2023 Washington Position Group Breakdown: Linebackers

June 16, 2023

by David Earl

The Linebacker Room

It’s fair to say Washington has certainly devalued the linebacker position which is a bit odd since the Head Coach / General Manager, Ron Rivera, and the defensive coordinator, Jack Del Rio, are former NFL linebackers. Ron has passed on multiple options either through the draft, including Nakobe Dean in the 2022 draft and Jack Campbell in the 2023 draft, or through free agency, such as Bobby Wagner or LaVonte David.  At the same time, he overdrafted Jamin Davis for a position he certainly was not suited for, the Mike linebacker. Thankfully, it seems Del Rio has found a productive role for Davis, but passing on a player like Dean for  defensimoreve line depth that was not needed has excellent potential to haunt this regime, as a Davis and Dean tandem could have solved many problems. I digress – singing this same tune is not exactly what you guys want to continue reading so let’s look at this position group.

The Day 1 Starters

As you can see in the chart above, the linebacker room lacks depth and experience in games played/started. Washington is once again an injury away from having to start an unproven player, which is not what you want to see, especially given the aspirations Ron has with this team entering the 2023 season. Granted, Rivera and Del Rio typically utilize a two-linebacker set defensively, which can be seen from last season’s numbers. In 7 games started last season Cole Holcomb started 99% of the 446 available snaps and Jamin Davis 85% of the 834 available defensive snaps. After that the numbers take a dive as Jon Bostic, starting 5 games in relief of Cole, only started 29% of his 263 available snaps, and David Mayo started 25% of 202 available snaps in 3 starts. Milo Eifler and Khaleke Hudson never eclipsed 10% of their available snaps. The Buffalo Nickle has certainly played a prominent role in Rivera’s philosophy on defense and this season seems to be a carbon copy looking at this group. So the two unquestioned day-one starters are:

• Jamin Davis: After a bit of an up-and-down rookie season, Davis seems to have found his footing last season. He finished the season with 3 sacks, 5 quarterback hits, and a much improved miss-tackle rate, which went from 12.6% as a rookie to 2.8% this past season. In coverage, his improvement was also encouraging, as the quarterback rating against him dropped over 20 points to 86.6 rating. Pasises thrown his direction were completed at a rate of 63.5% as compared to 85.7% in his rookie year. After Del Rio found a suitable role for him, not positioned as the Mike linebacker, he certainly began to flourish.  He needs to take a big leap forward this season needs.
• Cody Barton: A more traditional type of Mike linebacker, Cody will look to cement his role defensively in a position Washington has not figured out since London Fletcher retired. While Cole Holcomb carved out a very nice career as a 5th-round draft pick, his liability in the passing game was high present with an opposing quarterback rating of 125.6 as passes were completed 72.7% when thrown his direction. Cody Barton’s 83.6% completion percentage when targeted by quarterbacks may not be great but their 94.6 rating against him is significantly lower. He did generate more turnovers with 2 interceptions, as compared to zero by Holcomb.  He also yielded lower yards per completion at 8.7, as compared to 10.8 for Cole. The numbers are not drastically better but his athletic presence on the field side line to side line is very much noticeably better on tape.

Khaleke Hudson

Ever since being drafted in the 5th round of the 2020 draft, Khaleke Hudson has been a popular name as a dark horse player in camp. This year has been no different. There has been one noticeable difference this offseason though, consistency. It has not been a play here then later another play there with a few disappearances in between but, as Logan Paulson pointed out, he has just been all over the field. Hudson can recognize plays as they develop and is quick to react to the ball, which shouldn’t be too much of a surprise for this converted safety. If he can avoid being swallowed up by the bigger offensive lineman in the league and can be a viable player against the run, Hudson could certainly surprise this year, and, considering this linebacker room, Washington needs him to take a big leap forward this season. As Hudson seems to potentially be carving out a more defined role on this defense, the quality of depth he can provide behind Davis and Barton is truly a wildcard.

Certainly Not Washington’s Strength

After Hudson, the group has a couple of one dimensional players who serve best as special team players, David Mayo and Milo Eifler, plus three guys with no experience at the NFL level. Drew White provides some intrigue – he won’t “WOW” you with his athleticism but does bring a good instinct for the game. While limited in range on pass coverage, Drew is not a complete liability in the zone as he does well in play recognition and reaction. He could provide a good role on special teams and may develop into a solid depth piece in time. Outside of that, Rivera is certainly hedging his bets on Davis and Barton to not only perform at a high level but remain relatively healthy all season. The construction of this linebacker room is poised to be a continued liability as Washington fans have become accustomed to witnessing over the years and, if not for the offensive line, would most likely be their weakest unit on the roster. I’d gladly eat my own words here but Ron Rivera has done himself no favors in building this unit.