Well Redskins fans, we can all cheer – Redskins football is back!
Now I know that it’s just preseason, but for me there was a certain air of excitement and anticipation surrounding the start of this preseason, more so than usual. I felt it as I watched the game. I felt it as I read tweets from fans. It might be because the Washington Redskins are defending NFC East Champions, and with that comes more excitement as each team aims to dismantle the champs. Or it could be because Redskins fans are particularly passionate about their team.
Either way, let’s take a look at the Redskins players whose stocks have risen and fallen after the first preseason game.
On the Rise:
Kirk Cousins – In his first preseason game with the first team, he was very accurate and made smart decisions with the ball. He also showed his patience as he took what the defense gave him and did not force the throws. If he keeps this up all preseason, he will prove to everyone who doubted the pick that it was a smart decision by Morocco Brown and Mike Shanahan.
Roy Helu – Helu showed in this game that he is completely healthy and that he has had no set back. He showed his decisiveness in finding the open hole and cutting up field and getting to the next level. He needs to play at this level the entire pre-season or he could lose his job as the third down back to one of the rookie running backs Shanahan drafted.
David Amerson – Amerson is the guy who surprised me the most in this game. He played really well and was able to stay with a healthy Kenny Britt, which is hard to do even for a veteran, let alone a rookie. He was physical playing bump-and-run, I really loved his physicality, had great jump on the ball, and read the quarterback well. If he plays like this all preseason and then progresses, he could easily take Josh Wilson’s spot as the second DB.
Fred Davis – Fred showed in this game that his Achilles’ is all healed up. He was getting open a lot, and was catching the ball. I came into this game worried about his Achilles’, but he put those to rest.
And now for the man who set Redskins Nation and the Twitter World on fire – Pat White (yes, really, Pat White). Now I will admit I even fell for how well he did, and even tweeted he needed to make the team, but all joking aside he did play really well and lead the Redskins to a win in Tennessee. He made smart decisions, ran when the play broke down, and drove the team down the field for the win. Now Redskins fans, let’s remember that he was going against third and fourth string players who probably won’t be on the team come September, but I do think he moves up the depth chart over Rex.
Chase Minnifield – He played so physically and jumped routes, making very good decisions. With Minnifield stepping up and Crawford playing well, he has made a case on the Redskins keeping six DB’s.
Falling Stock:
Rex Grossman – Let me start by saying that even though he did really poorly in this game, he most likely won’ t be cut because he knows the system really well and helps with the development of our young QB’s. With that said, if you watched the game you would be asking “why is he still on the team?” My thoughts exactly. He threw off his back foot almost every single time, and it seemed like he had more incompletions than completions. He just looked bad.
Evan Royster – Royster did nothing to help his stock out at all, as he didn’t have a rush over six yards. He just looked slow. It looked like he wasn’t trying to win a roster spot, despite there being five running backs on this team and there will only be three likely to stay. Luckily none of the other rookies played so we really couldn’t make a comparison.
Baccari Rambo – Now I only say this because all of the things being said and written about Rambo were so high that I was a little bit let down to be honest. His angles weren’t as good as they could have been, and he wasn’t where he should have been at times. Now these are common mistake that rookies will make so I am not holding a lot of this against him. At the end of the day it hurt his stock – barely.
Aldrick Robinson – Coming out of camp, RGIII and coaches talked about Robinson being the “superstar” of camp. He dropped a ball that should be caught every single time it’s thrown. He was a non-factor in this game.
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