John,
I read a couple of times that some teams supposedly inquired about Devin Thomas during the offseason. Do you think there is any chance Shanahan is reconsidering moving him now after a disappointing camp and promoting Austin from the practice squad?
Also, I read Kyle Shanahan’s quote that a lot of different packages will be used Sunday, do you think there are any for Banks? His speed was pretty evident on the WR flare screens he was catching against Arizona, grabbing almost 10 yards a pop every time they ran it, Dallas has a weak secondary and a strong pass rush, getting the ball out quick to guys with speed in space doesn’t seem like a bad plan to me…..
-Jack Rash
Jack,
The Redskins have talked to some teams about Thomas from what league sources have told me. And he was very, very close to not making the roster. Had another team given them a pick, I’m guessing they would have moved him. One reason teams didn’t trade for him last week was at least some thought he would be cut. And others who might have been interested obviously didn’t think he was worth a pick.
But the long-winded point is this: They were already somewhat disappointed in him and they still kept him. I don’t have confidence he’ll be here all season. And I’d suggest for his sake that he has a heck of a year returning kickoffs. I talked to a veteran last offseason who predicted that neither Devin nor Malcolm would ever make it because they did not work the way they needed to.
As for your second question, it’s really hard to know what’s going on with plans for various packages. But if Banks is involved in some, that means they’re keeping five receivers active. That’s a lot. Thomas is returning kicks so he’s the fourth receiver. Not sure what that would mean for Banks (I’m guessing Roydell Williams will be inactive). He could help on a few plays, but ball security is an issue. One thing about the Dallas secondary: the Cowboys corners are outstanding.
–JK
Hey John,
I have two short questions. First, what draft pick are the skins getting from the Colts for Tryon? And second, was Robert Henson put on IR or was he released with an injury settlement? Thanks.
-Kenny McDonald, Chesapeake Beach, MD
Kenny,
Hopefully I’ll give you two short answers! As my friends and some radio hosts know, keeping my answers short can be tricky. But this will be easy not sure on the Tryon pick. It’s conditional, so I’m guessing it’s attached to what happens with him this season. It’ll obviously be a low pick. Henson was waived/injured, which meant another team could have picked him up during that time. Nobody did so the Redskins put him on injured reserve (originally I had not written that he was put on IR). Henson could have a long road back. Also, Clint Oldenburg was put on IR as well.
JK
Hi John,
Thanks for taking the time to answer questions.
I read recently (I think in one of Peter King’s columns) that the key to the Vikings beating the Cowboys in the playoffs last year was that they didn’t blitz. The analysis being that Romo likes when teams blitz as he has a quick release and is good at making plays against it.
So, knowing the Redskins defense is set up this year to blitz more, do you know if the coaches have taken Minnesota’s plan into consideration?
Thanks,
Stephen Kogon
(Los Angeles, CA)
Stephen,
Good question. The short answer: Absolutely. I think they’ve probably looked at any game the past couple years in which Romo was shut down. That, especially, would include Minnesota (the Redskins did a good job vs. him in Dallas, too). But the Vikings have an elite pass rusher in Jared Allen so they could afford to use that strategy a lot. Regardless, I don’t think the Redskins will be blitz heavy or just sit back. I think they’ll mix it up. And sometimes they’ll cause confusion by their looks, yet still send only four. That’ll be the key; get him to pause for a second or two.
JK
John,
Are the ‘Skins still running a 3-4/4-3 hybrid? Or is it all just 3-4?
Pascal Todd
Annandale, VA
Pascal,
They use a hybrid. They’ll use some two-man fronts, though when they do that they’ll put their outside linebackers up on the line and that gives it 4-3 principles. They’ll even use some one-man fronts.
JK
John,
Is Doughty a capable replacement for Moore? He appears to have questionable coverage ability. Would Horton be a better choice? Is there another alternative, e.g, Barnes?
Charles Silberberg
North Tustin, CA
Charles,
Doughty and Chris Horton both are better at strong safety. Neither has the range you’d prefer in your free safety; they don’t have Moore’s range, that’s for sure. But both are fairly smart players. Also, keep in mind that the Redskins will interchange their safeties, so LaRon Landry will be back deep on occasion. As for Kevin Barnes, that’s not an option. Though he’s tall, he’s also very skinny. I never saw him working at S this summer. Carlos Rogers has taken snaps at free safety in practice in certain packages, much the way Shawn Springs used to do.
JK
John,
Hello, I am an baffled at the Redskin front office handling of the Haynesworth issue the week of the Dallas game. Shanahan has appeared to make this a personal issue. I am not a Haynesworth apologist but he does make this defense better whether he is in shape or not….He allows the line backers to make plays… Why would they allow these rumors to come out about a trade now?
Why isn’t Shanahan more focused on how this offense will perform, how the running game an offensive line will work etc.
Thanks and Hail to the Redskins,
Steve Weaver
Steve,
Don’t worry about Shanahan; I’d say he’s more focused on the game than he is on the Haynesworth saga. And Bruce Allen is the one who can work the phones if they need to. So Shanahan won’t be sidetracked by this issue. In the 12-minute presser Wednesday, he only talked about Haynesworth for maybe two minutes. But that’s the stuff that makes ESPN, so it looks like it was more than it actually was. The other thing is, I’m not sure Shanahan’s stance on Albert has ever really changed. My guess last week is that Tennessee sniffed a chance to pick him up for a bargain and that started all this stuff anew. But it’s also hard not to think it’s personal. As for why rumors come out, there are two staffs involved and national reporters such as Chris Mortensen (who broke the story last week) know many people.
JK
John,
We’ve been hearing trade rumors throughout the offseason and again yesterday. Each time the trade hasn’t gone through teams are not offering enough or we are asking too much. Does anyone have a line of what exactly (or ballpark) it will take to move this guy other than a bulldozer? We have to get rid of this guy. At least T.O. at his whiniest delivered the goods on the field. Haynesworth can’t even do THAT.
Thanks,
Patrick Madden
Patrick,
Sounds as if the Titans were offering a fourth while the Redskins want a second. They’ve held firm to a higher pick for Haynesworth, which turned away other teams in the offseason. For now, they don’t seem to want to budge from their asking price. Those who have dealt with Shanahan in the past say he sticks firm to his price. But the saga won’t end this week so we’ll see what happens. The key is: How badly do the Redskins want to trade him? If they want to get rid of him, they’ll take the fourth. Here’s the thing: As long as his teammates remain supportive of Haynesworth, you could keep him through this season and still get the fourth rounder in the offseason. I’d only rush to trade now if it’s a higher pick.
JK
John,
I really like your insight, professionalism and humor. I’ve only started to follow your column and Twitter feeds recently but find I gain much more insight from your writing. Great job.
My question: I think we learned from watching Bruce Allen and the skins front office over the offseason that change may not happen on any one day (i.e. the first day of free agency). Still, I expected us to find some offensive line depth from the cuts made Saturday by other teams with more depth at those positions. I was further surprised that only one of our practice squad signings was from outside our own training camp. Is there still time to see this happen or does this type of signing usually occur really quickly?
Thanks for any insight,
Sean Cook
Atlanta
Sean,
Thanks for the compliment. I’ve cut and pasted that to my resume. I, too, was surprised that Washington didn’t pick up any other players, especially along the line and at receiver. Yes, they still could add somebody; most teams will do that throughout the season anyway.
JK
Thanks to all who sent letters. To send one in for next week, click here.
