OTA's

[Caliskinsfan]

 

[Caliskinsfan]

Jason Hatcher: 'We Are The Attacker Now'

Excerpt

“First of all, we going up field, we ain’t going sideways no more so we can make a play here and there, so I’m excited about that,” he said. “We’re not just holding our blockers, we are the attacker now. So that’ll be very good for us. We’ve got Pot Roast [Terrance Knighton], Bake [Chris Baker], we’ve got a good group of guys up front, so it starts with us. If we can get this train rolling, making plays, creating havoc up-field getting to the quarterback, we’ll do good.”


“The scheme has changed; I can get back to being 'Big Daddy' up field making plays and not just holding the blocker, so you’ve just got to do what they pay you to do,” he said. “If they tell you to hold up blockers, that’s what you got to do. But this year they can kind of turn me lose and I can go up field and do what I do, so hopefully 'Big Daddy' will be back in the building.”

 

[Caliskinsfan]

 

[Caliskinsfan]

Observations from Tuesdays Redskins offseason practice session www.washingtonpost.com Readability

 

[skinsdad62]

good stuff cali , i was very busy today and didnt get to post much . great stuff

 

[Buffalo_Nickel_1]

better get some te in camps or some free agents vets te

 

[skinsdad62]

• ohn Keim, ESPN Staff Writer

• -- Part 1 of my observations from Tuesday's organized team activity session:

• Kirk Cousins and Colt McCoy alternated with the second unit at quarterback. That will be interesting to watch and I can't imagine either one would be happy to be anything but the No. 2 guy behind Robert Griffin III. SafetyDa'Mon Cromartie-Smith picked off a McCoy pass. But McCoy also hitRashad Ross on a deep ball.
  
  
• Logan Paulsen (reaching up for a nice grab) and a throw on the run to the right to second-year Ryan Grant. Griffin did not throw any picks and, from what I recall, any missed passes were not in danger of being intercepted.
  
  
• The early tempo of practice was rather quick. The focus was on running a lot of plays and it worked. Later in the practice it settled to a more normal pace. But it was a spirited workout; anytime you have players competing it gets that way. After Cousins completed a pass in the last drill, he ran over and shouted at the defense, “That's a first down! We scored there!” Then Chris Bakerchided him, “You were sacked already…” The ellipses signifies some extra colorful language. It was all in fun, but overall the competition was spirited for a workout on May 26.
  
  
• I think it will be quite a change for the offensive linemen this year. Line coach Bill Callahan is definitely more of a grinder than Chris Foerster was. Both ways can work and have worked, but it will be a change for the holdovers and veterans. It's not as if the previous coaches were soft on them, but they were aware of pacing. But Callahan will work them hard and focus big time on fundamentals. He has a lot of energy.
  
  
• Linebacker Trevardo Williams worked a few times vs. rookie right tackleBrandon Scherff and did a nice job getting into his pads. Scherff did not get his hands up quick enough a couple times and Williams was able to drive him back a little. What I liked from Scherff, however: He could anchor. I want to watch him more in the run game, but he moved well on some plays, getting his head in the proper position so he could seal the edge.
  
  
• Saw rookie guard Arie Kouandjio get a nice punch in vs. defensive linemanCorey Crawford. That's what Kouandjio does well; didn't watch him much beyond a couple plays.
  

• kiem on the offense

 

[skinsdad62]

• John Keim, ESPN Staff Writer

ASHBURN, Va. -- The second round of my observations after the Redskins' first organized team activity sessions:

• One defensive surprise: Duke Ihenacho worked with the starters at strong safety ahead of free-agent signee Jeron Johnson. It seemed clear that Johnson would be the starter after he was signed. But Ihenacho has more starting experience. I’m curious to see how he plays when the pads are on; he reacted fast to the run Tuesday.
  
  
• Johnson did have an interception and a pass breakup Tuesday. The interception occurred when running back Chris Thompson slipped and fell over the middle. Johnson grabbed Kirk Cousins’ pass; it was a short distance and the ball was thrown hard, so Johnson bobbled it briefly at first. A nice play. Earlier, he had broken well on a pass in the right flat to running backSilas Redd, breaking up the play.
  
  
• Another surprise: Trevardo Williams worked with the starting unit in place ofRyan Kerrigan (out after arthroscopic knee surgery last week). RookiePreston Smith worked with the second string. I like that he wasn’t automatically added. Also, Smith and Trent Murphy worked on the right side while Williams worked mostly on the left (there are times when they switch sides based on the offensive formation).
  
  
• The Redskins really do have versatility up front. I haven’t written a lot about defensive lineman Ricky Jean Francois, but he’s another guy who can help as an interior rusher. They clearly like size, but they also want quickness and he can add that while playing over the nose in some packages.
  
  
• Terrance Knighton is a big fella. Sounds like he’s intent on taking off a few pounds before the season (the Redskins want him to), but he definitely adds more size in the middle than the Redskins have had for a while. Tough to get a full measure of his effectiveness in these settings. But there was one time when he ran to the right and just by his girth was able to prevent center Kory Lichtensteiger from getting an advantage. For what it’s worth, Knighton is listed at 331 pounds. I’m not sure what year that was from. He’s always played at a larger size and has been effective.
  
  
• Big emphasis on going after the ball on the field. Huge. Every defensive staff I’ve been around has preached forcing turnovers (or takeaways), but this one definitely was vocal about it in practice. Whenever there was a ball on the ground, assistant defensive backs coach Aubrey Pleasants would shout, “Ball! Ball! Ball!” And players would run to the ball. Or he’d yell for them to scoop it up. I don’t know how this will translate to the season, but it certainly remains a major point of emphasis.
  
  
• Second-year player Murphy worked with the starters as the right outside linebacker. But he also lined up in a four-point stance in some nickel situations. Murphy looks bigger.
  
  
• I watched Chris Culliver a few times in his matchups and saw the same things I did watching him on film: He’s disciplined and doesn’t allow a lot of separation. I’m eager to see his jams versus receivers, something we won’t see until training camp begins. Culliver looked like a serious dude on the sidelines, too.
  
  
• Third-year corner David Amerson worked with the second-team defense Tuesday. When DeAngelo Hall is healthy, I’d imagine he’ll return to the starting lineup (assuming he hasn’t lost anything because of the Achilles’ injury). Hall said in the first four weeks of the offseason, he worked with the starters whenever they were on the field. Bashaud Breeland is the No. 3 corner, it appears -- his ability to cover in the slot helps.
  
  
• Rookie linebacker Preston Smith worked against tackle Takoby Cofield a few times. Smith one time got a little too upright versus tight end Chase Dixon, allowing him to take control. Almost as if Smith was doing too much looking for the ball instead of first setting the edge. Smith worked all over, rushing inside on occasion.
  

here is the defense , amerson on 2nd team

 

[Caliskinsfan]

 

[Caliskinsfan]

Interesting

 

[Caliskinsfan]

 

[Caliskinsfan]

Callahan factoid...

 

[Caliskinsfan]

Gotta say, this is probably closer to his real weight than what is officially listed. As long as he can move effectively, I don't really care.

 

[Caliskinsfan]