Road To Recovery: A 12-Step Program to Fix The Washington Redskins

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The 2010 Washington Redskins season is, mercifully, about to end.

The first season of the Shanahan era will go down as a largely confused one. The team had a franchise quarterback, then it didn’t. The team seemed to make peace with Haynesworth, then it didn’t. The 3-4 defense seemed to work, then it didn’t.

The one thing that we can be certain of is that the team’s primary leadership in the Shanahans, Jim Haslett and Bruce Allen will almost certainly be back for 2011.

Though it’s nice to have some stability in Washington for a change, it’s difficult to get behind this regime era of confusion.

That said, for the team to continue to improve its vertical first offense and aggressive 3-4 blitzing defense, some things will need to be done.

12. Add Veteran Depth at Key Positions, Especially Left Tackle

Stephon Heyer finally needs to be replaced.
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Every year, there are players released from their teams who may be beat up and have lost a step, making them unworthy of their large contracts but whom still have a year or two of good football left in them.

Their veteran presence can do wonders in the locker room, and they can surprise by playing well in reserve roles.

Likewise, every year these players are routinely ignored by the so-called experts around the NFL. They ignore these guys until they’re desperate to replace an injured starter, thinking they’ve outwitted the rest of the league with some sneaky rookie free agent signing.

This doesn’t count retread players like the Redskins signings of Joey Galloway and Willie Parker, both of whom were old guys playing at speed positions who were clearly no longer anywhere close to fast.

Washington should look to grab a couple of these deposed veterans throughout the offseason to shore up depth at key spots, such as left tackle. The best player available is Stephon Heyer, who couldn’t start for a UFL team.

Redskins nation saw the success of this in 2009 when Levi Jones filled in adequately for the injured Hall of Famer Chris Samuels.

11. Stabilize the Kicking Situation

Gano has been consistently inconsistent.
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The Redskins have tried numerous different things over the last several years to improve their situation at kicker and punter…all but what they should be doing.

The vast majority of kickers and punters around the league are found in training camp competitions as young, unproven players. Once established as solid players, they seldom move unless they age past their prime or get a case of the shanks.

In the last several years, Washington has had leftover kickers like Graham Gano and a string of injuries at punter due to signing beat up vets at the spot.

Instead, Washington needs to sign the best young players they can and let them battle it out for the position. While this will cost the Shanahans a couple of extra roster spots during training camp, this time-proven technique will hopefully let the team solidify the positions.

Washington can snag the best rookie free agents from the NCAA by simply throwing open the position: What’s more attractive to a college player, kicking behind an established player, or having a legitimate chance to win a starting job?

10. Add Younger System Players on the Defensive Line

Eric Moore has experience with the 3-4 in New England, and that can help the Redskins.
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The Redskins opened the 2010 season with a lot of aging, busted up veterans on their defensive line including Philip Daniels, Ma’ake Kemoeatu and Vonnie Holliday.

Though the team did the best it could in re-establishing their front four as a front three, the team needs to make equally aggressive moves at the spot this offseason.

Daniels and Holliday should be let go. Kemoeatu could be a valuable backup at nose tackle, but can no longer be considered a legitimate starter (more on the nose tackle later).

The team did a solid job in rehabbing former first round busts Adam Carriker and Anthony Bryant into legitimate players for the future. Likewise, Jeremy Jarmon continues to get better and will with added weight and mussle.

With the 3-4 becoming the wave of the future around the league, Washington should look to grab some lower-paid system players from successful 3-4 defenses around the league.

Players like Eric Moore from New England could go a long way towards speeding up the learning curve in Washington.

The Redskins should also look to add a late round developmental player at the position.

9. Challenge Lorenzo Alexander at Outside Linebacker & Add Depth

Ben Leber could be a great addition on the outside for the Redskins
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Washington made a mistake in attempting to convert Andre Carter back to a 3-4 linebacker. This experiment had been tried in San Francisco, and failed miserably.

He’s a 4-3 defensive end, pure and simple.

Lorenzo Alexander has taken over for Carter at the spot. Alexander is a former defensive tackle who converted to end and then eventually to linebacker. He is a valuable utility player who can also play on special teams and has a place on this team.

Alexander could improve to become a solid starter, but the team needs to add a player to challenge him should Alexander not progress as well as the team would like.

There’s plenty of 3-4 strongside linebackers who are becoming available. Players like Mike Vrabel from Kansas City, Ben Leber from Minnesota (who played in the 3-4 in San Diego) and Kevin Burnett from San Diego could contribute right away at the spot, and also lend valuable experience in the 3-4 defense.

The team also needs to bring back valuable backup H.B. Blades to shore up the two middle spots and Chris Wilson to back up Brian Orakpo on the opposite side.

8. Replace Casey Rabach

Olin Kreutz still has some good football left in him
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Rabach has been the team’s starting center for the last several years. He’s a gritty, gutty, wily veteran whose better years have passed. Though he still makes good calls as the leader of the line, The Shanahan Offense works best with a more athletic offensive lineman, and Rabach is anything but at this point.

Ideally, the Redskins should look at signing a free agent who can fill in for a year or two and draft a player late who they could eventually develop to take over the starting job.

Teams rarely let go of good centers in their prime, since all but the very best at the position tend to be underpaid compared to their left tackle counterparts.

Olin Kreutz from the Bears is currently slated to be a free agent, and though he is getting on in years, he is still a solid starter in the league. David Baas from the 49ers also has an expiring contract and has a history with Redskins line coach Chris Foerster.

Rabach could be kept to establish depth at the position, especially since he has a history of playing guard in his earlier years.

7. Upgrade at Guard

Logan Mankins is slated to be the top guard available in free agency
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2010 has proven one thing for the Washington Redskins at the guard position: The team has great depth at the position, but no front-line starter.

Indeed, Kory Lichtensteiger and Artis Hicks were backups when they came to Washington and proved that they remain so.

Deposed starter Derrick Dockery has all been but run out of town by the Shanahans. Center/Guard Will Montgomery continues to be mediocre and ultimately needs to be replaced.

Washington can snag a top-line guard in free agency in Logan Mankins. If Mankins proves too costly or simply won’t come to Washington, other available names include Evan Mathis from the Bengals, Deuce Lutui from the Cardinals and Tony Ugoh from Detroit.

With a top-line free agent in place, the Redskins should then grab a bargain bin player with experience, someone like Max Jean-Gilles or Nick Cole from Philadelphia, and then select a developmental guard late in the draft.

Artis Hicks could then backup at both right guard and tackle, making him a valuable utility player, and Lichtensteiger can play both guard spots from the bench.

6. Add a Change of Pace Speed Back

Leon Washington could contribute right away for the Redskins
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2010 has brought Washington their next back of the future in Ryan Torain and also established a decent backup in Keiland Williams.

What Washington does not have, and has ostensibly been searching for for years up to and including the signing of Willie Parker in 2010, is a third down speed back who can stretch a defense horizontally and catch the ball out of the backfield.

This player would ideally be able to contribute on special teams, including returning kickoffs as a backup to the now established returner Brandon Banks.

Though Banks himself could potentially fill this role, the team should look to add a player like San Diego’s Mike Tolbert or Seattle’s Leon Washington to diversify its backfield.

5. Augment Mike Sellers

John Kuhn is the perfect Redskins big back: bruising and athletic
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Likewise with the speed back, Washington needs to look to upgrade at its fullback position.

Mike Sellers has been with the team for years and has proven to be an adept blocker and special teams threat. Though aging, he still has a year or two left of good football in him.

What he was never great at is carrying the ball, and he’s lost a step recently, making that even worse.

The Redskins need to grab a short-yardage bruiser who can block and also assist on special teams. Green Bay’s John Kuhn would be perfect for this job.

At 6’2, 260, Kuhn has the body size to pound the line and the athletic ability to run downfield on coverage units.

4. Sign Champ Bailey, If Available

Bring Bailey back to Washington as a free safety
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Washington has been looking for a free safety to replace the late Sean Taylor since No. 21’s untimely death in 2007. Who better than another former Redskin great in Champ Bailey?

Bailey is 32 years old and is looking for a new contract that Denver, in full rebuilding mode, is likely not to pay. Bailey has lost a step, but remains one of the best defensive backs in the game.

Transitioning to free safety, like former NFL great Rod Woodson, would make a lot of sense for Bailey at this point in his career. It would extend his NFL shelf life several years and likely ensure his place in Canton.

In an aggressive blitzing defense like Washington’s, a free safety with significant coverage skills is essential. Given the need, given Bailey’s history with the Redskins and the elder Shanahan, given the good sense it makes for the player to make the transition, this deal should be a no-brainer.

If not Bailey, the team needs to look for a veteran free safety, like Tom Zbikowski from Baltimore or Darren Sharper from New Orleans.

3. Fix The Problem at Wide Receiver

Rashied Davis would be a great addition to the Redskins wide receiver corps.
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Washington’s offense calls for deep progressions first: The quarterback has to wait for players to get 15+ yards deep, then work their way back towards the line of scrimmage to find an open receiver.

This puts the premium on two things when it comes to Washington’s offense: a strong offensive line up front and speed at the receiver position.

The former was discussed earlier.

The Redskins have good intermediate threats in tight ends Chris Cooley and Fred Davis, neither of whom have seen the ball much due to the poor play in the center of the offensive line. Both should be more involved in 2011 with improved play up front.

The Redskins have a good starting receiver in Santana Moss and a good backup in Anthony Armstrong.  What they need at receiver is simply…more.

Ideally, the team needs to grab a No. 1 receiver in free agency, someone like San Diego’s Vincent Jackson.

But free agency at this point is a mixed bag, with aging players like Randy Moss and Terrell Owens, as well as busts like Braylon Edwards and Mark Clayton and jailbird Plaxico Burress.

The team can not afford a top draft pick this year to develop a wide receiver, and rookie receivers seldom have any sort of impact early on anyway.

If a No. 1 receiver isn’t available, Washington should go with quantity over quality and sign players like Chicago’s Rashied Davis and Arizona’s Steve Breaston, both verteran speedsters who can improve the team right away.

2. Add a Top-Flight Nose Tackle

Chris Hoke is the type of gritty nose tackle the Redskins need
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The nose tackle is the heart and soul of the 3-4 defense.

Set directly in front of the opposing center, the nose tackle’s primary responsibilities include locking down the center of the line to prevent the opposing offense from running up and down the field at will.

A large part of the Redskins ineptitude with the 3-4 this season is the lack of a strong presence at the position.

For some reason, Haynesworth was considered for this spot. But the nose tackle is a disciplined line clogger; Haynesworth is anything but. Even a blind man should have seen that wouldn’t work.

Washington needs to hit this one from both sides: sign a top-flight free agent like Chris Hoke from Pittsburgh as well as drafting a player high to man the spot.

Though the team has a lack of mid-round choices, it still has a second round choice it can use on the spot.

1. Solve The Quarterback Situation

Jake Locker can be the quarterback of the future in Washington
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One thing is for sure: Donovan McNabb and the Washington Redskins will soon part ways. In order to avoid this season’s drama at the position, the Shanahans should come at this from a number of different directions.

First, it’s clear that Rex Grossman should be brought back. The Shanahans are comfortable with him, and he knows the system. Grossman remains a backup only though, and should not be considered a candidate for starter.

Second, the team should also bring back John Beck. Beck is a former second round choice who seems to have gotten a raw deal everywhere he’s been. Given the chance to play, he could succeed in giving the Redskins a young player at the quarterback spot.

Third, Washington should take a chance on Matt Leinart. Leinart performed well in Arizona this past preseason, but simply wasn’t a good fit with Ken Wisenhunt, who didn’t like the former Heisman Winner’s California Cool attitude.

Leinart could be just the player Washington needs.

Fourth, the team should trade back in the first round and draft Jake Locker. Once considered the top player in the 2011 NFL Draft, Locker seemed to plateau his senior season and has dropped to the lower end of the first round. He’s got the skill set and can make all the throws.

In addition, trading back from a likely Top 10 pick would allow the team to stockpile some much-needed later round choices while still coming away with a potential quarterback of the future.

With these four players signed, the imperative then becomes narrowing the field to two before the start of training camp to allow the potential starters to get enough reps before the season starts.

The Shanahans will have to plan their mini-camps and OTAs carefully, as well as encourage their four quarterbacks to do as much as possible on their own.

Whichever of these quarterbacks are willing to spend the time are the most likely to succeed.