With a new regime comes new hope…
After four years of roster mismanagement and drafting ineptitude from Ron Rivera and company, new blood has finally stepped in and is attempting to right the wrongs of decades of dysfunction perpetrated by Dan Snyder and his hired henchmen.
That turnaround began when The Josh Harris Group took over ownership of the team just over a year ago. However major changes weren’t made until the this offseason, when Harris and his leadership group hired Adam Peters to be the team’s general manager. Peters moved swiftly to secure his new head coach in former Falcons head man and recent Cowboys defensive coordinator Dan Quinn.
The Quinn hire was met with some resistance at the beginning, but fans came around very quickly and have accepted him with open arms. Under the leadership of Peters and Quinn, and with a new franchise signal caller obtained with the No. 2 overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, hope for the future is at an all-time high.
Below is a look at some key storylines as Washington begins its first day of training camp.
The Offensive Line:
Even more important than breaking in a new quarterback, is how this offensive line will perform as a unit. The group has been abysmal the past two seasons, and Peters and company did little to address the fan’s concerns this offseason at offensive tackle.
My Concern – Bookends Cornelius Lucas and Andrew Wylie are trotted out and asked to protect Jayden Daniels. They have been bad in the past and I don’t see them improving to become much more than replacement-level. You hate to see the development of a rookie quarterback stunted because he’s seeing ghosts out there, and that’s what I’m afraid will happen to Daniels with these two protecting the edges.
Ideal situation – Rookie Brandon Coleman comes out of the gate hot and wins the starting job at left tackle. Sure, there will be some bumps along the road, but this move puts veteran Cornelius Lucas back where he belongs as a swing tackle. On the right side, Andrew Wylie does enough to not make fans want to pull their hair out game after game.
Cornerback:
Corner is a major concern heading into training camp. Washington lost its top player, Kendall Fuller, to free agency this spring and really didn’t add a proven player on the outside to replace him. Benjamin St-Juste and second-year player Emmanuel Forbes will be given the opportunity to earn starting spots, but veterans Michael Davis and Noah Igbinoghene will be pushing the duo through camp. Adam Peters drafted Mike Sainristil to play in the slot and he should be an immediate upgrade.
My concern – Forbes struggles out of the gate against bigger, more physical wide receivers and St-Juste reverts back to his “grabby” ways and becomes a walking penalty.
Ideal situation – Emmanuel Forbes lives up to his first-round billing and becomes the playmaker he was drafted to be. St-Juste plays to his length and athleticism and provides a lock-down presence on the opposite side. Mike Sainristil is an immediate impact player in the slot and one of Kyu Blu-Kelly or Noah Igbinoghene step up to become a reliable CB4.
EDGE Rusher:
Washington traded away both Montez Sweat and Chase Young at the deadline last year, leaving them with two gaping holes on the outside. Dorrance Armstrong, Clelin Ferrell and Dante Fowler were added in the offseason, but only Armstrong is on a multi-year deal. KJ Henry and Andre Jones Jr. are two young guys with some upside.
My Concern – We won’t have a dynamic presence on the edge, capable of generating game-changing pressure on opposing quarterbacks, thus putting more pressure on the secondary to cover guys much longer.
Ideal Situation – Armstrong becomes an opposing force on the outside in his first full season as the unquestioned starter. Forgotten linebacker Jamin Davis, who had been getting reps in OTA and mini-camp with the edge rushers, steps up and takes on the Micah Parsons role in this defense. Fowler and Ferrell provide rotational depth while Henry and Jones continue to develop.
Wide Receiver Three/Four:
Our top two wide receivers seem to be set with Terry McLaurin and Jahan Dotson locked into those roles respectively. The big question remains who will step up to be the third and fourth options this team desperately needs.
My concern – We have a rotating hodge-podge of former has-beens fighting to build chemistry with a new signal caller during the season, with no one really separating themselves from the pack and stepping up to take pressure off McLaurin and Dotson.
Ideal Situation – Rookies Luke McCaffrey and Marcus Rosemy-Jacksaint both have an outstanding training camp and separate themselves from the group to add both youth and size to Washington’s four-deep. Dyami Brown shows he belongs in the league and finally lives up to the potential he displayed at North Carolina.
Linebacker:
After years of being a weakness, linebacker is now one of the strengths of this football team. This group has some unique players with traits that can be used all over the defense. Bringing in a veteran like Bobby Wagner was a key offseason move. Frankie Luvu could be in for a breakout year under new defensive coordinator Joe Whitt.
My concern – There is not what I’d call a complete linebacker in this group. Wagner was as complete as they come earlier in his career, but at 34, he’s begun to slow down a bit in pass coverage. Luvu is excellent near the line of scrimmage and excels when asked to pressure the quarterback. Davis struggles with his reads and is at his best when he can just see-ball, hit-ball. Rookie Jordan Magee has nice potential but will need to work on getting off blocks in the NFL.
Ideal Situation – Safety Jeremy Chinn is deployed as an outside linebacker along with Wagner, Luvu or both on the inside. Davis is used primarily as an edge rusher and Magee is allowed to be brought on slowly.
There will certainly be a lot of intriguing storylines to follow during training camp and it should be really exciting to watch this all unfold in the next six weeks before the season officially starts.
The buzz will undoubtedly be focused on the maturation of rookie QB Jayden Daniels – as it should be, but there are plenty of other interesting situations we should be monitoring during camp.