The
Washington Redskins epitomize dysfunction! Firing the general manager after claiming
that he was grieving over the death of his grandmother. Then reporting that he
was back abusing alcohol. Paying your
quarterback Kirk Cousin $44 million over the last two seasons in guaranteed
money without a long-term deal. Losing your two top producing wide receivers to
free agency. The list of things that this organization has messed up would go
on forever but they remain an average team. This team is two years removed from
winning the NFC East division and making it to the playoffs. Despite all the dysfunction,
they still seem to be on the fringe of making the playoffs.
Many
Redskins fans are excited about this team because they have had back-to-back
winning season for the first time since the early 90s. I use winning season lightly
because 8-7-1 isn’t a winning season in my book. Having one more win than loss
is considered a winning season so technically I have to recognize it. However,
you put it the Redskins have had back-to-back winning season. Maybe they can
make it three seasons in a row this year.
The
2017 season will be a challenging year for the Redskins. They lost their two
best wide receivers this offseason in Pierre Garcon and Deshaun Jackson. Its
understood that the Redskins couldn’t afford to give both of these guys $10
million with the issues they have on defense. Losing two 1000 yard receivers
has to worry you if you’re a fan of this team. Garcon was Cousin’s safety
blanket. When they needed a big catch Cousins looked his way. When he was throwing
a ball up for grabs it usually went to Garcon. This offense will miss that.
Jackson on the other hand was the deep threat. It appeared that Jackson lost a
step this past season but he was still getting the job done. His presence in
this offense made things easier for Crowder and Reed over the middle. Its hard
to see how the Redskins replace that production.
Terrelle
Pryor is one of the best off-season acquisitions made by the Redskins. Pryor is
a combination of both Garcon and Jackson. He brings the size and toughness that
Garcon brings and has a speed element to his game, running in the 4.40s for his
forty-yard dash. Pryor is inexperienced at the wide receiver positions. Last season
was the first year he produced as a receiver. He had an amazing year but it was
for the Browns. It’s easy to look good on a bad team when teams aren’t
expecting you to beat them. Pryor drew the best corner on the opponent’s team
but he didn’t see crazy coverages that other top receivers get every game. Going
to the Redskins was the perfect move for Pryor because he will be the number
one guy and he will play on a solid team. He also fills a need that they
Redskins have with the departures of Garcon and Jackson. This could be a match
made in heaven or Pryor could be a one hit wonder coming from Cleveland. With
the second receiver expected to be Josh Doctson, Pryor will have huge expectations
this season.
The
Redskins bring back most of the key pieces from an offense that was top five
last season. Kirk Consin’s is the starting quarterback. They still have Trent
Williams, Brandon Scheiff, and Morgan Moses up front protecting Cousins. Jordan
Reed is still one of the better tight ends when heathy. Jamison Crowder appears
to be a very good slot receiver. The Reskins have all the ingredients for an
offense that will move the ball up and down the field again. They just have to
fix their scoring offense, mainly in the redzone.
The
Redskins had the number 3 ranked offense according to yards per game. They
ranked 12th in points per game and total points scored in the
season. They were also ranked 14th in total touchdowns scored. These
mediocre point averages are symptoms of a red zone offense that only scored on
44.90% (touchdowns) of the time. With all the success the Redskins had moving,
the ball they couldn’t punch it into the end zone. Losing offensive coordinator
Sean McVay, and wide recievers Pierre Garcon and Deshun Jackson won’t help to
improve those redzone numbers. If this team wants to take a step in the right
direction they will need to rely on the offense because their defense still
appears to be a problem.
The
Washington Redskins went heavy on defense this offseason. In free agency the
Redskins added defensive linemen Stacy McGee, and Terrelle McClain. Both of
them were solid rotational players for their teams last season. The Redskins
didn’t get great players at the position but good depth on the defensive line.
After being, ranked 24th against the run (yards per game) and giving
up 4.5 yards per carry it’s no surprise that they felt the need to beef up the
D line. They also added safety DJ Sweringer and inside linebacker Zach Brown.
Sweringer is a consistent signee for the Redskins. They just don’t believe in
investing in the safety position. Brown on the other hand is a big signing for
this team. He will give this team a significant upgrade at the inside
linebacker position. Brown is coming off a pro bowl season with the Bills and
if he can bring that production to the Redskins, he will give them another playmaker.
In an attempt to fix this defense, the Redskins also dedicated the draft to the
defensive side of the ball.
The
Redskins brought in two big pieces to this defense via the draft. Their first
round pick was defensive linemen Johnathan Allen. Allen was a projected top 10
pick that fell to the Redskins at pick 17. He is a strong player that should
help the Redskins in run support. He has the athleticism to get after the
quarterback as well, but in the 3-4 scheme, he won’t be require to have a high
sack total. The other piece the Redskins bought is was outside linebacker Ryan
Anderson. Anderson will give the Redskins another option as a pass rusher. He
was solid against the run and showed some nice pass rush abilities in college.
The Redskins have been searching for an outside linebacker to compliment Ryan
Kerrigan and they may have that with Anderson. He will have to beat out Preston
Smith for the starting spot but he is expected to contribute in year one. With
the additions made in free agency and the draft its clear to see the effort
made by the Redskins to fix that defense. They still have major concerns at
safety and cornerback but that front seven should be a lot better this season.
The
NFC East will be a vicious division this season. I’m not sure the Redskins have
made enough improvements to be able to contend for this division. The Cowboys
look to be the best team on paper followed closely by the Giants. The Eagles
will be better on offense and already had a solid defensive unit. The Redskins
have a good offense but the defense will have to be much better in order for
this team to win this division. Also they have to take a hit on the offensive side
of the ball, losing Garcon, Jackson, and McVay. While I expect Cousins to remain
consistent, he may not be able to cover up all the issues this team will have
on offense.
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