Redskins: Greg Manusky has the perfect pieces for an aggressive defense

Greg Manusky helped the Washington Redskins defense improve last season. This year, he should be able to get more aggressive and create a true attacking front.

In years before the 2017 season, the Washington Redskins defense had ranged from lackluster to downright poor. In three seasons under Joe Barry, the Redskins had finished in the bottom five in terms of yardage allowed each year. While they ended up improving to a below-average unit in terms of points allowed, the squad was absolute mess, devoid of fundamentals and the basic principles needed to develop players. For that reason, it was no surprise to see Barry go and the team bring in a new defensive coordinator last season.

However, the move was perplexing at first, as the team internally hired Greg Manuksy to take the spot. Manusky had spent a season as the outside linebackers coach and had plenty of experience as a coordinator. But, his resume was relatively mediocre, so fans were at first skeptical of the hire.

During the 2017 season, Manusky managed to field a pretty solid unit. While his final numbers weren’t great, the team finished 21st in yardage and 27th in points allowed, it’s worth noting that the unit suffered a substantial amount of injuries. By the end of the year, Manusky was playing without six defensive starters and numerous others were banged up. For that reason, Manusky deserves credit for helping the team to make strides, as they appeared to be a potential top 10 defense in the first month of the season.

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Heading into 2018, Manusky will now have a chance to field the best defensive unit the Redskins have seen in quite some time. Manusky runs a base 3-4 but also plays a lot of concepts with four down linemen, as the team is frequently in the nickel set. With the players the Redskins now have at their disposal, they should be able to have an attacking style front line that should improve the defense and take pressure off the cornerbacks.

The Redskins have done well to add talent to their defensive line in recent seasons, and they now have what appears to be an excellent rotation. In their 3-4 base, the team will likely start Jonathan Allen and Daron Payne at end and nose tackle respectively, and it’s probable that Matt Ioannidis will play the most time at the other end position. That said, he may not end up playing early downs if the team deems Stacy McGee to be a better option as a run stuffer.

When Allen, Payne, and Ioannidis are on the field together, the unit will be able to generate a lot of pass rushing pressure. Allen and Ioannidis were excellent last year and using their strength and quickness to get into opposing backfields and pressure quarterbacks. Payne, a rookie, has the athleticism necessary to do this as well, so he will probably be asked to attack along with the other two.

In addition to that trio in the middle, the Redskins have a nice rotation at outside linebacker. Ryan Kerrigan and Preston Smith could both be in for big seasons, and the ability of the interior linemen to control the line of scrimmage will open up opportunities for the outside rushers to make an impact. Because of this, Manusky won’t hesitate to send both on rushes, and that could do a lot to rattle opposing quarterbacks.

With such a good looking pass rushing group, the Redskins can afford to attack early and often to try and force the issue. It also helps that Josh Norman and the Redskins secondary appear to be in good repair. Some may question the No. 2 corner position, but Torrian Gray has proven to be an excellent defensive backs coach. So, he should be able to help patch that perceived weakness and potentially get above average play from the starter there.

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In short, Manusky’s improved personnel will allow him to advantageously use the pass rush to benefit the defense as a whole. It shouldn’t be surprising to see the Redskins run a lot of blitzes or look to pressure quarterbacks early. Manusky has what he needs to field a very good defense. It will be interesting to see if he can get them to play well.

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