The All Things 2022 OTAs/Training Camp Thread

[Always A Commander Never A Captain]

His AGG comment sounds as expected.  For lack of a better description.  I don't think he has the "dog in him" to succeed.

[Voice_of_Reason]

17 hours ago, Koolblue13 said:

I've never been very high on Thomas, so him being out this year doesn't bother me. He fits a long line of great pass catching injured TEs that refuse to block. We have a solid WR room.

 

I'm very high on Bates, but there are some interesting guys in the TE room, but I'd hardly call it stacked.

I think he's a willing blocker.  I don't think he's that good at it.  I think both Cooley and Logan Paulsen have said this before about him also.

 

He is a converted QB, and I think he has been improving.  He has had some really good games, and some really bad games.  

 

 

10 hours ago, Koolblue13 said:

I haven't heard John Bates name mentioned one single time yet. 

 

This isn't the time of the year when John Bates will shine.  He's got to be the 10th receiving option for the team, behind all of the WRs and RBs, and even behind Turner and Thomas (when healthy).

 

He's an in-line blocking TE who can catch a few passes when required.  

 

He will be fine.  But in non-padded practices, this is not his time of year to shine. 

[Warhead36]

Thomas is a solid TE but nothing special. I don't think he'll even be top 5 on our offense in terms of importance or production this year.

[The Rook]

20 minutes ago, Warhead36 said:

Thomas is a solid TE but nothing special. I don't think he'll even be top 5 on our offense in terms of importance or production this year.

 

For the past few years, a "solid TE" WAS something special for this team.

 

Seriously, I think Thomas was better than solid.  After his rehab ... we'll see.🤞

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Rook

[FootballZombie]

21 minutes ago, Warhead36 said:

Thomas is a solid TE but nothing special. I don't think he'll even be top 5 on our offense in terms of importance or production this year.

 

Dude is the only proven redzone target on our roster, despite missing buckets of time he has as many TDs over past two years as McL.

 

If he was healthy he would be a major part of our O. Not having him is big as we have to hope one of the new guys can fill that void, and there is no NFL proof they can.

 

[Reaper Skins]

People here have some serious amnesia on Logan Thomas.  He was a top 7 TE in 2020 despite our horrific QB situation.  Do yourself a favor and rewatch some of his highlights.  Dude has got amazing hands and does not go down easy.  Plus the trick play ability.  A valuable weapon for sure who will only be better with a real QB slinging it to him

 

 

Edited June 3, 2022 by Reaper Skins

[HigSkin]

 

1. Darrick Forrest

Darrick Forrest endured what was essentially a redshirt year as a rookie. He injured his hamstring in Washington’s second preseason game and didn’t return to action until after the Week 9 bye against the Buccaneers.

By that point, the defense had just started turning the corner and there was hardly any reps to go around so Forrest was restricted to a special teams role. All in all, the 2021 fifth-round pick out of Cincinnati played 169 special teams snaps compared to just 26 defensive snaps, 20 of which came in the Week 18 finale.

With several roles on the defense unsettled — backup or otherwise — Forrest recognizes the importance of OTAs and has taken it upon himself to set the tone in practice. On Wednesday, he laid a monster hit on Kelvin Harmon on a jump ball in the end zone. Reporters were surprised a scrap didn’t ensue given players aren’t wearing pads and there’s minimal contact allowed, but nothing came of it.

If the play was enough to get team reporters talking, it definitely caught the eye of the coaching staff. They’ll probably tell Forrest to ease up on the next jump ball, but the fact he’s making noise is a surprising, yet encouraging sign.

 

2. Alex Erickson

The Commanders signing Erickson flew under the radar, but it happened and the veteran receiver/return specialist stood out on Wednesday. Per Ben Standig of The Athletic, Erickson “shined” a pass-catcher during team drills, making several grabs while working with the second- and third-team offense.

This might not seem like a big deal, but Erickson and Dax Milne are the primary candidates to fulfill a reserve WR role and return specialist. We haven’t heard much from Milne at OTAs in the early goings. That’s subject to change, obviously, but Erickson likely has a leg up on the second-year receiver right now.

If everything goes according to plan, Erickson could assume an Adam Humphries-like role for Washington in 2022, with perhaps less of a role in the passing game, as Humphries caught 41 passes in 2021 and Erickson’s career-high for a season is 43.

With that said, Erickson brings vast experience as a return man, averaging 26.3 punt returns over his six seasons with an 8.1 return average. He’s only managed nine kick returns across the last three seasons, but totaled 101 over his first three seasons and led the NFL in yardage as a rookie with 810 yards.

If Erickson keeps this up throughout the summer he’ll put a stranglehold on one of the final receiver spots and be a lock to return punts/kicks.

 

3. Cole Turner

Turner might be the most impressive performer on this list, but it’s not overly surprising he’s making a strong impression at OTAs. With organized team activities containing very little intensity, rookies and undrafted free agents have the opportunity to showcase their raw skillsets without knowing much of the playbook.

Turner, a fifth-round pick out of Nevada this year, has done just that. At 6-foot-6 with a massive catch radius, the rookie tight end has the potential to both stretch the field and become a viable threat in the red zone for the Commanders.

In the early stages of OTAs, Turner has made a wide variety of passes. We all know Carson Wentz has preferred throwing to bigger targets in his career. Alshon Jeffrey (6-foot-3), Zach Ertz (6-5). Dallas Goedert (6-5) and Michael Pittman (6-4) were some of Wentz’s favorite targets during his time with the Eagles and Colts.

With that in mind, it’s understandable why the Commanders are so bullish on what Turner can bring to the offense. With the receiving corps being smaller than most, Turner has a chance to become a real weapon for Wentz and the fifth-round TE has been all the rage at OTAs over the first handful of practices.

[HigSkin]

 

[Skinsfan1311]

1 hour ago, HigSkin said:

 

I really, really hope that Samuel has a big year.   

[Voice_of_Reason]

2 hours ago, HigSkin said:

 

1. Darrick Forrest

If Forrest can actually contribute productively and effectively on defense, this would be a huge benefit to the team.  

 

2 hours ago, HigSkin said:

 

2. Alex Erickson

I said when there was so much angst we let WhatsHisNameWhoReturnedKicksLastYearAndIHaveAlreadyForgottenAndAmTooLazyToLookUp walk and wasn't resigned, a good FO, hell even an average FO should be able to find a dude to return kicks/punts and and catch 20 balls in a season as the 6th or 7th WR.  

 

We had Miln on the team already, and Erickson is basically the same guy as the guy we lost.  

 

 

 

2 hours ago, HigSkin said:

3. Cole Turner

Ron Ron has been gushing over Turner since the draft. It's not so much a surprise they really like him, and they expect him to contribute pretty quickly.  

[Skinsinparadise]

Standig

 

 

[dyst]

They need to get Terry signed. We’re going to mess any chance of chemistry up if he holds up. He’ll be out of rhythm then get injured because of it.

[Jericho]

Just based on opinions in this thread, Logan Thomas is somewhere between the 7th best TE in football, nothing special, and someone who at least some fans wouldn't be bothered if he ends up out for the season. Okay, good we narrowed that one down. Now on to Carson Wentz. I feel he is somewhere between John Elway 2.0 and Colt Brennan. Discuss.

[Voice_of_Reason]

36 minutes ago, Jericho said:

Just based on opinions in this thread, Logan Thomas is somewhere between the 7th best TE in football, nothing special, and someone who at least some fans wouldn't be bothered if he ends up out for the season. Okay, good we narrowed that one down. Now on to Carson Wentz. I feel he is somewhere between John Elway 2.0 and Colt Brennan. Discuss.

RIP Colt Brennan.  
 

Can we edit that to John Beck?

[88Comrade2000]

1 hour ago, dyst said:

They need to get Terry signed. We’re going to mess any chance of chemistry up if he holds up. He’ll be out of rhythm then get injured because of it.

They got Terry’s eventual replacement .

[MartinC]

12 hours ago, Warhead36 said:

Thomas is a solid TE but nothing special. I don't think he'll even be top 5 on our offense in terms of importance or production this year.

 

I think you undervalue his importance, and ability, as a receiving option. Now that said if Samuels stays healthy and Dotson continues to impress the role of the TE as a receiver in the offense could be a lot smaller this season.

[CommanderCarson]

5 hours ago, 88Comrade2000 said:

They got Terry’s eventual replacement .

I hope that’s not what their plan is. You need to keep the best of the best that you draft. It’s ok to let some good players go and next man up, the ravens and Steelers are classic examples of this. But they are also classic examples of signing their best, and that’s what Terry represents to us. Keep stacking up the roster, don’t stay even by drafting the replacement for a guy that already kicks ass, stack the roster around those guys. That’s how the best teams do it.

[Warhead36]

47 minutes ago, CommanderCarson said:

I hope that’s not what their plan is. You need to keep the best of the best that you draft. It’s ok to let some good players go and next man up, the ravens and Steelers are classic examples of this. But they are also classic examples of signing their best, and that’s what Terry represents to us. Keep stacking up the roster, don’t stay even by drafting the replacement for a guy that already kicks ass, stack the roster around those guys. That’s how the best teams do it.

Yeah for real. Its like when the Colts drafted Reggie Wayne in 2001. They didn't replace Marvin Harrison with him. They kept both and built one of the best passing games in league history over the next decade. Not that I'm comparing Harrison and Wayne to McLaurin and Dotson, just saying that's what the idea should be. Don't tread water, try to actually build something.

[Llevron]

23 hours ago, Skinsfan1311 said:

I really, really hope that Samuel has a big year.   

Next to Carson I really feel like he’s where we will get the biggest bump this season from last. If he has a good year I mean. He can do everything and we need a dude like that. 

[Koolblue13]

Last season we had nobody worth mentioning, except Terry. Maybe Gibson.

 

Now, we start the year with a legit big armed QB for Terry and add Samuel and Dotson, so we have a legit big 3 WR and we added Robinson and McKissic is healthy.

 

We are absolutely loaded on offense and should be as good as anyone this year.

 

I can't help but be excited.

[redskinss]

7 minutes ago, Koolblue13 said:

can't help but be excited

I want to be but every year I keep finding myself having a little bit more restraint.

 

So many times I've said "this time it feels different" and so many times I've been dead dead wrong.

Hopefully this time it is.

 

 

[Koolblue13]

Just now, redskinss said:

I want to be but every year I keep finding myself having a little bit more restraint.

 

So many times I've said "this time it feels different" and so many times I've been dead dead wrong.

Hopefully this time it is.

 

 

What's the chance that our QB suffers a career ending injury..........................................again?

[redskinss]

3 minutes ago, Koolblue13 said:

What's the chance that our QB suffers a career ending injury..........................................again?

Oh no you didn't!!!!!!!!

[Koolblue13]

4 minutes ago, redskinss said:

Oh no you didn't!!!!!!!!

We even have a great field now, so we can't blame that anymore, but it is pretty wild how often it happens to us.

[Mrshadow008]

29 minutes ago, Koolblue13 said:

We even have a great field now, so we can't blame that anymore, but it is pretty wild how often it happens to us.

I know there’s been a lot of talk about Dan being cash poor but yeah he did just drop $250 million last summer to completely redo the field. Which is honestly crazy to think about considering that’s how much JKC spent building the entire stadium.