More Draft Talk

More on the Cousins pick: I have been having a couple of second thoughts on the picking of Kirk Cousins for a couple of reasons.

Reason #1: Ye Have Little Faith
The Redskins have been hyping up RG3 and getting ready for his arrival to the team for months now. With all this hype and talk, you would think that all of the QB eggs would be in his basket. However, it seems as if the Skins are second guessing that by drafting Cousins. In my opinion, it's a slight shot at Griffin and letting him know he's not necessarily the guy.

Reason #2: Hogs Anyone?
What is a QB without his offensive line? Well, for a lack of a better word, screwed. The offensive line is full of unsung heroes from a team. The Redskins were ranked 25th in the NFL last year in yards per game. Not all of the fault should fall on the offensive line for that abysmal ranking, but if you watched any game they played all year, you know it needs work. Redskins' QBs were sacked a total of 41 times last season. One of the main reasons that Grossman and Beck didn't perform as hoped was because of the lack of time they had in the pocket. The Redskins offensive line has a history of greatness, toughness, and glory because of the "Hogs" in the early 1980's. That legacy has changed a bit over the decade. From offensive line wonders, Jon Jansen to Pete Kendall to Stephon Heyer, to say the line was lacking would be an understatement. So, it would make a little sense to try to reverse this latest trend of washed up linemen. To the Skins credit, they have made an effort in the Shanahan era to get new linemen out of the draft, like Trent Williams, or through trades, like Jammal Brown. However, it could always use work. And maybe it would have been a good idea to draft some more linemen.

Reason #3: In Good Hands?
The Shanahan era started with the just horrendous trade for Donovan McNabb. Not the best way to get a franchise off the ground. We all know how that turned out. And with great controversy. If you recall, during a October game against the Lions, McNabb was benched due to "his lack of understanding of the two-minute offense." Not really the best way to treat your starting QB who is being paid millions of dollars. Nevertheless, it happened and put some doubts in my mind about Shanahan's willingness to deal with star QB's. This is why I have concerns about Cousins and Griffin. Shanahan hasn't proved his open mind and his ready-to-teach attitude. There is always going to be controversy with him and his coaching staff. And does it really help to have your son as your Offensive Coordinator? That's an issue for another time.

Draft Reaction

So, my first "real" post is going to be about the draft. Obviously. Okay, so as most of you know, the Redskins, the team we all love dearly, traded everything but the kitchen sink, to move up to the number 2 spot in this years draft.  The Skins received the #2 pick in the 2012 draft, and the Rams got the #6 pick in 2012, and the Skins 2nd round this year and first round in 2014. That's a lot of picks...however, let's be honest here. Why not? What do the Redskins possibly have to lose in this situation? Well, the draft started Thursday night as planned with Luck going #1 to the Colts, which left, as DeAngelo Hall would call "The Prince of DC", Robert Griffin III to the Skins. As expected the Redskins did select the muppet man himself RG3. This is HUGE. Griffin was the most dynamic college football player in 2011-2012 and definitely raised all hopes of Redskins fans everywhere. The Heisman Trophy winner is a dual threat quarterback, with lightning speed and deadly arm strength. There are so many upsides to this kid, that it's unreal. He also is quite the character. If you know anything about Griffin, you know that he is very confident and outgoing. Any interview with him is a brand new story full of interesting anecdotes and a weird smile. Nevertheless, he is a great player and just what the Skins need. The Redskins have been looking for a franchise quarterback for the last 20 years...it's about time that one fell into their lap. But the history is not on their side, with the last two quarterbacks selected by the Skins in the first round, were the ever-so-great Patrick Ramsey, and the "always-maturing" Jason Campbell. I'm going to go ahead and say those aren't two paths that a new rookie wants to follow. So, with a new QB and new receivers in Pierre Garcon and Josh Morgan, the new Redskins offense is looking prolific as ever. Also, with returning receivers, Santana Moss and the sophomore Leonard Hankerson, there are some weapons for "The Prince of DC" to hit on the run. In my opinion, RG3 is just too good of a player and too special of a talent for any team to pass up and being a die-hard fan, I love the pick.

Oddly enough, they weren't done picking quarterbacks. In the 3rd round, they selected QB Kirk Cousins out of Michigan State University. Cousins was listed as the 5th best QB in this year's draft, according to ESPN. So let's run this back real quick, The Redskins had 3 picks in the first 102 picks and drafted 2 out of the top 5 QB's in the draft...hmm...okay. At first, I'm sure everyone had the same reaction that I did. Shock and confusion. Why would they use a quality pick to draft a QB when they just drafted the apparent quarterback of the future? Why would you not address needs, such as DB, S, or how bout the all important OL? It's not like they are a flawless team and the one missing piece was a QB, so they could go throw away all their draft picks on useless players. So, initially, I was relatively upset. But then I got to thinking, how bad could this be? Every team needs a backup QB, every team needs that second option in case something happens. I look at it this way. Michael Vick has played all 16 games in a season only twice in the last ten years because of injury. Griffin, like Vick, is a dual threat, running quarterback. You can only assume that Griffin will take a couple of shots. So, is it really that bad to have Cousins there as a security blanket? Sure, they have good ol' Sexy Rexy Grossman, but out with the old, in with the new, right? The only concern I have about this is the impact of the fans. There are some Redskins fans out there who are extremely impatient.  If Griffin struggles, how long will it take for the "COUSINS, COUSINS" chants to erupt out of Fedex Field? Hopefully, Skins fans will stop being so mindless and realize that RG3 will not be benched. That's just not going to happen. As far as I'm concerned, they now have the starter and backup of the future...why mess with that? And if worse comes to worse, hey, Kirk Cousins will make terrific trade bait.

That's all for me for now, but I'll be back soon with my other reactions on the draft, on the rest of the league and some predictions for the year.

Welcome!

What's up guys, my name is Josh Greenberg and I am going to attempt to blog about the Redskins all season long, starting today. I'll be explaining the situations and giving my own opinion on the issue. I'll also recap games, make predictions and also make fun of the Cowboys. Thanks for reading.