Redskins OTAs: Not Training Camp but Players Working Hard

The Washington Redskins‘ 2015 rookie class had its first taste of 11-on-11 drills with the veterans today as the team held its first batch of organized team activities (OTAs). The roster, as it stands, is the culmination of General Manager Scot McCloughan & Co.’s off season work and, while it wasn’t training camp, there was information to be gleaned from the day.

Today’s attendance was voluntary and the turn out, while not a hundred percent, was good. Left tackle Trent Williams, cornerback Tracy Porter, tight end Jordan Reed, linebacker Ryan Kerrigan and wide out DeSean Jackson were among the absent. The first two were victims of canceled flights. Reed and Kerrigan were both dealing knee issues; Reed’s nothing serious according to Head Coach Jay Gruden and Kerrigan recovering from having his scoped recently. Gruden did not say why Jackson was not there.

While the rookies had a chance to be on the field with their coaches during their recent minicamp, this was the first time they had held any sort of practice with the veterans on the team. For the most part, the youngsters held their own pretty well.

First-round draft pick and offensive lineman Brandon Scherff lined up at right tackle as expected for the 11-on-11 drills. There are no pads during OTAs but one can still get a slight idea of a player’s skill set and attitude during these workouts. Admittedly, everyone’s head is on a swivel watching the goings-on but Scherff did not get beat often, staying in front of the various linebackers and defensive linemen trying to get past him.

Offensive tackle Tom Compton was lined up on the left and Morgan Moses spent some time over there as well. Keeping in mind that this is the first day of OTAs, the line did have its moments. The unit seemed a bit sharper in the run drills than pass and several times during the 11-on-11’s, held well against the likes of new defensive linemen Ricky Jean Francois and Stephen Paea; and the now-healthy Jason Hatcher. Running backs Alfred Morris, Chris Thompson, Silas Redd and even rookie Matt Jones had big holes to run through into open field several times.

It’s no surprise that even today the offensive line looked pretty good. Offensive line coach Bill Callahan has been around is well-respected and he knows what he is doing. That can be nothing but good for this unit.

“Yea well, I can tell you we don’t sit down and take a knee and watch special teams any more,” veteran center Kory Lichtensteiger said when asked if Callahan’s approach to practice was different than former coach Chris Foerster‘s was. “We’re working straight through and you can probably see by how sweaty I am that it’s no joke. He likes towork at a good tempo and he’s a very intense coach. So, we’ll definitely get better… if we don’t die first.”

As was expected, quarterback Robert Griffin, III took the first-team reps and it was easy to see he was feeling healthy. He threw pretty well for the most part and took off running on one or two plays. During one formation, he overthrew wide out Pierre Garçon while third-year cornerback David Amerson looked tight in coverage during the play. Unfortunately, a few plays later, second-year receiver Rashad Ross ran right by the defensive back on a pass from backup quarterback Colt McCoy.

Rookie receiver Jamison Crowder caught some punts today during special teams drills and also worked in the 11-on-11‘s. He caught a few balls in the slot and, even with all of the hype surrounding his return skills, showed off his crisp route-running and quick feet.

After the struggles of 2014, the secondary is going to get a lot of attention this season. It is hoped that the additions of a few veterans ― cornerback Chris Culliver, safeties Dashon Goldson and Jeron Johnson ― will combine with the continued development of Amerson, Baushad Breeland and Phillip Thomas; and result in increased turnovers and better coverage. Cornerback DeAngelo Hall took did not take part in the team drills but did some work with his unit. He told reporters after practice that he was likely to wait until training camp to really start working. He spent a lot of time on the sidelines.

Speaking of turnovers, Breeland did intercept a pass from Griffin.

The team as a whole seemed genuinely glad to be on the field and worked with a lot of energy. There was perhaps a little too much because at one point, veteran defensive lineman Kedric Golston got into it with offensive lineman Ty Nsekhe and it took at least a minute to break it up.

During one play fullback Darrel Young bobbled and then dropped a pass. Defensive lineman Chris Baker could be heard off to the side yelling “Snake arms… there’s old snake arms.” This was apparently some pretty good motivation because a couple of plays later, Young and Baker were both on the field and the fullback helped open up a hole for running back Alfred Morris that Morris could have driven an M1 A1 Abrahms tank through.

Every year there is renewed hope all over the league as OTAs and minicamps get going. This year is no different for the Redskins. McCloughan made a point to bring in a certain type of guy ― football players to be sure but character guys as well ― that can not only improve the talent on the field but also the attitude in the locker room. Nose tackle Terrance Knighton is one of those guys.

“You know the Redskins wanted me and everything fell into place,” the former Denver Bronco said about deciding to come to Washington. “Ever since then I’ve just put my mind on winning and, you know, me being an experienced guy and playing in a Super Bowl and on a playoff team, I just try to spread my knowledge to the younger guys and show them the way it’s done.

“Very soon,” he continued when asked when he thought the Redskins could begin to win again. “Everybody just has to be on the same page. Everybody has to come together. Guys have to hang out on and off the field and everybody has to be selfless and do what it takes for the team. That’s something I learned in Denver. We had a lot of Pro Bowl guys but the thing was, everybody was on the same page… everybody had the same goal in mind. Nobody was worried about individual accolades. That will come with winning.”

OTAs certainly are not training camp nor are they the preseason. The players work in shells and shorts and there is no hard hitting. But they do serve a purpose. They can reveal a lot about a player. While the men are just beginning the process of getting into football shape, they are also learning play books and schemes and this gives coaches a chance to watch how a guy works and studies. Enthusiasm can be gaged as can the willingness to play special teams or even change positions.

Watching a wide receiver catch a long pass or a running back burst through an offensive line scrum and hit an open field during OTAs can be thrilling. To see a young up-and-coming cornerback stay with a veteran receiver as a play develops and then come up with an interception during 11-on-11 drills gives hope for the future. But in the same regard as OTAs help coaches assess a guy’s talents and on-field personality, big runs or great secondary coverage during this time can also be misleading. As gratifying as these things are to witness, the fact that things can change very quickly in the NFL must be remembered.