Armstrong could benefit most from RG3

When considering which Redskins will benefit the most from the presence of Robert Griffin III at quarterback, the obvious answer is anyone who catches the ball. But after seeing one tweet by an NFL analyst one name in particular came to mind.

The analyst was Doug Farrar of Yahoo’s Shutdown Corner. Tweeting about the RG3 trade, Farrar said:

And the deep ball accuracy is just silly. I'm tempted to make some very bold pro comparisons already.

The Redskins’ best deep ball threat going into the 2011 season was Anthony Armstrong, who had a big year in 2010 as a 27-year-old rookie. He gained 871 yards on 44 receptions, an eye-popping average of 19.8 yards per catch.

Last year, however, his production plummeted to 7 catches for 103 yards, a more pedestrian average of 14.7 per. He did suffer a knee injury that slowed him for a while but the injury does not fully explain the dropoff.

Perhaps a quarterback with “silly” deep accuracy is just what Armstrong needs to revive his career. Maybe if he can get a step on a defensive back a couple of times a game Griffin will be able to find him and put the ball on the money.

That could revive Armstrong’s career and give Griffin a go-to guy when it’s time to go deep. As the big play was notably absent from the Redskins’ offense last year, that could serve to revive the whole attack. 

Clearly Mike Shanahan was not happy with the production of the wide receiver corps last year. Otherwise, he would not have made bringing in Pierre Garçon and Joshua Morgan and attempting to sign Eddie Royal his the very first things on his to do list when free agency started. There will be real competition for roster spots. If Armstrong can fill a niché in the offense, his chances of staying around will get much better.

 

Comments

[Billy Crawford]

Redskins QBs were able to run very few 5-step and 7-step drops last season due to the O line's terrible pass protection. This had a lot to do with it, as did AA's lack of separation on his deep routes.

Kyle has specifically mentioned the receivers' lack of separation. It is the reason the team prioritized acquiring receivers in free agency.

Kyle Shanahan, 6 weeks ago:
"Our receivers’ lack of explosiveness and inability to get separation severely hampered our passing game this season. We had to rely on creative formations and precise route-running to produce openings."

Kyle Shanahan, 5 weeks ago:
"We have to give Rex some credit, he was the best playmaker we had on the field." http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/dc-sports-bog/post/kyle-shanahan-rex-grossman-was-redskins-best-playmaker-in-2011/2012/02/01/gIQApealhQ_blog.html

Mike Shanahan, 3 weeks ago:
"Well, I think we were a playoff-caliber offense this year but we didn’t have the depth that you need to go through a season. You can’t lose your left tackle, your left guard, your center. You can’t lose your starting running back and tight end, especially your tight end that’s your best blocker in Chris Cooley. And then you lose Santana Moss for four or five games, and a guy like [Leonard] Hankerson who finally gets ready, he goes down." http://blog.redskins.com/2012/03/02/shanahan-driven-by-redskins-legacy/