Washington Football Team: 3 positives and negatives from the preseason so far

I don’t have to tell you that preseason results mean absolutely nothing. At least not for a veteran team. For a young team – well, maybe. Which is why I might be just the slightest bit worried if I were a Jaguars fan right now.

The Washington Football Team has done a very good job of getting younger over the past several seasons, but I would not consider them a young team anymore. Call them a young, veteran team – a nice blend of youth and experience which should be on the cusp of a good run.

I couldn’t care less if they win or lose all of their preseason games. But I do care about trends – things you can see by watching them on the field in real-time situations against professional opponents. So, with the beginning of games that do count on the horizon, here are three good things and three bad things we have seen from the Football Team so far.

Positive: Secondary Depth

No position suffers more injuries in the NFL than the defensive backfield. In 2020, the Washington Football Team was fortunate in this regard. Despite losing two in-the-box safeties for the season, the team was virtually injury-free. Jack-of-all-trades Kendall Fuller missed a few games, but fellow corners Ronald Darby and Jimmy Moreland stayed healthy. Kamren Curl and Jeremy Reaves both stepped up big-time to ease the pain after Landon Collins and Deshazor Everett went down.

This year, the entire position group is significantly improved. Darby and backup corner Fabien Moreau are gone, but those two losses have been offset by the free agent signings of William Jackson III and Bobby McCain, two quality vets in their prime. Third-round draft pick Benjamin St. Juste has been one of the revelations of training camp, and the emergence of little-known Tory McTyer has made the cornerback group the strongest it has been in several decades.

Collins has returned and looks good. Many of the players – including Fuller, McCain, St. Juste, Moreland – can move around from the boundary to the slot to deep safety, which offers great flexibility and protection against multiple injuries. Curl may not even have a position, which will allow Jack del Rio to experiment with moving him all over the place.

Last season, players like Everett, Reaves, Troy Apke, and Cole Luke had to log significant snaps on the defense. This year, they are all fighting for a spot or two on the roster, and will primarily be special team studs. If you asked us, that’s a great position to be in.