With the Senior Bowl set to take place in just a few days, General Manager Scot McCloughan and several other Washington Redskins coaches and front office personnel will be scouting 110+ elite college players to see if they might be a good fit for the football team.
While the Redskins achieved much more in 2015 than many thought possible, the ball club still has depth and position needs, most notably on the defense and along the offensive line. The Senior Bowl provides a good look at some of the best college players in the country.
Last year, McCloughan started with seven draft picks and came away from the event with 10 players. He and President Bruce Allen will surely be wheeling-and-dealing again this year, trying to get value in the later rounds for quantity. Here are three talented guys that are on the Senior Bowl roster that McCloughan and his staff could be checking out pretty closely even though they are not so much in the spotlight or high on everyone’s list:
Jack Allen, Center, Michigan State, 6’2”, 295 lbs.:
This former wrestler is just the kind of football player McCloughan seems to like. While perhaps not a huge name like offensive tackles Ronnie Stanley or Laremy Tunsil, the Redskins have a bigger need at center than the other positions along the line. Current starter Kory Lichtensteiger has been really good for Washington and is a veteran presence to complement Pro Bowler Trent Williams on a really young squad. But he was injured a lot of the season and at 30 years old, is getting older.
Allen is a grappler who uses the things he learned as a state wrestling champion to man handle defensive players and ride them as long as he needs to. Not the biggest, most athletic player coming out of college, it is said that “no other [center] matches this four-year starter’s toughness, anchor and aggressive nature.” The two-time USA Today All-American is just the sort of “tough guy” that McCloughan likes.
Darian Thompson, Strong Safety, Boise State, 6’2”, 212 lbs.:
The Redskins are in serious need of depth in the secondary and most certainly, at the safety position. While Duke Ihenacho had won the starting job by the end of training camp, he fractured a wrist and was on Injured Reserve for all of 2015. Trenton Robinson took over for a time but eventually was placed on IR in December and replaced by Jeron Johnson. By the end of the season, veteran DeAngelo Hall had converted from cornerback to safety and held down the position pretty well. Unfortunately, Hall is 32 years old and, while he will likely be around for a while, defensive coordinator Joe Barry is big on substitutions.
There have been criticisms about Thompson because he tends to rely too much on his instincts and has trouble in zone coverage. But he is a solid tackler… something with which the Redskins have had issues. He is also long, physical, athletic and willing to throw himself into the fray up in the box. He has good instincts in the run game and would be good at the line of scrimmage.
With really good cover guys that are also leaders on the team; like Hall and CBs Bashaud Breeland and Quinton Dunbar, Thompson could get the coaching he needs to transform his lack of discipline into a skill that keeps NFL receivers and tight ends in fear.
With 19 career interceptions, Thompson became the all-time INT leader in Boise State history. He also was a Jim Thorpe Award semi-finalist.
Adolphus Washington, Defensive End, Ohio State, 6’4”, 295 lbs.:
The Redskins defensive line has a lot of question marks right now. Veteran Jason Hatcher might retire and nose tackle Terrance Knighton was brought to Washington on just a one-year deal. It is unknown whether or not he will return. Stephen Paea struggled with toe and back problems a lot of the year and ended up on IR. Kedric Gholston is 32 years old. The defensive line is a unit which thrives on energy and Barry likes to make multiple substitutions every game. Good depth is of the utmost importance.
Washington is just one of many really good defensive linemen in the Senior Bowl so it’s hard to think the Redskins GM would look much at a guy that had any off-the-field issues at all, especially one with the law. But, after an unfortunate solicitation incident last year which saw him suspended from the Fiesta Bowl, he issued an apology to his team, family and friends, saying he was disappointed in himself and would learn from his mistake. It seems the draft boards have slowly given the episode less and less weight. And McCloughan has proven that he is willing to give second chances. Recall that he brought in linebacker Junior Galette after the New Orleans Saints released him after a traffic-stop-gone-wrong landed him in trouble.
This Buckeye is a long, athletic player who is quick at the snap and can shed blocks to get into the backfield. In Ohio State’s Scarlet-Gray game, he had four sacks.
It’s hard to know how much his stock will drop because of the solicitation event but McCloughan – like any good GM – will no doubt be watching him and every player on the North and South rosters.