Three Things I See in Preseason That Need to Change

[TheLongshot]

Your point is made about Torrence being a #4, or maybe less. The Jimoh reference isn't lost on me either, but I kind of see Torrence as a young Scott Turner. Some promise but not there yet. Seeing him get exposed in preseason isn't all that concerning, but you wonder if/when the tendency to allow big plays ever gets fixed.

I think he's made more solid plays than you give him credit for. On Saturday I only remember one negative play on his part where he got turned around by the WR he was covering.

But as I was saying, I doubt you will see him with too much one-on-one coverage in the regular season.

Jason

[Ray Brown]

I think he's made more solid plays than you give him credit for. On Saturday I only remember one negative play on his part where he got turned around by the WR he was covering.

But as I was saying, I doubt you will see him with too much one-on-one coverage in the regular season.

Jason

exactly, in the preseason games where we have seen him struggle a few times he is 1v1 versus the other teams top reciever that they have in the game. In regular season he will be the 4th corner and will not be having to match up one-on-one on the outside in any game that matters.

[GURU]

Well, as far as Torrence goes, maybe some are giving him too much credit, but others may be expecting too much and/or are being too nitpicky.

On that TD against Buffalo, Torrence actually had pretty good position the whole time. But the receiver (Hardy) was 6'5" and the pass was pretty perfect -- placed in just the right spot for Hardy. A receiver with shorter arms would not have made that catch, a slightly longer pass would have been out of bounds, and a slightly shorter pass would have allowed Torrence to make a play on the ball. If you want to get nit-picky, Torrence could have played the ball a little better, but he was pretty much stride-for-stride with Hardy. The coverage wasn't perfect, but it couldn't have been much better.

And the reason I'm breaking down that one play is because two plays are being cited as a reason to dog Torrence. But I would be cautious about reading too much into this. I don't yet think that two pre-season plays undermine the play of Torrence down the stretch after Rogers got hurt last season. Do I think he's a Pro Bowler in the making? No. Do I think he's going to challenge Springs, Smoot, and Rogers for playing time? No. But I do believe that he's shown he is capable of being an effective 3rd or 4th corner in a larger defensive scheme.

On point two, I see don't see Westbrook making it past the first round of cuts. I think his playing time as a returner was more an effort to avoid exposing more likely returners to the perils of special teams in meaningless games.

On point three, you'll have to cite Blache's reference to Campbell's ability to withstand position play, because I haven't seen it. He was steady-if-unspectacular in his play last season when Rocky and Washington were injured. Blades can sub at any of the three positions. But I agree that someone else has to emerge from behind these guys. Fincher was in on a lot of plays Saturday. Don't like Sinclair, myself. Godfrey might be a guy to have on speed dial if Washington isn't 100%, but he doesn't play special teams any more. That's a problem because it's very possible that the Skins go with only 6 linebackers to start out this year because some other players are emerging at other positions -- say, if Zorn wants to keep 6 receivers and 4 tailbacks.

[CalSkinsFan]

In regular season he will be the 4th corner and will not be having to match up one-on-one on the outside in any game that matters.

Right ... even with a rash of injuries where 2 of the top 3 CBs are out, where Torrence would forced into starting, I'm sure the defensive scheme will limit his exposure.

No team in the league has 4 corners that can cover 1 on 1 ... and we are one of the few that even has 3.

:2cents:

[nightbird]

1. Torrence is who he is...a guy who costs us nothing and has shown some ability. He's our fourth corner, so the fair comparisons are to Ade Jimoh, Mike Rumph, etc. He'll hold his own against 4th receivers on opposing teams, and even then will have safety help. Match him up in man against Randy Moss (which happened last year) and yeah, he'll get beat.

2. Ya, we've given Westbrook his opportunities the last two years, and he's not an NFL player. If his name was Byron Eastbrook, he wouldn't have nearly the amount of cheerleaders on this board. The thing is, someone has to return these punts in preseason. I don't want Devin Thomas doing it, he's still got to learn the offense. Or James Thrash or Randle-El. That's how people get injured, and it's not worth it. Let Westbrook do it until he's cut. Then let Tryon do it. Then when the real games start, let the real returner do it, whomever he is.

3. Agreed, and I think that's the plan. Although I thought Blache liked Campbell. I had hopes for Rian Wallace, since at least he has some NFL experience. But he just got cut.

[maskedsuperstar]

Yes I noticed Torrance and Sinclair were terrible too. The big picture is Greg Williams was a near genius on defense and we are going to take a big step backward with the laid back Blache. Im concerned about the D this year. :silly: But weve got the Colt to bale us out!!!!! :silly:

Near genius? No way. Blache is not laid back. He will let the players play the game. Greg's system is very complicated.

[mistertim]

I think we are in trouble with the corners. Everyone, at some point has carved this team up in the pre-season. Quinn Grey did in the HOF game. Farve did. I'm REALLY worried about our D.

I'm not incredibly worried about how the defense looked in preseason so far as far as allowing drives. As many have noted, they have been playing an extremely basic cover scheme which, I'm hoping, is used to get a better idea of individual levels of play before they start making cuts. One thing I certainly hope we do is play more press coverage which I believe I remember hearing from Blache.

[BigRedskinDaddy]

The screen is a staple of the WCO. It's a good call on an aggressive blitzing defense.

Agreed. Draw plays also seem to be a pretty good part of Zorn's mindset as well. Not sure if we'll see them as much in the reg season as we have in pre, but thus far he's relied much more on delayed handoffs than JG did.

[gaskinsfan]

I agree with your three things, other than we may have enough on the roster at LB to start, and see if there is a veteran we can pick up once cuts are made to upgrade our depth.

Jansen is probably the biggest concern of the preseason to me, he has not played or practiced well. I think the Carolina game will be an important test for him, if he plays poorly again I think Heyer will need to take his place.

[Evilskinzfan47]

One thing that stands out to me,is the inability to tackle.Did our boys forget about form and just think that their arms can bring anybody down?

[REDALERT]

Finally,

Someone besides myself see Lee Torrence as a bum. I've been reading all the threads and all the fans praising this guy and saying to myself "We're toast in the regular season if this guy sticks".

I don't no about you guys, but I've been watching this guy since he got here a few years ago. And frankly, he's gotten no better. So, I really don't understand what most of you guys are seeing in him.

[redman]

Good post as usual, 'dog.

What I want to see though is Blache trust #46 enough to put him in there right after the first team defense departs, or even when some are still on the field.

I still don't get the impression Blache is that impressed with him.

As indicated, last year Godfrey came off the bench and started games for us down the stretch and really added an element of toughness to the defense vs. the run.

He was a true professional with a pedigree and was still effective at 34.

In fairness to Fincher, he's only been with the team for two weeks, and unlike Godfrey he's not a 10-year vet nor does he have prior experience with this defense the way Godfrey did with Williams' defense.

The flip side is that Fincher washed out from two teams (more?) in New Orleans and Detroit that would have killed for a good LB when he was with them, so I wouldn't get too excited about this guy.

[PlayAction]

Jansen is probably the biggest concern of the preseason to me, he has not played or practiced well. I think the Carolina game will be an important test for him, if he plays poorly again I think Heyer will need to take his place.

Zorn appears to share your concern. He was diplomatic but said that the next game Jansen will have the opportunity to get into a rhythm and will need to show consistency.