themurf Posted August 30, 2011 Share Posted August 30, 2011 (photo by Brian Murphy) When Mike Shanahan took over as the head coach of the Washington Redskins, he inherited a roster with more names than actual talent. Too many starters were on the downside of their respective careers and a complete lack of depth across the board doomed the two-time Super Bowl winning coach out the gate. One of the lone bright spots in Shanahan’s first season in Washington was outside linebacker Brian Orakpo, who earned a trip to the Pro Bowl in each of his two NFL seasons while racking up an impressive 19.5 sacks. The only other pass rushers of note in Washington was Andre Carter, a well-respected veteran who is a much better defensive end than outside linebacker. Carter had 34 sacks in five seasons with the Redskins, although all but 2.5 of those sacks came in a 4-3 defensive scheme before Shanahan took the job. Once the decision was made to convert to a 3-4 scheme, it was only a matter of time before the Redskins and Carter parted ways. The 11-year pro was let go this offseason and the Redskins spent their first-round pick in the 2011 draft on Purdue’s Ryan Kerrigan, a unanimous All-American who collected 33.5 sacks during his college career. Like Carter though, Kerrigan is someone much more comfortable rushing forward rather than dropping back in coverage. When it came to sacking the quarterback, few in college football did it as well as he did. But Kerrigan’s coverage skills at this point would best be described as a “work in progress.” Anyone familiar with this site should know by now that Carter is someone I consider a personal friend. When Shanahan was first hired, I asked Carter about the biggest challenge going from defensive end to outside linebacker “For me, the most difficult part of that experience was coverage,” Carter told me. “Back then I had to cover the tight end man-to-man, and that was an experience. I learned how to do it as the season went on, but man, talk about getting your butt whooped. And there were times when I had to line up on the number-two receivers when they were lined up in the slot. That was different. “We played a cover-2, so I had to jam him at the line of scrimmage,” Carter continued. “You learn little stuff like how to work your hips a certain way, because if I don’t flip them, he’s going to beat me deep. Yeah, there were times I learned that the hard way.” Carter has always been a team-oriented player, so he tried to make the best of an uncomfortable situation. But no matter what role he tried to play, he knew he was meant to be a pass rushing defensive end. More than once he told me that maybe if he was asked to transition to outside linebacker when he first came into the league, things would have gone differently. But by the time Shanahan and friends came into his life, that ship had sailed. Which brings me back to Kerrigan. The 23-year-old will surely take his lumps as he learns the ropes on a new position with new responsibilities, but he’s in a much better position to excel than Carter. Against the Baltimore Ravens, Kerrigan showed why the coaching staff thought highly enough of him to make him the 16th overall pick in this year’s draft. Click here for the full article. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LaRonDontLikeUgly Posted August 30, 2011 Share Posted August 30, 2011 Nice article! Great to hear Orakpo saying "he's learning quicker than I did." Replacing AC with a young, motivated, team-oriented guy was the only way to go. I am really impressed by the attitude of this team in such a short time period. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chump Bailey Posted August 30, 2011 Share Posted August 30, 2011 I just want to see Ryan chase down Vick from behind like Rak did and face-plant Eli. We have our OLB's and they are going to be damn good with this new DL. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boss_Hogg Posted August 30, 2011 Share Posted August 30, 2011 Andre was a good dude, he never once complained about the new defensive scheme. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lombardi's_kid_brother Posted August 30, 2011 Share Posted August 30, 2011 I swear, the only thing more beautiful than our linebacking corps is the view from the Cliffs of Doneen. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KingGibbs Posted August 30, 2011 Share Posted August 30, 2011 Another great read murf. You and Keim are my favs. The thing I really like about Kerrigan is that he is a student of the game. If it's not film, it's tapping into the minds of the vets and soaking in the info. Hope he turns into the player we all hope. BTW murf. Send AC our best wishes. Some of us appreciated his drive and desire. He was the epitome of the word team player. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
themurf Posted August 30, 2011 Author Share Posted August 30, 2011 If you do nothing else, be sure to click the link to see the beefcake photo Andre Carter doesn't want you to see. His wife still gives him grief for that photo nearly a decade later. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GibbsFactor Posted August 30, 2011 Share Posted August 30, 2011 Told you guys we'd love this pick. He's a football player. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blackest Eyes Posted August 30, 2011 Share Posted August 30, 2011 I'm excited to see Kerrigan on the field more frequently. He's got a non-stop motor. Glad to hear that he is learning quickly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BeefJerky Posted August 30, 2011 Share Posted August 30, 2011 Kerrigan and Orakpo are going to strike fear in opposing Qb's for years to come. VERY excited about our LB corps. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ever202Reyes Posted August 30, 2011 Share Posted August 30, 2011 Kerrigan and Orakpo are going to strike fear in opposing Qb's for years to come. VERY excited about our LB corps. Now here is the important question..... What do we call this great tandem rushing off the edges????.... hmm... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rypien1191 Posted August 30, 2011 Share Posted August 30, 2011 Still angry that Jarvis won't be there playing with him. Jarvis, Kerrigan, Orakpo, Landry... thats a nice young nucleus if we can keep them here for the next 10 years.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ConcordNCSkinsFan Posted August 30, 2011 Share Posted August 30, 2011 I think Kerrigan's got great athleticism which will make his transition easier than it ever would be for Andre Carter. The media tried to stereotype him as a guy with a great motor and nothing else. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Sean and Laron show Posted August 30, 2011 Share Posted August 30, 2011 Wayyy to early but this guy reminds me of Clay Mathews so much (underated coming out of college, high motor, white lol) . The guy is just relentless, he has 2 sacks against STARTERS and the guy has only been a NFL linebacker for weeks! Hell... Orakpo's only highlight in his rookie preseason was lifting up the LT of the steelers and tossing him back a few feet and he goes on to register 11 sacks. Damn shame about Jarvis Jenkins, I think our front 7 will be dominant for the next 5 years with these 3 guys holding it down. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Redskins Anonymous Posted August 30, 2011 Share Posted August 30, 2011 That's far better than Chales Haley who showed his teammates the complete package all the time... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
authentic Posted August 30, 2011 Share Posted August 30, 2011 Wayyy to early but this guy reminds me of Clay Mathews so much (underated coming out of college, high motor, white lol) . The guy is just relentless, he has 2 sacks against STARTERS and the guy has only been a NFL linebacker for weeks! Hell... I thought the samething. This kid has already shown that he has a nose for the ball. He may not be as athletic as Orakpo, but he has a strong, steady motor. I think they will complement each other perfectly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wrong Direction Posted August 30, 2011 Share Posted August 30, 2011 BTW murf. Send AC our best wishes. Some of us appreciated his drive and desire. He was the epitome of the word team player. Yeah, AC was an awesome person to have on the team. I know he doesn't fit this scheme, so he shouldn't be here, but definitely a good guy and hard worker. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Riggo#44 Posted August 30, 2011 Share Posted August 30, 2011 Now wait a second Murf! Lavar CLEARLY stated how much more of a natural athlete Arrington ton was over Kerrigan and how he got whooped his rookie year and Kerrigan would struggle the same way. 'Cause you know, Arrington was such a great athlete. There is no way Kerrigan, such an inferior athlete, can improve that much just by watching film, fitting into the system and working hard. I mean, nothing makes up for being such a great athlete like Arrington was! (Great read as always -- I am really psyched about our rookie corps this year!) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
@DCGoldPants Posted August 30, 2011 Share Posted August 30, 2011 If you look at our 1st two picks this year, not only are they talented high motor guys. They are high character guys. Even with Jenkins hurt, he's saying and doing all the right things. Look at these LB's Fletcher, Orakpo and Kerrigan. They are character opposites of Portis types. Even the DL aren't flashy names, but together they could be something. Its fun to watch the rebuilding process when the pieces look like they will fit. This could be the best 6-10 - 9-7 year ever. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
themurf Posted August 30, 2011 Author Share Posted August 30, 2011 Another great read murf. You and Keim are my favs. The thing I really like about Kerrigan is that he is a student of the game. If it's not film, it's tapping into the minds of the vets and soaking in the info. Hope he turns into the player we all hope. BTW murf. Send AC our best wishes. Some of us appreciated his drive and desire. He was the epitome of the word team player. Thanks for the kind words. John Keim is my favorite guy covering the Redskins today, so it's cool of you to even think of me in the same discussion. As far Carter, he and I still keep in touch and he'll definitely say something to me for digging up that awful beefcake photo of him. But I'll be sure to let him know that a few of us 'Skins fans are still rooting for him. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hitman21ST Posted August 30, 2011 Share Posted August 30, 2011 What do we call this great tandem rushing off the edges????.... hmm... :beatdeadhorse: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GibbsFactor Posted August 30, 2011 Share Posted August 30, 2011 Now here is the important question.....What do we call this great tandem rushing off the edges????.... hmm... Salt and Pepper! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tiger187126 Posted August 30, 2011 Share Posted August 30, 2011 That's far better than Chales Haley who showed his teammates the complete package all the time... I was going to say that chris cooley showed everyone his complete package. But this was a great article. hilarious picture of ac and he was an absolute class guy and I wish him luck except for one (maybe two) weeks this year. ---------- Post added August-30th-2011 at 10:27 AM ---------- Salt and Pepper! Ebony and ivory, then they'll have a theme song. Can you imagine that playing on the speakers at fed ex after one of them gets a sack? Comedy gold right there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djbubba4life Posted August 30, 2011 Share Posted August 30, 2011 we really had a quality draft by the looks of it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Captain_Sap's Skins Posted August 30, 2011 Share Posted August 30, 2011 He's a football player. Whhhewww, that's a relief! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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