So Rack got the starting job at SS LB. I like that he is a starter as, from all accounts, he has been impressive in OTAs and camp. Will be interesting to see what he is capable of and how well he is picking up the LB role. I think he will have a number of opportunities to rush the QB which is what he does best. I expect a whole lot more sacks/hurries on the QB this year with the addition of Orakpo and Haynesworth. Hopefully that translates into more turnovers as well.
As a side note, looks like Heyer gets the nod at RT. I am also very curious to see how well the O line stands up.
Preseason game #1 against the Ravens just two days away.
HAIL TO THE REDSKINS!!!
14 comments:
I'm back from Chicago and ready to rip the Redskins.
On D, I'm sure they will be good. But, the problem is that their O-line may end up being a disaster. We'll see as the pre-season games get into full swing.
I feel sorry for JC. The fans won't understand that the O-line is horrible. They will blame JC.
Glad to see Rob is ready to be objective as usual.
Having Orakpo and Haynesworth will add the one dimension we were lacking last year...pressure on the QB. I can see the defense being one of those really nasty bunches that no one wants to go up against.
I said we needed to draft O-linemen months ago. We're going into the season now with some big question marks at RT. I'm not worried about the talent of the starters. The starting 5 should form a very good O-line. The problem is depth. We have absolutely no one who can step in for Samuels if he gets hurt. The three guys vying for the RT starting spot are dinged up already. It could get ugly if injuries start to mount.
There's a 90% chance that JC will be fine as long as the line is healthy...but there's only a 50% chance of that.
Deeps - we basically agree. I just put it in a more stark way.
The Redskins will again be right around 8-8. I'm guessing 7-9 with that O-line, but if they can make a trade or if the guys they have look better in preseason, I will change my mind.
I expect the D to be much improved from last year. They were a top 5 defense in terms of YPG but the addition of Haynesworth and Orakpo should allow us to get more pressure on the QB and as a result more turnovers. No question the defense will/should be the strong point of our team.
The big question marks are the O line and the #2 WR position. If the O line can hold up and if Kelly and/or Thomas come on, I think this will be a good offense.
Every team has question marks going into the season. We'll see which teams can answer those questions.
The Redskins have no answer for their O-line questions. Actually, their answer is for JC to drop to his knees and pray to JC that he doesn't get killed.
It does not look good - but it is still early.
As I said earlier, the starting 5 won't be the problem. We were able to perform exceptionally well during the first half of last season when the line was healthy. At that time, Jansen was playing RT and everyone knew he was done. Whoever comes in now won't be any worse. Dockery is an upgrade over Kendall. If the starting 5 remain healthy, the line will be as good, if not better, than last year's.
The problem is depth. As JKD mentioned, everyone has questions in the preseason. If the quality of our 2nd team O-line is the major issue, I can live with that...for one more season.
I think Samuels is also a question mark. He is two years removed from the Pro Bowl so he is still better than most but I've seen Orakpo abuse him and he is coming off of a season ending injury so will be interesting to watch him.
Jeremy Bridges should add some depth and apparently Rinehart is much improved although he still needs work.
Those two are a couple of guys that will be interesting to watch tonight.
Samuels was a Pro-Bowler last year, but was injured and did not make the trip to Hawaii. I may have to agree with you because he could have lost a step and/or the injuries may keep him from playing up to his typical level this year.
Rinehart was showing signs of potential during last year's preseason until they experimented with him at LT. He's a guard and he needs to be a reliable source of depth there. I don't know enough about Bridges. He's been around for a few years, so he's obviously NFL material. Is he NFC East starter material though?
I think the Redskins are going to have what happened to the Bears happen to them. The age and injuries are going to really show.
Other than Dockery, I think the rest of the line is mediocre - AT BEST. More than likely it is subpart all around. I think Samuels and Heyer will both struggle. Rabach is OK, but Thomas is suspect with all the injuries. Maybe Mike Williams will catch fire.
I just don't like that unit at all.
Wasn't aware of Samuels being a Pro Bowler last year. He certainly is far from being done so I'm good with him. I like Dock. I like Rabach. He is truly the captain of that line and brings a lot. Thomas has his struggles with injuries so it will be interesting to watch Rinehart (who has been getting a lot of reps in) and Bridges. Heyer is a better pass blocker than run blocker and has potential to be decent so we'll see what he is capable of doing.
Robs, even if we had perennial Pro Bowlers across the board on the line, you still wouldn't like the unit and would find reasons to hate.
No, I think the D is good. But looking at the O-line, it looks to be in pretty bad shape.
Don't take my word for it. Go to the Post and look at the story today. As a matter of fact, look at the comments underneath the story. You can see that there are a lot of fans that already have made their minds up about JC.
The O-line may surprise us all, but right now it is hard to see why you even have cautious optimism.
No one is disagreeing with you. We already agree the O-line is suspect. The only difference is you believe there is no hope, whereas (I believe I can speak for JKD on this as well) we belive the line is capable of being pretty good considering the quality of the starters.
Regardless of the line's shortcomings, JC's on a short leash this year. Even if he's under pressure each game, he's got to make plays. The Steelers won a Super Bowl last year with possibly one of the worst O-lines ever because Big Ben was able to make plays down field. If Campbell continues to dink and dunk on 3rd downs, he won't be back next year.
Good luck to your Deadskins tonight. For your sakes, I hope their offensive line isn't as bad as I believe them to be.
I'm going to try to catch the first quarter/half just so I can comment with some knowledge tomorrow.
Which story are you referring to Robs? Is it the one from Tracee Hamilton? I think she is new to the Post. The theme of the article seemed to be more on the injuries the O line has suffered this camp. None of these injuries are serious though. Why not hold out many of these guys while they nurse a sore knee? Better to take the precautionary route than pushing them and having that nagging injury become something more especially when we are only talking about preseason.
If you are talking about Jason Reid's article, I still didn't see anything real bad in there. Regarding the comments left by people, I didn't see a lot of disparaging of JC. Sure there were a few mostly by idiot fans. For example, Alan4 said, "Jason Campbell is clearly an optimist. I admire his can-do attitude. But the reality is that the O-line is the weakest unit on this team, and a large measure of Campbell's success and health is hitched to a group of blockers struggling mightily to just reach "average"."
ArcticCat responded with, "What's the flavor of the Kool Aid you're drinking? Cherry? Yum, yum!"
First, just look at the names...Alan4 and ArcticCat. From the names alone you can tell who is more intelligent. That may be presumptuous on my part but it just seems like ArcticCat just likes stirring the pot.
Robs, people love to complain. It is much more fun and entertaining to hear/read that than the alternative. That is why tabloid tv/magazines do so well. You already know all this but you like to incite as well so you will continue to do what you do.
The O line is a concern but we don't need to give up on them yet. Again, Samuels is far from finished and is a perennial Pro Bowler, Dock is young and solid, Rabach is the anchor of the line, Thomas is a concern with his injuries so he will need to be watched, Heyer is a young guy that has made strong improvements but he is still young and needs to get better. We don't need to press the panic button yet. Lets see what happens.
Regarding the comment that the starting O went against the second team defense, there is nothing wrong with that. Most camps do the same thing. It would make especially good sense when many of the starting O linemen and WRs are not playing.
Finally, I was at camp for one day last week and I saw first hand the starting O line go against the starting D line at times so everyone should just relax.
Bottom line, I think we all agree that the O line is something that we need to watch but contrary to Robs, we don't need to throw these guys under the bus just yet. Lets see how these guys improve over the next few weeks as we head into the season.
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