Riggo's Rag
FanSided

5 position battles to watch in Washington Redskins Preseason Week 1

By Jacob Camenker

LANDOVER, MD - SEPTEMBER 12: Defensive end Ziggy Hood (90) of the Washington Redskins hits quarterback Ben Roethlisberger (7) of the Pittsburgh Steelers in the first quarter at FedExField on September 12, 2016 in Landover, Maryland. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images)
LANDOVER, MD - SEPTEMBER 12: Defensive end Ziggy Hood (90) of the Washington Redskins hits quarterback Ben Roethlisberger (7) of the Pittsburgh Steelers in the first quarter at FedExField on September 12, 2016 in Landover, Maryland. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
3 of 6
Next
LANDOVER, MD – SEPTEMBER 12: Defensive end Ziggy Hood (90) of the Washington Redskins hits quarterback Ben Roethlisberger (7) of the Pittsburgh Steelers in the first quarter at FedExField on September 12, 2016 in Landover, Maryland. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images)
LANDOVER, MD – SEPTEMBER 12: Defensive end Ziggy Hood (90) of the Washington Redskins hits quarterback Ben Roethlisberger (7) of the Pittsburgh Steelers in the first quarter at FedExField on September 12, 2016 in Landover, Maryland. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images) /

4. Defensive End: Jonathan Allen vs. Stacy McGee vs. Terrell McClain vs. Ziggy Hood

The defensive line is an extremely unpredictable group right now. Defensive line guru Jim Tomsula has been mixing and matching the team’s personnel for a majority of the offseason and he has not really let on to what his final rotation will be.

As of right now, Stacy McGee and Ziggy Hood are penciled in as the starters for the team. Having McGee on the first unit makes some sense. He is a run stuffing specialist who should see a great deal of action on early downs and in obvious running situations.

Meanwhile, Hood may be the most uninspiring of the potential starters, but he is the player with the most experience on the defensive line. He started out of position for a majority of the 2016 season, so perhaps a move back to end will suit him better. With the Redskins, Hood has shown a solid pass rushing skill set and has been a capable run defender when he is not stationed at the nose tackle position.

More from Riggo's Rag

Of course, the Redskins do have some other major acquisitions currently listed as backups for the team. Notably, first round rookie Jonathan Allen is not slated to be a starter quite yet. Allen was a terrific player in college, and should have been a top five pick. If he can come into the league and play as well as he did with the Crimson Tide, he will be an effective starter in the NFL.

Additionally, Terrell McClain was a free agent acquisition like McGee. He is not a great fit in a 3-4 alignment, but he does have nice run stuffing ability as well. He may be hard pressed to win a starting job, because he doesn’t have a true position in a 3-4 defense.

Overall, a lot is going to happen for this battle on Thursday. Tomsula seems likely to rotate a lot of guys into the game, and we should get a glimpse at the players that they are competing. After this game, the picture will be a lot clearer for the team.

Home/Commanders News