Top Storylines heading into Redskins training camp
July 25,2017
The Redskins are heading into training camp with competition at numerous positions. It’s a mix of good and bad. Good because, offensively there’s a lot of quality players at receiver and running back and regardless of who earns roster spots you can’t really go wrong. Bad because, in the secondary and defensive line there have been problems for years at those positions, and whoever earns a roster spot will have question marks surrounding them.
Will Cravens and Swearinger end the drought?
Su’a Cravens and D.J. Swearinger are the projected by many to be the Redskins’ starting safeties. Even though Su’a is in his natural position, the one he played at USC, how does he look in his first legit live action at the position? It’ll be interesting to see how he lines up at the position, where Manusky specifically has Su’a lining up on most plays, and how he impacts the defense. When Cravens was on the field in 2016 he was good in coverage against the running backs, and good in coverage overall closer to the line of scrimmage. Swearinger is a guy many are hoping to improve the free position at safety, a position that’s been in flux and inadequate for close to a decade. How does D.J. perform at the free? Not only that, but D.J. is an effective blitzer, so how creative can Manusky get with both Cravens and Swearinger is something to pay attention to.
Yes it’s a logjam at receiver, but how does Josh Doctson look?
There are 12 receivers on the Redskins roster at the moment. This number will be dramatically cut down by the time week 4 of the pre-season hits. The only 3, maybe 4, players that are safe this camp are Pryor Sr., Crowder, Doctson, and maybe Ryan Grant. With Pierre Garcon and Desean Jackson now elsewhere this season, this is one of the better camp battles, and something I will be paying close attention to while I’m at camp.
With all that being said, Doctson is the guy that everyone is talking about. Whether it be fans, media, or the Redskins front office, he is the one everyone is antsy about. To this point he’s been fine – the coaching staff has been taking it easy with him to preserve him to this point to have him ready for the regular season. He didn’t participate fully in training camp last year, mostly rehab, so how does he look in live action against the 1s and 2s? Doctson should be a full go this year, so is he capable of practicing without having to sit out for periods at a time like earlier this year? Doctson’s ball skills were elite coming out of college, so he should be able to surpass Ryan Grant and company barring injury.
Big Money Free Agents on the defensive line: what will McGee and McClain bring to the group?
At the time of these signings, many were hooting and hollering about these two guys not being worth the dollars they signed for. How disruptive are Stacy McGee and Terrell McClain against the starting offensive line? They’re big bodies, and were relatively productive on their last teams, specifically McClain. McGee came on late for the Raiders last season. He’s not really a sack master, but mostly crashed the pocket. How will these two guys perform against one of the better offensive lines in the NFL?
Who’s locking down the slot corner position?
This is a position that wasn’t a concern heading into 2016, but still found a way to be a glaring hole in the defense when the season hit. Kendall Fuller had his turn at the position, looked good in the first two games he started, but his production wasn’t sustainable and he became a massive liability in the games that followed. Confidence seemingly dropped, he and Deshaun Phillips were unsuccessful defending receivers in the slot. Manusky may have different plans this year. With 7th round rookie Joshua Hosley coming on strong in rookie minicamps and OTAs, can he come in and lock down the position? Will Fuller bounce back this year with another year removed from micro-fracture surgery? Will Breeland be moved inside or stay opposite of Norman in Manusky’s defense? All to be seen this camp.
A battle of 3 for the 2 ILB positions: who is the 1 that doesn’t get the starting nod?
Will Compton and Mason Foster have been the starting duo with Washington for almost two full seasons now, but last season was abysmal for the front seven collectively. Compton and Foster weren’t a bright spot for the defense last year, resulting in the addition of free agent Zach Brown. He’s an added boost to the competition, so who will come out on top at that position? Zach’s athletic ability allows him to be an unrivaled advantage amongst the other backers, but Will Compton’s cerebral abilities at the position allow him to be in the right places on the field. If the defensive line does improve, which it should this year, how will Compton perform behind a better line? Mason Foster is a tackling machine. He’s not the fastest guy, but is solid if used exclusively inside the box. Arguably the most physical out of the bunch, how will Foster show he’s deserving of the mike or will position?
We’ve heard aggression before from defensive coordinators, how does Manusky’s scheme standout?
Manusky is one of the many DCs who loves to preach aggression, but how will he attack an offense? How many practices will the defense win in 11 on 11? Manusky loves double A-gap pressure, so how creative he will get with how he sends his pressure is something to look into. How will Manusky utilize the pass-rushers he has? This is a group who had the bulk of the sacks for the team a year ago. Now, by adding rookie Ryan Anderson, there are even more players in the stable to use. Who lines up the most at nose in their base front? All things worth paying attention to once camp gets going Thursday.
The offensive line is pretty good, but it can undoubtedly be better.
What’s in store for the offensive line? Spencer Long just finished his first year at center for the Redskins. The former guard had to fill in for Kory Lichtensteiger at center in 2016 after he fell to injury. He performed well for the most part, obviously he is not one of the better centers in the league, so he can be better. It will be interesting to see who stands out at center and left guard this year. Can Spencer continue to grow? Will there be a drop-off? For Shawn Lauvao, who’s going to be his competition? He’s in a contract year, so how will he respond after injury plagued seasons in 2015 and 2016? Who can unseat him?
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