Roster Down to 53 Today

With the start of the season only a week away, the Redskins finally have to decide who is coming into the season with them, and who is going to get sent packing.

There were several people fighting for their jobs throughout training camp, but it seems like it's fairly obvious what the team is going to look like. There are always surprises, and I'm by no means an expert on this stuff at all, but this is what I think it's going to look like.

3 Spots: Special Teamers (50 left) The easiest spots to give away are the special teamers. Punter Hunter Smith and long snapper Ethan Albright had their spots locked up when training camp started, but the kickers had to fight for it. The fight was clinched Friday night by Shawn Suisham when he nailed 48 yard field goal against the Jaguars. Hopefully he can keep it up all season.

On the offensive side, I used some detective skills to find out from Jason Reid that Vinny Cerrato plans to keep 25 plays on offense. That makes choosing these guys a little less difficult.

3 Spots: Quarterback (47 left) Jason Campbell will start for his second full year in Jim Zorn's offense, and Todd Collins will be right behind him if anything unfortunate were to happen to him. Colt Brennan and Chase Daniel have been slugging it out all offseason, but with growing concerns over injuries and erratic play in the red zone, Brennan will be on the outside looking in. He may be kept on the team, however, if they decide to put him on the injured reserve list, which would end his season.

4 Spots: Running Back (43 left) Clinton Portis and Ladell Betts are going to have to work together real well for this team to go anywhere, but they're the one-two punch for this team; atleast for now. Marcus Mason should be kept on the team, and could challenge Betts for playing time as the season progresses. Rock Cartwright will be returning as well as a key contributor on special teams.

1 Spot: Full Back (42 left) Mike Sellers, enough said.

5 Spots: Wide Receiver (37 left) It looks like Santana Moss and Malcolm Kelly will be the starters, and with good reason. Moss is a beast, and Kelly has shown that he is determined to get in the starting spot and keep it. Randle El will work the slot, and Devin Thomas should be a big deep threat. The fifth spot goes to my man Marko Mitchell, who I've been watching all offseason. He's shown up in all the preseason games, but he'll have to keep working hard to have it carry over to the regular season.

3 Spots: Tight End (34 left) Chris Cooley should be making another trip to the Pro Bowl this year. Fred Davis has performed well during the preseason, but still makes mental errors. Todd Yoder is a consummate professional and will help this teams a lot on special teams.

9 Spots: Offensive Line (25 left for defense) The starting unit is set (from left to right): Chris Samuels, Derrick Dockery, Casey Rabach, Randy Thomas, Stephon Heyer. There were a lot of questions about this unit entering the season, and they came out and performed above expectations. The big concern now is what happens if any of these guys go down. The primary backup will be Jeremy Bridges, with Chad Rhinehart right behind him. The last two spots I struggled with, but it'll probably be Will Montgomery and Mike Williams. Montgomery has shown the ability to play center and guard, something line coach, Joe Bugel, loves. Williams is on, well, because there's really no one else.

4 Spots: Safety (21 left) The team didn't bring anyone new in to challenge for these spots because they are stacked as it is. Laron Landry and Chris Horton will be the starters, but Reed Doughty and Kareem Moore should see plenty of playing time since the team loves playing three safeties.

5 Spots: Cornerback (16 left) This unit could make or break the defense. DeAngelo Hall and Carlos Rogers will be the starters, but after them there are several big question marks. Fred Smoot isn't getting any younger, but Justin Tryon and rookie Kevin Barnes may be too young. These three will have to step up their games with the season finally here, or pass happy offenses will pick right through them.

9 Spots: Defensive Line (7 Left) The starters upfront will undoubtedly be Phillip Daniels, Albert Haynesworth, Cornelius Griffin and Andre Carter. These guys should be monsters this season, especially since they can stay fresh while defensive coordinator Greg Blatche rotates several proven players off the bench. Renaldo Wynn, Kedric Golston, Anthony Montgomery, Lorenzo Alexander and rookie Jeremy Jarmon make up that list, and should all be ready for plenty of playing time.

2 Spots: DE/LB Hybrid (5 Left) I wasn't sure where to put either of these guys, so they get their own category. Rookie Brian Orakpo is going to dominate from defensive end, and he seems to be making strides at linebacker so expect him to be on the field a lot this season. Chris Wilson also made the switch from defensive end to linebacker, and has made the switch look easy. He's still extremely fast off the edge, and has the speed and agility to stay with players in coverage.

5 Spots: Linebacker (Can I have your playbook?) London Fletcher and Rocky McIntosh will be on the field the most, starting along side Brian Orakpo. H.B. Blades is very reliable, and will be the first guy off the bench if anyone needs a breather. Robert Thomas will stay on the team as a trusted veteran. The last spot will go to a rookie linebacker, and the other the team will try to add to the practice squad, but I think they keep Chris Henson. He's shown up on special teams, and the team needs help there.

Alright, that's what I've got. What does everyone else think?

Next Up: Steelers

The Redskins will play in their second preseason game Saturday against the Steelers, and here are three things I'll be watching out for:

Albert Haynesworth
The $100 million man makes his debut in the burgundy and gold, and let's hope it goes smoothly. fans will be looking for him to get a big push up the middle, but what they really need is for him to come out healthy. There's a lot riding on this guy being here for the majority of the season, and I don't even mean monetarily.

Offensive Line
The group looked solid in their first outing and I expect nothing less this time. They'll be facing a 3-4 defense that loves to blitz, so this will be a great test for the team. Randy Thomas should be seeing his first game which will allow the unit to get used to playing with the actual starting five.

Wide Receivers
There's a race for the number two receiver, and Malcolm Kelly put his name in the running with his strong performance last week. Devin Thomas and Antwaan Randle El are not backing down from the challenge, however, and should put on strong showings in the game as well. This battle will come down to the last game, so every game will count.

First Trip to Training Camp

On Saturday, I made my first trip to Ashburn, VA to check out training camp, and I was not disappointed.

It was the first day in full pads, and the players did not hold back. Along the line, players were throwing aggressive blocks, making sure to show their stuff every chance they got. It was good to see Derrick Dockery out with the team again. He looked like his old self, dishing out some of the biggest hits of the day

The most encouraging performance of the day came from Malcolm Kelly, who was bothered by injuries the majority of last season. The second year player made several impressive grabs, including a deep pass from Colt Brennan where Kelly had to twist his body while falling out of bounds to catch the ball. Kelly also used his size to his advantage, leaping for balls during red zone drills.

Overall, I think the team looked crisp. They wasted little time during a practice that lasted over two hours, moving quickly through the drills. The coaches and players seemed very focused, but seemed to go through everything very naturally.

The offense still has a ways to go, but it's only the first day with pads on and they should show progress each day. I'll have more up here as I go to more practices, but expect more in the next few days even if I don't make it out to practice. Lot's of exciting stuff going on, let's hope it turns out well. Until next time...

Hail

Positional Analysis: Pass Catchers

Starters: At wide receiver, Santana Moss and Antwaan Randle El should be the starters, who alone will have trouble making any damage. Moss is a great receiver, but he's not a number one guy. He doesn't have the size to dominate larger corners or in the red zone. He is still very quick and can ruin a team down field if they forget about him, but since he's the only threat down field, they have him pointed out before every play.

Randle El is still a solid player, but he's most effective when playing in the slot, but as the number two receiver, he'll see a lot of time on the outside. He has trouble gaining separating and is no longer the deep threat he was when he was younger. He may be entering his last season as a starter in this offense with several young draft picks nipping at his heels.

Pro Bowler Chris Cooley will be the starter at tight end. He plays tough every down, always fighting for the extra yards, and does his part to get teammates open while blocking down field. He is probably the 'Skins biggest threat in the red zone, which teams are aware of, only allowing him one touchdown last year. Other players are going to have to step up this year to take away all the double coverage that goes Cooley's way.

Reserves: The 'Skins have a several young, raw pass catchers who have to prove themselves this year. Devin Thomas and Malcolm Kelly, both 22, were second round draft choices last year at wide receiver and both rarely saw the field last year.

Of the pair, Thomas saw the field more, but had little impact as he struggled with the playbook. Kelly was impressive during training camp last season, but missed eleven games because of injury, finishing the season with only three catches. Both players need to come in to training camp in peak condition prepared to make an impact this season, which is desperately needed.

In addition to the two receivers, tight end Fred Davis was selected in the second round of last years draft. His work ethic has been questioned, and he struggled to see the field last year. He is going to have to make big improvements this year to see more playing time.

There are two veterans that the youngsters will have to outperfrom in training camp in order to see the field. James Thrash, 33, has more experience in the West Coast offense than the other wide receivers. He blocks well down field and plays well on special teams.

The other veteran is tight end Todd Yoder. Yoder's name doesn't show up on the scorecard too often, but his role is mainly on blocking downs and special teams, and he does a heck of a job in that role. He doesn't worry about not getting receptions and does what the team needs him to to win.

Draft: Don't look for the 'Skins to use any draft picks at these positions. They used several picks for them last year, and it would be foolish not to use valuable picks on other positions that really need to get younger.

Redskins Roster Review: Offense

In order for the Redskins to get back to the playoffs next year, the offense is going to have to make great strides.

A year ago, Jim Zorn was just getting started teaching his new team the West Coast offense. The offense started off hot but cooled off as the season came to a close.

This off season, Zorn will be able to pay closer attention to details since the players now know what he wants from them. Though progress will be made from the coaching standpoint, the personnel side still needs some work.

Upgrading the offensive line has been a goal this off season. Last season the offensive line deteriorated as the season went on, showing their age more and more each week. Though getting younger at this position is viewed as a priority, the only move made so far was the signing of left guard Derrick Dockery, 28.

There are still question marks at wide receiver, and it will be essential for second year players Devin Thomas and Malcolm Kelly to make strides to learn the offense better so they can play prominent roles in the offense. Incumbent starters Santana Moss and Antwaan Randle El are going to be relying on the youngsters to step up and take some of the heat off them.

Quarterback Jason Campbell will have to show improvement in his second year in the West Coast offense. He played well last year, but needs to show more improvement in the red zone. This team needs to figure out how to score touchdowns, and he could make big contributions in that department.

Coach Zorn has to push these guys real hard this off season and improvements have to be made. A few more moves might have to be made, most likely through the draft, but they should have every opportunity to take those strides next season.