How a shortened NFL preseason impacts the Redskins

A shortened 2020 NFL preseason will impact the Washington Redskins.

Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the NFL has made a key decision regarding the preseason.

According to Pro Football Talk, the preseason will be cut in half. Instead of playing the typical four games that teams across the league play in August and September to ramp up for the 2020 season, NFL teams will play just two contests.

And as the account confirmed, the first and final weeks of the preseason will be the games that are scrapped ahead of the 2020 campaign.

The decision to shorten the preseason isn’t a surprise, as the league had indicated that they were probably going to take this course of action after canceling the Hall of Fame Game. Simply put, teams don’t need four preseason games at this point in time. Coaches can make key roster decisions with two games of data at their fingertips.

Would having four preseason games make decisions a bit easier? Sure. But usually, coaches have their initial roster’s set before the fourth preseason game. So, having two games to make their decisions shouldn’t prove to be too big of an issue.

That said, this will certainly have an impact on teams across the league and the fringe players trying to catch onto rosters. Coaches will have to do the best they can to get the true bubble players a lot of reps in the two preseason games. That way they’ll have enough tape that they can evaluate from practices and the two contests.

For the Redskins, this process will fall on Ron Rivera and it could prove to be a tricky one for the team’s new head coach. Because of how the Redskins are being built, they have a rather large roster bubble. Rivera emphasized adding depth and competition this offseason as opposed to signing big-name players. Those competitions will now take place in a condensed time frame, so Rivera and the coaching staff will have to take every practice rep and snap into account in this shortened offseason.

In all likelihood, a shortened preseason will negatively impact some of the younger players hoping to catch on with the Redskins. They just won’t have as much time to prove themselves and if they make one mistake, it could be enough for Rivera and Co. to stick them on the practice squad for a season.

First or second-year players with minimal experience — like undrafted free agents Thaddeus Moss, Steven Montez, Johnathon Johnson, and Isaiah Wright — may have a harder time catching on if they start slowly. That’s not a guarantee, but guys who have been in a professional camp and preseason games before should have an advantage this year just because of the unique structure of the offseason.

Were the Redskins a more veteran-laden team, this probably wouldn’t matter too much. But given the amount of young talent they have fighting for roster spots, this change is notable. It’s not a major negative, as playing fewer snaps in the preseason is a good way to avoid injuries, but it will cap the upside of some of their roster hopefuls.

No matter what happens, Rivera will give his players a chance to win roster spots. He wants to find the 53 men who will play the hardest for the team, and he should be able to do that even in a shortened preseason.

Bubble players will surely have their sights set on what is now the first preseason game — August 24 against the Indianapolis Colts — as their big chance to prove that they belong with the Redskins.