2009 Season

[rypper11]

1.) I really want Haynesworth but I think it is more than unlikely. Realistically we'll have the same starting DL next year but hopefully Daniels and Buzbee will be added to the rotation.

2.) I completely agree about Washington. I'd like to see Aaron Curry (Wake Forest) and Clay Matthews (USC) start on either side of Fletcher next year with Rocky and Blades backing them up. We'll probably have to trade up to get Curry (but he's worth it) but Matthews should be available when we pick in the 3rd.

3.) Completely agree with your secondary assessment.

4.) On the OL I think we, as fans, don't give Rabach enough credit. Remember the dropoff last year when he was out? He had a horrible game against the Rams and Ratlif from the Cowboys abused him, but he is still in the top 50% of centers in the NFL. I'd like to see Jordan Gross as our only big free agent pick up, move Samuels to RT, Jansen to RG and resign Kendall for LG. Rinehart, Thomas and Heyer would be the primary backups with 2 players yet to be determined.

5.) ARE is a great slot receiver, nothing more. I doubt both rookie wr's will pan out but hopefully one or the other can be a 40 catch #2 receiver in '09.

6.) I'm good with our punter. Plackenmeir is a good directional punter (see second Eagles game) though not a boomer. Smith and Suisham need to find other employment though and ARE just can't return punts. Moss is the only player on the current roster who can do better though and he is too valuable on offense to return every punt. Someone like Sammie Stroughter from Oregon should be available in the seventh round or as an UFA.
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[SBXVII]

Originally Posted by REDSKIN1

I'm willing to give Taylor and Carter another year due to the injury Taylor suffered in the beginning of the year. You are right that no one doubled Taylor since the beginning of the year and that was because of his decline in play due to his injury. But in the last couple of games after he was finally healthy he was able to put pressure on the quaterback from time. Carters play suffered from the lack of consistent play from the rest of the d-line. If we get a solid DT I truley belive that Carter and Taylor's production will increase. Just look at their numbers from the year before.

I do agree that we need to address the LB positions but I beleive that Rocky will be ok. This was his first year after major knee surgery. Washington needs to go and we can probably get a couple more years out of London.

Lets not forget we have Johnny Baldwin and Matt Sinclare on IR, and Brandon Archer on the practice squad. Maybe they are not any good who knows but we do have a few LB who should be coming back next yr.

Hopefully Buzbee will be ready at DE and can help out. Unless you guys are all looking for big names then we need new people.

[Miller101]

Originally Posted by BigHairedAristocrat

You made alot of good points, but i have to strongly disagree with this one. When have either of our DEs been double-teamed consistently? It just hasnt happened. Did you watch the San Francisco game? Jason Taylor couldnt get by underachieving TE Vernon Davis for petes sake! Jason Taylor cant get by a TE, let alone ONE offensive lineman - no ones been doubleteaming Taylor since week 1. A big DT is NOT going to singlehandledly solve our pass-rush problems. Thats the biggest myth some redskins fans seem to want to beleive.
We DO need a bigger DT, but we also need upgrades at BOTH OLB positions. Better OLBs will free up our DEs to focus solely on rushing the passer. We also need upgrades at BOTH DE positions, although we realistically cant expect to see that anytime soon. Suffice to say, one DT is not going to solve our pass-rush problem or generate many more sacks. We're 3-5 players away from seeing any real improvement there.

Andre Carter got double teamed quite a bit! Especially on 3rd and longs and when they were throwing long. Andre would beat the lineman on most plays, but a running back would chip him right back to the lineman or push him behind the quarterback. He was really fast getting back there on those deep drops. Or a tight end and a lineman just stood him up and..........double teamed him! Or Andre would break through, but a split second to late. He did get double teamed quite a bit though, while Griffen, Evans, Montgomery or whoeverelse couldn't break through the single team.

Jason Taylor has been hurt all year and is old. Jason.......................I thought he was better than what he showed us this year, but maybe Parcells was right! Dancing in the offseason can cause injuries and its a detriment to the team and you shouldn't do it. I must admit when that first came out; I laughed! I mean its just dancing! But.................he was right!

[The Goat]

Originally Posted by 53Fan

???? Might want to check that WaldSkins. I believe we were one of the top blitzing teams in the league. We just didn't get sacks.

Pretty sure you're right about that 53. Also we're ineffective when we blitz, often giving up big plays because we don't get to the QB fast enough or at all.

[The Goat]

There's a big difference between what most of us would like to see in the off-season and what it realistic: i'll make a few guesses at what seems realistic.

1) O-line is our worst unit at this point; however, I believe it will only get limited upgrades. On draft day if there is a top tackle available @ 13 I do believe we'll grab him... and I think that's the very best decision. We need a franchise RT, period. Heyer isn't a franchise anything at this point. Elsewhere on the line I would bet at this point we don't see changes. Jansen, as many have pointed out cannot be cut because of the cap hit, will compete for an interior position and while i won't be surprised if he beats someone it's still more likely he serves as an all purpose backup. This is actually ok - while i've crapped on JJ as much as anyone i believe his lack of lateral movement is what kills him @ RT. He's a damn good run blocker and will be decent pass blocker on the interior. Won't be surprised if Jansen steps in at some point and does well. Starting o-line: Samuels, Kendell, Rabach, Thomas, Bad-ass Rookie. Backups: Heyer, Rhinhart, Jansen... oh God please not Fabini.

2) Zorn doesn't look likely to bring in a new OC but if logic exists Hixon is replaced w/ a savvy WCO WR coach. This is the ONLY change we should expect among the WR unit and it should yield good results as Hixon has never developed a WR in the NFL to my knowledge... there has got to be someone much better suited than Stan or we might as well give me the friggin job (I'll work 24/7!!!).

3) Defensively I expect very few changes. I know a lot is being made of DT but I don't expect an addition/subtraction. Two reasons: GTripp has mentioned our DTs have very specific assignments that probably negate the impact phenomenal talent might make at this position, and secondly we probably have bigger needs at DE and OLB. Daniels is in all likelihood too old to be an effective end (he gets cut) and that leaves only Evans as a decent run blocking left end. We'll either pick up a starter in FA or use our 3rd draft pick on a backup to Evans. Strong side LB is similar situation: either we cut Washington and grab a starter in FA or keep Marcus and draft an OLB in the 3rd round (sort of swapping w/ the DE scenario).

4) Springs and Smoot gone, Hall and Rogers starters. We need a third CB and it comes in FA or possibly 5th(?) round draft pick.

Honestly, I think that's the most we'll see. My preference is to grab a great DE starter in FA, as in this is where Danny spends his dough (Evans moves to backup); keep Marcus because he is very effective and does everything he can to play but draft the best OLB in 3rd round (I'm ok w/ this even though Marcus won't play 16 games because it gives Blades and/or the rookie some work); obviously, draft a franchise RT w/ our first pick.

[Paintrain]

Offensively the biggest need is clearly the o-line. I'm in the minority that expects Thomas and Kelly to develop next season into legitimate threats, but in order for that to happen we've got to get new starters at RT, LG and possibly C. Samuels and Thomas have a good 2 years left (if healthy) as solid performers so we've got to address depth there, but for '09 we need to replace 2-3 of the current rotation.

Defensively it's got to be the pass rush. It's been far too long (Bruce Smith anyone-ugh) since we've had a legitimate threat to rush the passer. We've got to drastically upgrade the pass rush thru free agency and the draft. I'd like to see us add a stud DE at #13 and a stud LB thru free agency. The secondary is solid, assuming we resign Hall and either retain Rogers or trade him for a pick and replace him in free agency-I'm fine either way.

Special teams-I'd advocate an change at 3 key positions-K, KR, PR. I know the love for Rock is strong around these parts but if we can get Sproles, who will get the same field position but is a threat to break a long one everytime he touches the ball then we have to make the upgrade. Same thing for PR, Sproles can run around in circles like ARE, but we need someone heading north/south. We've ignored the kicker position since the days of Norv. We tried with John Hall but he could never stay healthy. It's time to invest legitimate $ on a kicker. Last year we should have signed Josh Brown but ignored him. Let's not make the same mistake again.

I'm fully expecting a down year next season unfortunately but if the upside is a Cowher/Holmgren/Shanahan move then I will be willing to suffer in the short term.

[Frost]

why didnt we pick up shawn rogers!?! I watched some Browns games here and there, maaaan can that guy rush or what and he's freaking huge lol, I dont understand why didn't skins sign him when he was a free agent, he's like a freaking bulldozer. and also since im just talking randomly also why aren't we using randle el in a wildcat formation. I think he has potential being that he can also throw. What do you guys think.

[sportscurmudgeon]

Browns traded for Rogers. I believe they gave up their first round pick for him... If that's right, the Skins did not have a first round pick so they would have been out of the auction at that point.

[Ruhskins]

Originally Posted by BigHairedAristocrat

You made alot of good points, but i have to strongly disagree with this one. When have either of our DEs been double-teamed consistently? It just hasnt happened. Did you watch the San Francisco game? Jason Taylor couldnt get by underachieving TE Vernon Davis for petes sake! Jason Taylor cant get by a TE, let alone ONE offensive lineman - no ones been doubleteaming Taylor since week 1. A big DT is NOT going to singlehandledly solve our pass-rush problems. Thats the biggest myth some redskins fans seem to want to beleive.
We DO need a bigger DT, but we also need upgrades at BOTH OLB positions. Better OLBs will free up our DEs to focus solely on rushing the passer. We also need upgrades at BOTH DE positions, although we realistically cant expect to see that anytime soon. Suffice to say, one DT is not going to solve our pass-rush problem or generate many more sacks. We're 3-5 players away from seeing any real improvement there.

I could be wrong, but in many defensive situations this is what I saw...both DEs rush the QB, but the DTs don't make any push, allowing the QB to stay in the pocket and the o-lineman safely pushing the DEs away from the QB. Griffin is old and injury prone, and both Montgomery and Golston don't seem to be doing that great. As I've said before, a lot of good defensive teams have strong DTs (Haynesworth in Tenn., Tuck with NYG, the Williamses in Minny). Now, I'm not saying that we should get Haynesworth, but an upgrade at the DT position wouldn't be that bad.

With that say, I don't think the team should be racking their brains about the defense before they do something about the offense.

[Paintrain]

Originally Posted by sportscurmudgeon

Browns traded for Rogers. I believe they gave up their first round pick for him... If that's right, the Skins did not have a first round pick so they would have been out of the auction at that point.

It was Leigh Bodden and a 2nd round pick for Rogers.

[GTripp0012]

The Redskins have two critical needs: interior OL, and impact OLB. That's all the team NEEDS to upgrade to be successful, but they also will want better depth at OT, a more explosive second RB, a Punt Returner, a Devery Henderson type one-track WR who can bring a deep element when Santana is on the shelf (and play gunner on special teams when he's in the lineup), a punter they can rely on, and then they need to sort out the depth situation at corner.

[GTripp0012]

Originally Posted by Paintrain

It was Leigh Bodden and a 2nd round pick for Rogers.

3rd round. Their 2nd rounder went to GB for Corey Williams.

The Browns, pulling a Redskins like offseason with sub-Skins results.

[bedlamVR]

Wish list :
Our guys

Clear up cap space .
Springs ($8.48 - 2.48) - /Taylor (8.5 - 0)/ Washington(6.52-2.02) get them to resign to lower contracts 3-4 year deals max . could clear up 8-10 million in space .

Say good bye to Daniels unless he can come back at DT/DE hybrid . He is strong and was a force against the run .

Also look to cut Griffin ($6.166- 2.02)

Look to resign - Karry Campbell, Pete Kendell, Demetric Evans .

Look to lock up - Carlos Rogers/Deangelo Hall ... (It should be possible to do both this year but Hall is more pressing though that sets the bar for Rogers in 09)

McIntosh/Blades - I doubt Rocky would like to sign anything this year ( a down year) but both him and Blades are in contract years in 09 and neither really shone in 08.

Free agents
Look to pick up a poket collapsing DT. There are a couple of 3-4 DE we could look at DT . Canty or Spears maybe on their outs in Dallas .

Look to pick up Carlos Dansby or Bart Scott at LB .

Look for depth at LB/OL/DT


O Line :
Tricky . It could be you could shuffle the talent . Samuels is a beast at OLT and anyone looking for the drop off in production of the offense need to look at the timing of his injury .

Kendell may not be back a LG .

Rabach : Wore down significantly as the help changed towards LT with Samuels out .

Thomas : Was okay, is too expensiver to cut (More so than Jansen($-9.45))

Jansen/Heyer : Neither has shown they can be anything more than a warm body at RT .

Solutions : Move Jansen to Center in competition with Rabach looser is cut . Have Heyer battle out with top round draft pick at RT . Move Reiheart to LG .

Alternativly : Move Jansen to LG ( Possibly the least demanding OL possition) , Have Rabach battle it out with dradft pick . Heyer and Reinheart battle for RT .

Draft

Top priority : ORT . I have always been a BPA guy or getting the guy with the most value . OL are a premium in this draft and someone should be there at 13-17 worth picking if we can trade back )

Next OLB - The 4-3 is becoming less and less common . We should be able to address the OLB ( Washington Replacement in the 3rd round .

Next DT : We have to do something to be able to collapse the pocket . The top ranked DT is likely expected to go late first early second and value should be available later on .

Other pick/picks : A Committee RB . Portis got real banged up towards the end of the season . Depth at almost any possition .

[cdskins26]

Originally Posted by REDSKIN1

2.) Marcus Washington needs to be replaced he's never on the field. When he's out there he is great, but he's more of a liability now with the injuries. Look to our roster for a replacement or possibly a veteran through free agency.

I agree however when he does play he still is very good. You definately could notice between the Dallas loss and the Philadelphia game, when he didn't play, that our D lacked presence. I hope we keep him.

[tryfuhl]

Originally Posted by D'BOYZ

Hey Guys I wanted to know what do you guys think needs to be fix, change or get (realistically) in the off season for you guys to be successful next year.

And please don't post any Fantasy Football Free agent pick that you don't really need. Hate when guys do that just because he's a big name guy, but they don't get that maybe he's old, or doesn't fit your scheme or you already have a starter in that position that it's getting paid the big bucks.

With that in mind please no Matt Cassel post. I know that he's a FA and New England most likely will not get him but first he will like to go to a place when he can start and be in a good team (new York Jets is my first option). You guy invest a 1st round pick on Campbell, and has shown flashes that he can be good so he at least will get 1 more year.

We're hearing this from a Cowboys fan?