Rich Tandler's Real Redskins

Wade on the bubble?

After spending all of the offseason being among those who were no-brainers to make the Washington Redskins' 53-man roster, Todd Wade may not be such a sure bet.

The reserve tackle currently is sidelined with a sprained ankle that he suffered in the Hall of Fame game against the Colts. While he has been out, other players have filled the backup role quite capably. Chad Reinhardt, Andrew Crummey, and Devin Clark, in particular, looked pretty good protecting Todd Collins and Colt Brennan and paving the way for Ladell Betts and Marcus Mason.

Tackle Stephon Heyer also missed Saturday's game with a sprained knee. Last year, he was a rookie free agent who ended up starting ahead of Wade at right tackle down the stretch as the Redskins made their run to the playoffs. That would indicate that Heyer is ahead of Wade on the depth chart.

Wade carries a base salary of $1.78 million for 2008. Now, it needs to be said that the Redskins rarely if ever make roster decisions based strictly on money, especially when such choices involve a savings of (a mere?) $1.3 million or so. However, the savings will appear on the "pro" side of the ledger when examining the pros and cons of a potential release. (There would be $1.17 million in dead cap in 2009, but that money already has been spent.)

Wade will be 32 prior to the bye week. The 30+ backup player on a team with a new head coach is an endangered species. When you add an injury into the mix it makes it that much more difficult for such a player to hang on, especially when said player has a reputation for being somewhat fragile.

All of this does not mean that Wade is as good as gone. He has 96 career starts and that is a good thing to have on your resume. While it's true, as alluded to above, that some new coaches like to do some housecleaning and put their stamp on their new teams, that urge has to be balanced against the need to win games. Jim Zorn didn't inherit a rebuilding project; he took over a playoff team. While he wants to build for the future, he also needs to win some games now.

So, while keeping Crummey or Clark instead of Wade might make the team better in 2010, Zorn might not be around to enjoy the fruits of that decision if he doesn't have the Redskins in playoff contention in 2009.

The view here is that it comes down to this. If Wade can get back into the field by next week, he'll have a chance to fight for his job. If he gets that chance, it's better than even money that he'll win it.

If, on the other hand, he remains sidelined until late this month and the younger, cheaper alternatives continue to play well, it's likely that Wade will spend part of Labor Day weekend cleaning out his locker at Redskins park.

James practices

Erasmus James proceeded to the next stage of his rehab as he took the practice field for the first time as a member of the Washington Redskins.

After three years of struggling with injuries and earning the label of a first-round bust—he was selected 18^th overall in the 2005 draft—in Minnesota, he was traded to the Redskins for a sack of potatoes (actually, a conditional seventh-round draft pick). He has been working to get his knees back into good enough shape to join his new team in practice.

About a week ago, he thought he was ready. Figuring that it was better to bring him back a week too late than a week too soon, they moved him from the physically unable to perform list to the active roster yesterday.

James' return leaves the Redskins with six defensive ends on the roster and each of them has a good shot at making the team; it's likely that five of them will. Starters Andre Carter and the newly-acquired Jason Taylor obviously are in and it's hard to imagine that a solid, experienced backup such as is Demetric Evans being let go. That leaves James, Chris Wilson, and Rob Jackson fighting for two jobs.

Wilson demonstrated some potential with four sacks in part-time duty last year while Jackson, a seventh-round draft pick, has been earning praise in practice and has played well in the preseason games. Assuming that they hang on to James, those two are in a battle for the last spot.

McMullen vs. Mix

Even before the draft, it appeared that Billy McMullen was training camp fodder for the Washington Redskins. In four NFL seasons, the former Virginia Cavalier has caught just 45 passes. He managed just 29 in three seasons in the pass-happy Eagles offense before catching 16 last year for the Minnesota Vikings.

The Redskins signed him to get a big receiver in the fold, but after they drafted the 6-4 Malcolm Kelly and the 6-2 Devin Thomas in the second round, McMullen's 6-4 frame didn't look so imposing. Even absent the draftees, it appeared that the Anthony Mix, a second-year player who appeared to be six feet, five inches of red zone potential, was head and shoulders over McMullen despite his height advantage of just one inch.

After three weeks of training camp and two preseason games, the picture is starting to change. Thomas, Kelly, and Mix have been sidelined with an assortment of ailments. McMullen has been available for every practice and for as many game snaps as they will let him take.

He has made the most of those chances.

Against the Colts he had just one catch, but it was a beauty. On a third and seven play from the Washington 29, Colt Brennan arched a pass on which McMullen made a nifty over-the-shoulder grab that was good for 34 yards.

On Saturday against the Bills, McMullen was the game's leading receiver with six catches for 55 yards. After a couple of grabs he showed some nice run-after-catch ability as he turned upfield with authority.

Mix, meanwhile, had one catch for seven yards last night after missing the Hall of Fame game with a hamstring injury. The injury but bit him again as he left the game after the second-half kickoff after teammate Nemo Broughton clipped him in the ribs while both were making the tackle. While X-rays were negative for any fractures, the missed time hurt Mix more than will the bruised rib cage.

Kelly and Thomas, despite their absence from practice and games, are in no danger of getting cut. Mix, however, has gone from being a fairly sure bet to make the final 53-man roster to being squarely on the bubble. It looks like it will come down to Mix vs. McMullen for the final receiver spot if the Redskins, as expected, keep six.

If all other factors are equal, the Redskins likely would stick with Mix, who is three years younger than McMullen. But the main, overriding aspect that will determine who grabs that last receiver roster spot is production, both in games and on the practice field.

So far, McMullen has been productive and Mix has not.

Still, McMullen would be well advised to keep renting in the DC area and not buy just yet. Assuming that the rib injury is just a minor setback, Mix still has a few weeks to make his case. He had better make the most of that opportunity.

Billy McMullen has made the most of his.

Who ’s in--defense

We know who's out on Sunday night; let's take a look at who's in on defense:

Defensive end

Out: Jason Taylor, Chris Wilson, Erasmus James

That leaves: Andre Carter, Demetric Evans, Kevin Huntley, Rob Jackson—Carter may or may not be in long enough to break a sweat. Look for a three-man rotation of the other three most of the night.

Defensive tackle

Out: Anthony Montgomery

That leaves: Lorenzo Alexander, Matthias Askew, Ryan Boschetti, Babatunde Oshinowo, Kedric Golston, Cornelius Griffin—Although Griffin could play, he probably won't; there's no sense in putting even a few more hits on his 31-year-old body (I love being able to call people that age "old"). Golston is trying to beat out Montgomery for the starting job so he may be reluctant to come out and give up a chance to shine while his completion is sidelined. The other four want to get as many snaps as possible. I, for one, hope that Babaunde Oshinowo makes a big play so that Madden and Huff have to pronounce his name over and over again.

Linebacker

Out: H. B. Blades, Rian Wallace, Rocky McIntosh, London Fletcher

That leaves: Khary Campbell, Curtis Gatewood, Matt Sinclair, Danny Verdun-Wheeler, Marcus Washington, Alfred Fincher—Washington will play briefly if at all and Fincher hasn't been around long enough to learn the defense so his action will be limited to special teams. Campbell will get a lot of action in the middle.

Cornerback

Out: Carlos Rogers

That leaves: Cedrick Holt, Matteral Richardson, Fred Smoot, Shawn Springs, Leigh Torrence, Justin Tryon, Byron Westbrook—Smoot and Springs may or may not work a token series, but with plenty of healthy bodies looking to get notices there's no reason for them get their jerseys dirty. I'm looking forward to seeing Tryon get out there and try to back up his big talk.

Safety

Out: LaRon Landry

That leaves: Reed Doughty, Vernon Fox, Chris Horton, Kareem Moore, Stuart Schweigert—Doughty may not play, and any action Moore sees will be very limited as he's recovering from a knee injury. Schweigert should get a quarter or so to help him learn the defense. Horton has a reputation for being a hitter, he could provide a reason to stay awake in the fourth quarter.

Specialists

Out: None

That leaves: Snapper Ethan Albright, Kicker Shaun Suisham, and Punters Derrick Frost and Durant Brooks—I haven't heard if the two punters will alternate kicks or halves or quarters. Albright and Suisham have no competition and will have to handle all of their respective duties.

Who's in on offense

Who ’s in--offense

If you go here and to a few other sites, you can read plenty about who isn't going to play against the Colts on Sunday as the Washington Redskins open their five-game grind of a preseason schedule.

What's left for us to figure out, then, is who will play. Here's a position by position breakdown for the offense:

Quarterback

Out: None

That leaves: Jason Campbell, Todd Collins, Colt Brennan, and Derek Devine. Campbell will start and go one series, two if the first one is brief. Collins has been struggling in practice, he may get the rest of the first half before Brennan and Devine—not necessarily in that order—mop up in the second half.

Running back

Out: Clinton Portis, Ladell Betts

That leaves: Rock Cartwright, Marcus Mason—Since Eric Shelton was released awaiting a possible injury settlement, the Redskins are thin here for the time being. Cartwright will start and he and Mason could spell each other the whole way. Nehemiah Broughton, a fullback, may be called on to take some carries as a halfback.

Fullback

Out: None

That leaves: Mike Sellers, Broughton—You don't want to pound Sellers too hard, so Broughton could get a ton of action. They may go to a two-tight end set if necessary.

Wide receiver

Out: Devin Thomas, Malcolm Kelly, Anthony Mix

That leaves: Horace Gant, Maurice Mann, Billy McMullen (?), Santana Moss, Antwaan Randle El, James Thrash, Burt Toler—There's a question mark next to McMullen as they're not quite sure if he'll go. He, Gant, Mann and Toler would be happy to take all the snaps they can get in order to get on film. Don't blink or you'll miss Moss and Randle El. Thrash should play more than those two, but not much more.

Offense line

Out: Chris Samuels

That leaves: Devin Clark, Andrew Crummey, Jason Fabini, Justin Gresinger, Pete Kendall, Chad Reinhardt, Todd Wade, Tavares Washington, Randy Thomas, Jon Jansen, Stephon Heyer, Casey Rabach—It's always a delicate balancing act here; you don't want to run the starters and top reserves for too long, but you also don't want your quarterback to get killed and you want the running backs to have a fighting chance. Moves here often depend on what the other team does on its defensive line. As the Colts need this fifth preseason game even less than the Redskins do, look for both sides to be deep into the depth chart early on.

Later today, who's in on defense.

Rogers on the mend

According to JLC and other sources, Carlos Rogers' injured knee is mending well ahead of schedule and he could be ready for the start of the regular season.

The concept of Rogers lining up in September seemed farfetched last October when he tore both the ACL and MCL in his right knee in the Washington Redskins' loss to the Patriots. A return in October of this year seemed to be the best-case scenario as the timetable for the recovery from such an injury generally is a year.

However, individuals heal at different rates. It late July, just a few days past nine months since the injury and Rogers is cutting and showing explosiveness that has the coaches impressed.

If Rogers is ready to contribute at least as a nickel back, if not a starter, by the start of the regular season, gives the team some roster flexibility. If he's not quite there when the final cuts are made, the team probably will be forced to carry six cornerbacks. That would force them to go short in another position or perhaps the concept of carrying six wide receivers would go up in smoke.

But if he's ready to go, the Skins can go with five cornerbacks. They have eight now—Rogers, Shawn Springs, Fred Smoot, Leigh Torrence, Justin Tryon, Byron Westbrook, Cedrick Holt, and Matteral Richardson. Torrence filled in at nickel back behind starters Springs and Smoot last year after Rogers went down. Tryon was taken in the fourth round of the draft and he has raw speed, playmaking ability, and supreme confidence. He's likely to make it as the fifth corner. I'm not sure whether or not Holt is practice-squad eligible but Richardson and/or Westbrook could wind up on the PS.

It's important to caution here that Rogers being at or near 100% on September 4 is not a done deal. He has yet to participate in any contact and that is where you get the true picture of where he stands in his recovery.

Six wide?

What was thought to be one of the higher-profile, higher stakes training camp battles may not ever happen.

After the Washington Redskins drafted receivers Devin Thomas and Malcolm Kelly in the second round, it appeared that James Thrash and Anthony Mix were headed towards a showdown for the fifth and final WR roster spot behind the two rookies, Santana Moss, and Antwaan Randle El.

It was to be a classic competition between a cagey veteran who makes up for the loss of a step or two with hustle and smarts and a raw youngster with great size and potential. One would get a high-paying gig with the Skins, the other would have to start looking for work, either in the NFL or in—shudder—the real world.

However, after listening to comments that Jim Zorn made on Tuesday morning, it appears that the fifth receiver spot may not be the final spot. He indicated that he might go with six at the position.

Carrying six WR's is unusual but not unheard of. Steve Spurrier's first Redskins team had six receivers on the opening-day roster. Teams that run a lot of four-wide sets sometimes will carry six.

If both Mix and Thrash make it, of course, that means that the Redskins will have to keep one fewer player at another position. Do you run with, say, six linebackers despite the still-shaky health of Rocky McIntosh and H. B. Blades' recent knee injury?

Maybe you trust Mike Sellers to be the only fullback on the roster and run with an extra tight end or with Lorenzo Alexander as a third tackle if he goes out.

A handful of teams keep just two quarterbacks on the roster to free up a spot, but it's hard to imagine Zorn doing that.

Certainly carrying six receivers still is just a possibility and Thrash and Mix may well still have a battle brewing. But the offhand way Zorn mentioned "the fourth, fifth, and sixth guys" when talking about the receivers would reasonably lead one to believe that six is the number he has penciled as of now.

Depending on the health at some other positions, I wouldn't be opposed to such a roster configuration. It's hard to get rid of Thrash; he does too much and if you ask him to do more, he'll gladly do it. At 6-5, Mix has the potential to be a great red-zone target and he can play some decent special teams to boot.

Rian Wallace or Nehemiah Broughton, two players who could be cut to make way for a sixth receiver, likely would disagree.

HOF Game live blog

The Washington Redskins open their preseason on Sunday and I'll be blogging it live.

The application I'm using to do this is called Cover it Live and it makes live blogging fun and interactive. You don't have to refresh your browser page to get the latest running commentary. It works on almost every browser and it doesn't care if you have a Mac or a PC. Nothing to download or install in your end (or on my end, for that matter).

The best part about it is that you can join in on the fun and give your own commentary and observations as things unfold. It's easy to make comments that I can instantly post to the board.

So plan on tuning on the big screen, firing up the laptop nearby, and joining in on the action. If you're like me and occasionally need help remembering, you can just put your email in the box below to get a reminder at a time of your choosing.

The injury bug bites other teams, too

It's getting to the point where many Washington Redskins fans are afraid to turn on Training Camp Daily on Comcast or click on JLC's blog. They cringe at the prospect of finding out who got injured today.

The Redskins do seem to have a extraordinary number of injuries. It started on the first day of camp when two defensive ends, Phillip Daniels and Alex Buzbee, were lost for the year. It continued with Devin Thomas' hamstring, Malcolm Kelly's hamstring, Anthony Montgomery's hand, H. B. Blades' knee, Rian Wallace's hand, and a variety of other nicks. Pile onto those the limited roles that Carlos Rogers, Rocky McIntosh, Chris Samuels and Erasmus James can play due to wounds from last year that still are healing and you have a team that is operating shorthanded.

The injuries to the front-line players make it difficult for the starters to gel as a unit. When the backups are out the remaining players on the unit have to take additional reps and that can lead to fatigue, which can lead to more injuries, which starts the cycle all over again. Or, practice might be cut short, again cutting into preparation time.

As bad as the Redskins' situation seems, they are not alone. There are many other NFL teams being bitten hard by the injury bug. A look in the NFL Notes section of my local paper today reveals the following (after, of course, some 300 words about the Bret Favre soap opera):

• Amani Toomer (left leg swelling) and Steve Smith (general soreness) sat out Giants practice along with Plaxico Burress (ankle).
  
• Dallas cornerback Terence Newman will miss at least three weeks with a torn groin (ouch!)
  
• Ravens' starting offensive tackle Adam Terry was carted off the field after apparently aggravating a left ankle problem that was surgically repaired last January. He had flipped from the right side to the left to fill in for Jared Gaither, who is out with a sprained ankle.
  
• Steelers punter Daniel Sepulveda tore his ACL on the first day of practice. He will miss the season.
  
• Buffalo backup QB J. P. Losman missed practice after jamming his thumb.
  
• Jacksonville receiver Reggie Williams hurt his knee making a spin move after making a catch and he had to be carted off the field.
  
• Tennessee defensive lineman Ulrich Winkler will miss the season with a torn ACL.
  

That's just one day's worth of NFL camp injury news in the local paper. It isn't a thorough study. I wouldn't be surprised to find out that the Redskins are somewhat worse off than your average NFL team.

Still, injuries are part of the game, they always have been and, until they come out with The Bionic Football Player, they always will be. The teams that can best deal with them are the ones that will be successful.

 

Training Camp Rapid Fire

I've gotten behind a bit, but since I'm not a slave to the 24-hour news cycle, here are some rapid-fire comments about some events over the past few days:

Fan Appreciation Day a clusterbomb

Go look up "debacle" in the dictionary and you'll see a picture of traffic in a virtual standstill on the Loudon County Parkway and on Waxpool Road in Ashburn on Saturday. Some genius—or, more likely, a committee of geniuses—decided it would be a good idea to put on a free event on a Saturday afternoon featuring the area's most popular sports team and to hold that event at a venue that is served by one road that narrows from four to two lanes.

The result was several thousand fans being "appreciated" by being turned away at the gate, while those who make it inside the gates, many of them well after the event started, saw the scrimmage cut short.

This same organization, as you know, owns at stadium that could have swallowed up Saturday's event no problem. But FedEx Field just sat there on Saturday. So did numerous high school stadiums in the vicinity.

This PR staff is the gang that can't shoot straight. If the Redskins keep treating their fans like this, they'll be lucky if they get 280 of them at such events in the future.

Kerry Brown Cut

I was among a group of people who thought that this 6-5, 305 undrafted free agent out of Appalachian State could be among the surprises of camp with a legit chance of sticking around on the practice squad. The Redskins cut him on Saturday after he strained his left shoulder earlier in the week. They simply had to get some healthy bodies in and evidently Brown was at the bottom of the depth chart, behind fellow UDFA Andrew Crummey of Maryland.

Montgomery to miss 2-4 weeks

Anthony Montgomery will miss 2-4 weeks after surgery to repair his broken hand, not the 10 days initially estimated. He'll still get in a preseason game or two but practice time is important for a third-year player who still is learning on the job.

Blades on the shelf

This is a bit more significant than the one to Montgomery as linebacker is a very thin position on this team. There are nine of them counting Blades and Rian Wallace, who also broke his hand on Saturday and who also will miss 2-4 weeks. Rocky McIntosh still isn't participating 100% in practices. The Redskins were going watching the waiver wire to try to find a veteran LB anyway, this might make that search a more urgent one.

Collins' learning curve

Jason Campbell has had to learn eight new offenses in his past nine football seasons. Todd Collins will be learning his second after 10 seasons in Al Saunders' scheme. So far, Campbell is adapting while Collins is struggling. Collins was the world's foremost authority on the Saunders' offense and that knowledge helped him out immeasurably when he came in for an injured Campbell late last year and spearheaded the playoff drive. Without that edge, will he become just another hack journeyman backup?