SB Nation - H.B. Blades

Hogs Haven Predicts Redskins Final 53

Ken Meringolo — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 15:32:30 -0000

More photos » by Pablo Martinez Monsivais - AP

Robert Henson and Cody Glenn may both benefit from being drafted by Vinny Cerrato. He HATES to cut players he drafts!

First, the obvious: Sugar has been shelved for the time being. I will be tackling a new writing assignment within SB Nation and I was asked to come up with a cooler name to write under. The best I could come up with was "Ken Meringolo". I know what you're thinking...sounds too much like an undercover secret agent of international intrigue. I guess you could say I followed the lead of one my heroes, Lt. Frank Drebin, and decided to use my maiden name.

Not that many tears (besides mine) will be shed over it, but Sugar will most assuredly be back. I will keep you guys posted on when and where my other writing assignments will end up. But on to the issues of the day.

Here is our crack at predicting the Redskins "Final 53". We have all been watching the preseason closely--there won't be many surprises. But we are picking a couple. Have at it (after the jump):

QB (3): Jason Campbell, Todd Collins, Colt Brennan

RB (5): Clinton Portis, Ladell Betts, Rock Cartwright, Mike Sellers, Anthony Alridge

WR (5): Santana Moss, Antwaan Randle El, Devin Thomas, Malcolm Kelly, Marko Mitchell

TE (3): Chris Cooley, Fred Davis, Todd Yoder

OL (9): Chris Samuels, Derrick Dockery, Casey Rabach, Randy Thomas, Stephon Heyer, Chad Rinehart, Mike Williams, Jeremy Bridges, Will Montgomery

DL (9): Phillip Daniels, Albert Haynesworth, Cornelius Griffin, Anthony Montgomery, Kedric Golston, Lorenzo Alexander, Andre Carter, Jeremy Jarmon, Rob Jackson

LB (7): London Fletcher, Rocky McIntosh, Brian Orakpo, H.B. Blades, Chris Wilson, Cody Glenn, Robert Henson

DB (9): Carlos Rogers, DeAngelo Hall, Fred Smoot, Kevin Barnes, Justin Tryon, LaRon Landry, Chris Horton, Reed Doughty, Kareem Moore

P: Hunter Smith

LS: Ethan Albright

K: Dave Rayner

I put Rob Jackson in over Renaldo Wynn, Robert Henson in over Robert Thomas, Rayner over Suisham, and Anthony Alridge in over whomever you want to call the 53rd man to make it.

Why do I continue to keep Renaldo Wynn off my final 53 list? If you think like me, then you think Wynn is not really a guy who is going to get a lot of snaps anyway unless there is an injury. Rob Jackson is still a little young and raw, and I have not heard his name a ton but if you are going to keep a guy around to caddy for the rest of the defensive linemen, why not keep a young guy who has a shot to develop into a serviceable backup instead of a guy at the end of his rope who has played all of his best football already? This is the pick I will most likely be wrong about, as Renaldo Wynn is a pro who knows how to play the game, and was brought in for his leadership and experience this offseason. But I had to stay true to what I have been saying this summer.

The Robert Henson/Cody Glenn/Robert Thomas decision at linebacker is a little more straight-forward. I think Cody Glenn is at the head of the 3-pack. The decision between Henson and Thomas is not so hard when you remember one thing: Vinny drafted Henson. He hates to be wrong about his draft picks. And lucky for him, he is in the position to pronounce his rightness! Henson has made a few mental blunders during games this preseason, and dropping that sure interception against the Ravens hurt him (coming out of TCU, he was actually graded as a sure-handed linebacker.) But in the end, the team will keep the guy they picked in the draft, and drop the guy they signed off the street. Regardless of who is better--though let's not make that out to be a huge deal. Neither Henson nor Thomas factors huge for us this season, and if Henson can figure out to stay on the field for special teams by mid-season, he will be worth the investment. Finally, it says here that Robert Henson will pull off an Alfred Fincher kind of performance against the Jags and earn the spot.

Anthony Alridge...really? Vinny brought him in this offseason and the word from the inside of the building is that Vinny loves him too much to let him go. What's not to love? He is one of those "yards-per-touch" guys. He is going to get the ball in the flat on screens, pitches, and dump-offs and he is going to get upfield in a hurry. I know Marcus Mason has been a fan favorite to make this squad multiple times, but the fact of the matter is he does not give us something we don't already have. Alridge gives us a scatback, speed option off the bench that will prove very useful this season.

I went with Rayner over Suisham even though there seems to be a resounding consensus that Suisham will retain his position. I FEEL LIKE I AM TAKING CRAZY PILLS! How do you hold any benefit of the doubt in a kicking competition when you were last in the league in field goal percentage? Rayner has had the better kickoff leg and neither has blown the roof off with their field goals. If anything, I would be tempted to keep Rayner and then bring in either Mike Nugent (Tampa Bay Buccaneers) or Brandon Coutu (Seattle Seahawks)--helps to watch every preseason game!--to compete with Rayner in the week leading up to the regular season. Coutu has a good chance to make the Seahawks' roster, but if he doesn't, we wouldn't be the only ones trying to sign him.

Practice Squad Predictions: Edwin Williams, Scott Burly, Keith Eloi, Robbie Agnone, Chase Daniel, Eddie Williams

WaTimes 53-man roster [Redskins 360]
WaPost 53-man roster [Redskins Insider]
Redskins Blog [Terl took his link down...I swore it was there?]

What do you guys think?

Poll

Which player that I put in do you think is most likely NOT to make the team?

Robert Henson

113 votes

Anthony Alridge

226 votes

Rob Jackson

263 votes

602 votes | Poll has closed

Washington Redskins Draft: Youth Movement Continues To Be Served

Ken Meringolo — Mon, 27 Apr 2009 20:00:14 -0000

More photos » by Frank Franklin II - AP

8 months ago: Brian Orakpo, right, a defensive end from Texas, holds up a jersey with NFL commissioner Roger Goodell, after the Washington Redskins selected him 13th overall in the first round of the NFL Draft at Radio City Music Hall Saturday, April 25, 2009, in New York. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)

Browse more photos »

Another draft in the books. The endless debate on how teams did this past weekend begins. The Skins simply had little to work with in this draft, an altogether too common occurrence in recent years. In the second tour of duty for Joe Gibbs, a re-emphasis on the draft--or at least a more serious focus on the kinds of players you bring into town--was seemingly established. This is not to say the Redskins are a team that will rely solely on the draft. They continue to prove that they believe in aggressive free agency activity. But Dan Snyder's word that they would not trade next year's #1 was upheld. And finally, a top pick was used to draft a highly touted defensive lineman. I have been a broken record since the end of Round 2 in last year's draft. Mostly for my own sanity's sake, I agreed to be okay with drafting 2 WR's and a TE all in the 2nd round of one draft as long as in the next draft, they used their highest pick(s) on linemen. Offensive, defensive, don't care. I thought that since it takes receivers longer to adjust to the pros than linemen (especially defensive linemen), why not get at least one or two pass catchers into the program and learning and then bring some OL/DL studs into the fold.

This draft will be judged by the performance of Brian Orakpo on the field. But before we get there, let's celebrate the refreshing nature of identifying an impact defensive lineman, and then when the chance to actually select him fell into our lap, we did not overthink it or get cute.

KevinE thinks we did a B- in this draft. I have a hard time giving the Skins anything worse than that. To me, Cody Glenn, Robert Henson and Eddie Williams are exactly the kinds of players you have to take in the late rounds because everything you read and watch about them suggests they love playing football. They better. Because they won't be getting any mega-deal to sign. They won't be on the cover of any video games. And they won't be on the tips of anyone's tongues in debates leading up to the regular season. But their contribution could be significant. And since Vinny drafted 'em, Vinny ain't cutting them. So they will get a chance.

Let's say Vinny learned his lesson last season and won't keep every single guy he drafted this weekend. For argument's sake, we'll cut Marko Mitchell just because he was the last guy picked. Then let's take a look at the list of current Redskins who were born in 1983 or later (rough cutoff date plucked that keeps the list at or around 25/26 years old).

Lorenzo Alexander, DT
Anthony Alridge, RB
H.B. Blades, LB
Colt Brennan, QB
Alex Buzbee, DE
Devin Clark, OL
Fred Davis, TE
Dominique Dorsey, RB
Alfred Fincher, LB
Kedric Golston, DT
Michael Grant, S
DeAngelo Hall, CB
Stephon Heyer, OL
Chris Horton, S
Rob Jackson, DE
Malcolm Kelly, WR
LaRon Landry, S
Anthony Montgomery, DT
Will Montgomery, OL
Kareem Moore, S
Rueben Riley, OL
Chad Rinehart, OL
Devin Thomas, WR
Justin Tryon, CB

Chris Wilson, Rocky McIntosh, Chris Cooley and Dave Rayner would be guys that just missed being on this list (1982) but we will include them anyway. If you add in Orakpo, Barnes, Glenn, Henson, and Williams, and--again, for argument's sake--knock out Alridge, Dorsey, Grant, and Riley, we have a total of 27 players on the Redskins roster all in that 25/26/27 age range. That is over half of the opening day roster. And the overwhelming majority of these players were drafted here in Washington. Looking up and down the list, there is a healthy mix of first-class talent, starters that make strong contributions, role players, and guys we still don't know anything about.

I feel like this is an area that the Skins have been lambasted for in recent years. This list includes young offensive and defensive linemen, a young group of receivers/tight ends, role players in the secondary and special teams, and now a stud defensive end that should start right away. We just might be on to something here. This is a promising core group of players.

They say you can't grade a draft for 3 years. I will refrain from getting too high or low based on our picks this past weekend, but it seems to me that guys we have been drafting in the last few years are sticking around. Last week I mentioned that it was possible Vinny is learning on the job. The movement to make this team younger each year seems to be paying off. The next step is getting these young bucks on the field. Rinehart, Thomas, Davis, Kelly, Heyer...we have to see what they can do on the field this year. It is coming time for this list to have a higher percentage of starters on it.

Chris Wilson Moving to Strong Side Linebacker

KevinE — Fri, 24 Apr 2009 13:13:50 -0000

Chris Wilson was on Doc Walker and Kevin Sheehan's 'The Locker Room,' yesterday talking about Chris's move from DE to Linebacker. I paraphrased the interview below, or you can listen to it in full here.

Doc: Chris, you're moving away from the line to linebacker. Are you OK with this?

Chris: Hey, it enables me to be on the field more often which is what I want.

Doc: Have you played linebacker in HS or college before?

Chris: Oh yea. I've played linebacker in High School, college, and Canada.

Doc: OK GOOD! I can sleep tonight. You attack the QB so well from the line and I'd hate to see the Skins move a player away from their natural position. But if you've played it before, then I have no problems with that.

Doc: Who approached who about making the switch? Blache or did you ask?

Chris: KO (Kirk Olivadotti) talked to me. We want to try this early before mid-season. If it doesn't work...then I could go back to DE. I'll still get to the QB...it just makes me and the D more versatile.

Doc: What linebacker position would you play? Stud?

Chris: I'd play Stud LB (over the TE).

Doc: Tight ends are 6'5 260 coming off the ball. Can you deal with that?

Chris: I'm used to huge guys coming off the line.

They cut Chris loose at this point, but Doc was more than satisfied Chris could make this adjustment.

Doc: This is a whole new skillset which worried me at first, but the fact he has played LB before in HS and college relieves me. I like it.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

This makes the Sanchez rumors a lot stronger, eh? Chris went to Northwood University, which is located in Michigan. He played for the British Columbia Lions in the CFL and was part of the defensive line the year they won the Grey Cup in 2006.

Image via cache.gettyimages.com

Poll

Do you like Chris Wilson moving to SLB?

Yes

362 votes

No

44 votes

406 votes | Poll has closed

Arizona Cardinals at Washington: Injury Update

cgolden — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 12:00:10 -0000

We took our first look at the injuries heading into Sunday's game yesterday, and while there is some good news, there's also some bad news for the Arizona Cardinals. The good news is that Gabe Watson participated in a full practice for the second day in a row and there's a real possibility that he could make his debut this week. While I'm sure he's not ready to start or play most of the game, having him for even 10 or 15 plays will be a big boost to the front seven and more importantly the defensive line rotation. Alan Branch isn't even listed on the injury report and having both of those guys back will put an anchor back in the middle of the defense. The bad news though is that Travis LaBoy didn't practice at all, after being limited in practice yesterday. It's not clear whether he regressed and his ankle got worse or if they were just holding him out to make sure that he didn't put any extra work on a bad leg. We'll see what he's able to do today and update tomorrow. Others on the injury list who were limited: Levi Brown (knee) and Steve Breaston (hamstring). Jerame Tuman (hamstring) was again held out of practice and he will not play this Sunday.

As for the Redskins, HB Blades (knee), Malcolm Kelly (ankle), Fred Smoot (hip), James Thrash (ankle) all returned to practice on a limited basis yesterday after not practicing at all on Wednesday. Khary Campbell (thigh) was again limited and London Fletcher didn't practice at all after being limited on Wednesday (although they listed it as 'coaches decision'). Kareem Moore (hamstring), Carlos Rogers (groin), Jason Taylor (knee) and Marcus Washington (hamstring) all returned to full practice after being limited on Wednesday.

Key Matchups for the Cardinals @ Redskins game

Skin Patrol — Thu, 18 Sep 2008 15:56:58 -0000

Back to actual (rather than theoretical) football. My sincerest apologies for selfishly not posting much besides this massive nerdfest. I write a near 5,000 word essay on the two point conversion and the extra point and, typically, think it's more interesting than it is. I just couldn't bring myself to bump it.

Fortunately I am bringing to you someone who is knowledgeable about actual football in particular his Arizona Cardinals. cgolden of Revenge of the Birds graciously agreed to exchange content for the upcoming game. This will be a nice change of pace from the typical 5 Questions, as cgolden suggested we do key matchups and I feel the format worked out quite well. He also just posted a helpful injury summary for the upcoming game here. I steal stuff:

Washington Redskins: The Skins have a few more players dinged up with London Fletcher (rib) and Marcus Washington (hamstring), Carlos Rogers (groin) and Jason Taylor (knee) limited in practice. Malcolm Kelly (ankle) and James Thrash (ankle), H.B. Blades (knee) and Fred Smoot (hip), did not practice but most are still expected to play this Sunday.

He is good at blogging.

Enjoy this:

Match-up #1: Redskins secondary vs. Cardinals WRs

Master of Universe: Advantage: Cardinals - No shame in admitting that there's no good way to deal with Larry Fitzgerald and Anquan Boldin. Last week: 12 receptions, 293 yards, 3 touchdowns. Shawn Springs I don't worry so much about, but this is way above Carlos Rogers' pay grade. The good news is rookie Chris Horton, who both looked phenomenal last week and may or may not retain the starting position vacated briefly by a sick Reed Doughty [ED NOTE: Ben says naw, he's usually righteous which is to say correct]. Boldin and Fitzgerald, at least in this young season, are very much playing two impossibly difficult to cover roles. Boldin, despite being the shorter of the two, plays the reliable favored son, who moves chains at will. His three touchdowns are tops in the league and his impossibly high 78+% 1st down catch rate is about as high as anyone else. Fitzgerald, as stated, is a physical monster but somehow also is the speed demon get behind you receiver. His 20.4 YPC is remarkable, especially when one considers he's done most of it on 20-40 yard receptions, meaning he's consistently down the field catching footballs. Four of his nine receptions were +20 yards.

Merely extremely talented Cardinal blogger who knows much (more than I) about football but has yet to master universe: Advantage: Cardinals - I don't know that there's a secondary in this league that I'd say had an advantage over Boldin, Fitzgerald and company, but I will say that I had to at least think about this one. Shawn Springs may not be what he once was but when he's paired with Carlos Rogers and Fred Smoot, you've got a solid trio of corner backs. When you add in one of the best young safeties in the league, LaRon Landry and rookie Chris Horton who had a great game last week, they're a formidable secondary. As solid as a secondary may be though when Warner is playing like he has the past two games and Fitzgerald and Boldin are catching everything in sight, the passing game is hard to contain.

Match-up #2: Redskins pass rush vs. Cardinals offensive line

Hogs Haven: Advantage: Redskins - I don't know enough about the Cardinals offensive line to really comment, so I'll just rant on the Redskins. At four sacks the 'Skins are good but not great so far. Jason Taylor is a big name with one sack so far, which is again, good but not great. Andre Carter and Cornelius Griffin round out a solid unit with the combo of Golston/Montgomery closing it out. As I'm of the opinion that Montgomery is probably the most underrated lineman on the team, I feel good at all positions. That said, who knows to what degree these guys remain healthy (or healthy enough; Taylor isn't long removed from injury)? This front downgrades subtantially when Demetric Evans is in for either Taylor or Carter. The emphasis will be the pass rush, since the Cardinals haven't looked so hot running the ball thus far.

cgolden: Advantage: Redskins - The Redskins have some formidable edge pass rushers in Jason Taylor and Andre Carter and Cornelius Griffin has been decent at providing some pressure up the middle. The turning point of this game could be whether or not the Skins are able to put pressure on Warner with their front four or if they'll have to blitz to get in his face. The Dolphins tried to blitz last week and they got burned numerous times. Warner is very capable of recognizing the blitz and standing in the pocket just long enough to deliver the pass. If Taylor and Carter are able to be get around Levi Brown and Mike Gandy, if could be a long day for the Cards.

Match-up #3: Redskins receivers vs. Cardinals secondary

Hogs Haven: Advantage: Unknown - We've been simultaneously blessed and cursed with receivers in Washington. In 2005 Santana Moss put together one of the best receiving performances in the history of the franchise. In 2007 it took us like 10 weeks to get a receiver with a touchdown. Antwaan Randle El has developed much as a receiver over the past few years even as he's totally forgotten how to return punts. The real question is who plays that #3 spot, and we've got a pair of rookies dueling with James Thrash for that right. I have to think the rookies are better in the long run but, so far, due to injury and Thomas and Kelly halfassing it apparently, Thrash is the guy. Chris Cooley should be the gameplan focus of the Cardinals. The Cardinals' pass defense is playing very well so far, although I don't know how much of that is due exclusively to their secondary. In any event, because the Redskins' receivers --passing game in general-- are so Jekyll and Hyde, there's no telling how this one plays out.

CG: Advantage: Redskins - This is a tough match-up to judge because the Cardinals corner backs haven't been tested much this season, but Santana Moss, Antwaan Randle El and company should be a nice measuring stick. If Jason Campbell looks like the quarterback of week 2 instead of week 1, the Skins might be able to stretch the field and open up the underneath for Chris Cooley. The Cardinals secondary isn't star studded but they do have some talent and depth. Adrian Wilson and Karlos Dansby will likely be relied upon to limit Chris Cooley while Antrel Rolle will have to keep Moss from getting deep. If Campbell has time in the pocket, they've got enough weapons to give the Cardinals some problems.

Match-up #4: Cardinals pass rush vs. Redskins OL

Hogs Haven: Advantage: Redskins - I was terrified of our O-Line coming into the season with Jansen who, for many years was painted on our starting roster, lost his job to Stephon Heyer. He looked shaky, if only briefly, in our first game. But this O-Line is playing good football, having given up just three sacks, which is very above average especially having played the Giants (though they were limited by injury). In pass protection I'm more worried about Campbell holding on to the ball too long than I am them not giving him the time to make plays down the field. Our yards per carry (4.2) is good, nothing special, but we've done it without breaking big runs. Our running game and Arizona's running defense meet halfway, although they're a little better so far. The fun thing to watch will be their pass rush, which has generated 6 sacks and probably accounted for much of their success against the pass so far. I worry about the blitz, but the Cardinals will find that Clinton Portis is one of the best blitz pick up backs in the league. Someone will be eaten, mark my words.

CG: Advantage: Cardinals - The Redskins only gave up one sack to the Giants in week one but they really haven't faced a team that blitzes as much as the Cardinals yet. The Cardinals pulled back the intensity last week once they jumped out by three scores, but they put constant pressure on the Niners in week 1. The Skins line is full of experienced veterans but the Cardinals will be coming from every direction on Sunday. Clancy Pendergast has a plethora of pass rushers and he's had some creative ways of getting them all on the field in various situations. Campbell will have to keep his head on a swivel and make sure that he gets rid of the ball quickly.

You should definitely check out his post because he has like pictures imbedded comfortably into the side of his content. It's amazing. And they are topical. When they was picking people to run websites on this network, reader(s) here definitely got jobbed.

Regarding the Cardinals, this ain't your daddy's team (which is to say, this isn't the team we've beaten 62% of the time in like 120 games -- did you know the Cardinals have scored 2,206 points against us? WTF, mate?) now sitting 2-0 atop the weakest division in football. While I'm unwilling to admit the Cards have been tested, they've done what good teams are supposed to do against bad teams which is: win convincingly. Their DVOA is strong.

Just got off the phone with a friend (who is tortured over which two of Chad Johnson, Steve Smith, and Santana Moss to start) and the meme was that I had no useful information to provide regarding Mos because: The Cardinals are a team I don't know much about and indeed not much is to be known about them given their schedule thus far. This is a good team that has beaten two historically (don't take that term too literally) bad teams. I believe it is a good defense but don't know for sure.

Will soon.

Arizona Cardinals at Washington Redskins: Injury Update

cgolden — Thu, 18 Sep 2008 14:45:03 -0000

Considering all of the major injuries that some teams have faced, the Cardinals and Redskins should consider themselves quite lucky. The Cardinals are getting more able bodies back by the day and it's possible that the defensive line could be at full strength this Sunday for the first time since April. Here's a complete rundown for both teams.

Arizona Cardinals: The best news is that Gabe Watson participated in a full practice for the first time since fracturing his knee cap in April. It's still unknown if he'll play this week but regardless, it's encouraging to see the big man back in action. Other minor injuries includes Levi Brown (knee), Travis LaBoy (ankle) and Steve Breaston (hamstring) who were limited but are all expected to play on Sunday. Jerame Tuman is still out of practice and isn't expected to make his first appearance of the season this Sunday.

Washington Redskins: The Skins have a few more players dinged up with London Fletcher (rib) and Marcus Washington (hamstring), Carlos Rogers (groin) and Jason Taylor (knee) limited in practice. Malcolm Kelly (ankle) and James Thrash (ankle), H.B. Blades (knee) and Fred Smoot (hip), did not practice but most are still expected to play this Sunday.