018 second round draft selection Derrius Guice showed flashes in his first camp and is the most talented young running back Washington has had since Clinton Portis. The running back committee of Guice, (4.49 combine 40-yard dash), Adrian Peterson (apparently can still run a 4.4 at 33 years old) and the speedy Chris Thompson, has the potential to turn any run or catch into a long play.
After four seasons in Seattle, the Redskins signed Paul Richardson as a free agent. The wideout, expected to occupy the Jackson role, showed the ability to get behind the defense before injuries derailed his 2018 season. Our own Steve Thomas wrote, “At the 2014 NFL combine, Richardson ran the 40 yard dash in 4.40 seconds and posted a 38 inch vertical leap. Colorado reportedly timed him at 4.28 seconds in the 40.”
At wide receiver the young trio of Trey Quinn, Cam Simms, and Terry McLaurin all represent upgrades over their 2017 counterparts as well. Quinn ran a 4.55 at the NFL combine, but took off a tenth of a second at SMU’s pro day and Simms at 6’5” posted a 4.52 at the Alabama pro day.
Only two players who played significant snaps in 2017 roster, Thompson and Fabian Moreau, could out run Montez Sweat the Redskins 2019 first round draft pick. Sweat at 6’6”, 260 lbs, is a freakish defensive pass rusher with a faster forty time than many notable NFL stars including A.J. Green, Christian McCaffery, Calvin Ridley, Stefon Diggs, and Odell Beckham Jr.
On defense, the 2019 additions of Sweat and Cole Holcomb, who ran a 4.47, are superior athletes at the second level of the defense, while veteran safety Landon Collins (4.53) is an upgrade over the departed Swearinger in the defensive backfield.
The upgrades expand beyond the starting positions. In 2018 fourth round pick, the Redskins added a better sprinter than football player in Troy Apke with the hopes that his speed would be impactful on special teams. The speedy legend Deion Sanders took notice of Apke’s 4.35 40-yard dash at the combine, acknowledging his feet and implied more when he said “he can RUN run.”
Terry McLaurin, who ran a 4.36, should see plenty of snaps at wide receiver and was regarded the best special team player in the draft. A calculated decision to improve special teams play was target the speed of McLaurin and Holcomb in the 2019 draft to pair along with the 2018 draftees. Apke, Simms and Quinn were all expected to be major contributors on special teams last season except injuries effected their availability, quite literally from the season opening kickoff.
The Redskins 2019 roster should prove to be one of the better rosters constructed from top to bottom than have been seen in years. Even modest gains should propel the Redskins out of the bottom half of the league they have dwelled in for this century.
The Redskins have improved its roster in the 40-yard dash, but the path to wins is not always correspondingly linear. A strongly built defensive line and some team speed had been missing, but have been focal points the past few years. The fastest team doesn’t always win, but it can help to cover up mistakes. Mainly by getting there sooner.