Here are my notes and observations from Monday's practice:
—Kory Lichtensteiger was nowhere to be found as the Redskins started practice. This was after him being missing from the morning walkthrough after what Mike Shanahan said was a planned day off for him on Saturday. (Update: Shanahan announced after practice that Lichtensteiger had arthoscopic surgery on his right knee to clean up some particles and that the guard likely will be held out until the start of the regular season.
—Tanard Jackson was removed from the PUP list. However, he could not due to CBA rules that require him to take a conditioning day and then two days with no pads before practicing fully. By that timetable he will be able to start practicing on Thursday.
—The D-line worked on some very basic fundamentals, hand placement immediately after the snapping the ball. Jacob Burney was coaching them up on some of the finer points of trying to get under a lineman’s pads from the get-go.
—He didn’t pass RG3 as a fan favorite but rapper Wale did draw some cheers and chants from the crowd along the fence as he walked around observing practice.
—With cornerbacks covering receivers one on one, Lance Lewis got past Richard Crawford and ran under Jonathan Crompton’s deep pass. And Lewis dropped it. Leonard Hankerson can get away with dropping a few like that but someone on the wrong side of the bubble can’t.
—With Lichtensteiger still out, Maurice Hurt ran with the fist team at left guard today. He was working at right tackle but he started eight games at left guard last year. His play was acceptable for a rookie seventh-round pick who had no offseason program but more will be expected out of him this year.
—Brian Orakpo again dominated in 11 on 11, on more than one occasion he was in RG3’s face before the QB could even set his feet after dropping back.
—Reed Doughty tipped a pass up in the air but Anthony Armstrong snapped up the ricochet. Armstrong got a touchdown, Doughty did pushups.
—Free agent tackle James Lee, who started 10 games at right tackle for the Bucs over the past two years, is barely being given a look there with Jammal Brown out. He’s taken no snaps with the first unit that I’ve seen.
—While I was looking down writing a note I heard a pass pop into a receiver’s hands. Without looking up I thought, “That had to be RG3”. Sure enough, it was, with a dart to Hankerson.
—Brandon Meriweather and Madieu Williams, the team’s starting safeties as of now, were both working on a kickoff coverage drill. Many starters have to play special teams.
—Ryan Kerrigan just dominated Tyler Polumbus for a stretch of several plays. Think a kid with a rag doll or King Kong with Fay Wray.
—After RG3 threw an incompletion on what looked like a muddled patterns, Raheem Morris complained loudly to receivers coach Ike Hilliard. “Ike, can you get [the receivers] to space that right so we can pick it off!”
—Some of Morris’ trash talk has apparently directed at RG3. After the quarterback scored on a run in a red zone drill, he zinged the ball in Morris general direction as he headed back to the huddle, drawing some laughs and cheers.
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