2023 Offseason Mini Camp, OTA’s, Training Camp Discussion Thread: Hallelujah, Josh Harris & Co. Era Edition

[Skinsinparadise]

12 minutes ago, DWinzit said:

Bates is going to be seeing a ton of time this year and really looking forward to see Turner in action.

 

Does Charles not looking hot shock anyone????

 

I am becoming so sick of Chase....he better light come in on fire this year

 

Did he mean Wylie isn't the best RT on the team or in general?

 

Interesting that the vet TE is the one he talks about trying to figure out the scheme. 

 

It wasn't a shot at Wylie he was just making the observation, he's not the most talented RT, but he's enough he believes to handle that spot considering he expects Bieiniemy's scheme is friendly to O lineman. 

 

He implied though he didn't flat out say that if you were in obvious passing downs and a D lineman could just tee off Wylie might not be hot.  But that's not how this offense is going to roll.

 

He cites for example the KC playbook versus the Eagles in the SB where the Eagles couldn't just tee off on the Chiefs O line because it was tough for the Eagles to zone in on what was coming and the ball came out fast and the launch points were different from play to play.

 

This part is from me, not Paulsen but as an example the Eagles teed off on Wentz in the first matchup and some said part of that was the longish dropbacks in obvious passing downs.  Paulsen said Biemiemy seems very aware of how to keep the pass rush off rythmn. 

Edited May 29, 2023 by Skinsinparadise

[RandyHolt]

An OC not playing to our OL's weaknesses? There is hope for our offense yet.

[DWinzit]

5 hours ago, Skinsinparadise said:

 

It wasn't a shot at Wylie he was just making the observation, he's not the most talented RT, but he's enough he believes to handle that spot considering he expects Bieiniemy's scheme is friendly to O lineman. 

 

He implied though he didn't flat out say that if you were in obvious passing downs and a D lineman could just tee off Wylie might not be hot.  But that's not how this offense is going to roll.

 

He cites for example the KC playbook versus the Eagles in the SB where the Eagles couldn't just tee off on the Chiefs O line because it was tough for the Eagles to zone in on what was coming and the ball came out fast and the launch points were different from play to play.

 

This part is from me, not Paulsen but as an example the Eagles teed off on Wentz in the first matchup and some said part of that was the longish dropbacks in obvious passing downs.  Paulsen said Biemiemy seems very aware of how to keep the pass rush off rythmn. 

This observation kinda sucks though since he really is EB's boy. I honestly expected a little more than this from him. Hey, maybe it gets better!

 

Regardless thank goodness Turner is gone! I am sure EB and Wylie will be better than what we were putting out last season.

 

Plus, Howell is a lot different than that pigeon riddled statue Wentz we had in the backfield 

Edited May 30, 2023 by DWinzit

[Koolblue13]

7 hours ago, Skinsinparadise said:

 

 

 

He cites for example the KC playbook versus the Eagles in the SB where the Eagles couldn't just tee off on the Chiefs O line because it was tough for the Eagles to zone in on what was coming and the ball came out fast and the launch points were different from play to play.

 

That field took the pass rush away and they just let Wylie hold Riddick all game. It was garbage. Wylie is garbage.

[Anselmheifer]

10 hours ago, Koolblue13 said:

That field took the pass rush away and they just let Wylie hold Riddick all game. It was garbage. Wylie is garbage.

You’re on a rampage this off-season! Things will get better. Enjoy the Caribbean. Even if we are terrible this year, Harris will turn it around. Maybe especially if we are terrible this year, Harris will turn it around. 

[Koolblue13]

I'm sure Wylie will get all these calls playing for us this year, right @SpacePenguin?

[FootballZombie]

Really goes to show you how the winners shape the narrative.

There was a ton of talk about how Wilde had the run of his life last postseason.

 

 

To be fair tho if they aint callin' it...

[skinny21]

@Koolblue13 Probably worth bearing in mind that simply touching a linemen’s head/helmet isn’t a foul.  Looked to me like the only egregious miss by the officials was Reddick smacking Wylie the one time.  I wonder if refs put emphasis on whether the helmet moves during the contact (to determine if the contact is forcible)?  Would be pretty funny to see a flag for “booping” though, lol.

 

It is a foul if a defensive player thrusts his hands or arms forward above the frame of an opponent to forcibly contact him on the neck, face, or head.

Note: Contact in close-line play is not a foul, unless it is direct and forcible, or prolonged.

[Koolblue13]

2 minutes ago, skinny21 said:

@Koolblue13 Probably worth bearing in mind that simply touching a linemen’s head/helmet isn’t a foul.  Looked to me like the only egregious miss by the officials was Reddick smacking Wylie the one time.  I wonder if refs put emphasis on whether the helmet moves during the contact (to determine if the contact is forcible)?  Would be pretty funny to see a flag for “booping” though, lol.

 

It is a foul if a defensive player thrusts his hands or arms forward above the frame of an opponent to forcibly contact him on the neck, face, or head.

Note: Contact in close-line play is not a foul, unless it is direct and forcible, or prolonged.

Hands to the face and holding calls. The video was only to point out the plays, not the commentary. 

[Skinsinparadise]

Losing Snyder is everything

 

 

 

[AlvinWaltonIsMyBoy]

Did we not have practice today?

[Califan007 The Constipated]

 

[Chump Bailey]

Logan Thomas, IMO, could be in line for a nice year if he can stay healthy. I am strongly considering him for my FF/PPR league - Sam too

[EatsMoreChicken]

That ball placement from Sam 😍

[SpacePenguin]

7 hours ago, Koolblue13 said:

I'm sure Wylie will get all these calls playing for us this year, right @SpacePenguin?

 

I was only laughing at how frustrated your post read, presumably as a result of your watching the Eagles lose in the SB (not that mine would be any different if the Commieskins ever play in a relevant game within my remaining lifespan).

 

I have no doubt that Ron's GM team has brought in more trash on the OL, and that we'll end up watching Bostic play mike again this year after a rash of injuries at the position they refuse to even throw garbage at.

 

Completely checked out until '24 when this crew is gone. Reactions are the only contribution I can muster

Edited May 30, 2023 by SpacePenguin

[Always A Commander Never A Captain]

Disappointed Charles is getting 1st team looks at LG. I get it if this is a "Let's figure out before training camp starts if he looks better or not" thing, but otherwise he's the last piece of fixing the OL that wasn't checked. The fact that he's even got some questionmarks among the coaches to where they think he could start has me worried. This isn't a veteran or longevity thing. He ain't it. Chris Paul put up better tape than Charles did last season. I was hoping him not making the roster despite a year of his cheap rookie deal being left would mean our Guard depth was looking good. But 1st team reps...even if it's just a test, is not what I hoped for.

 

Trai Turner gone - ✔️

Andrew Norwell not starting - ✔️

Center health issues addressed - ✔️

New RT so Sam Cosmi moves to Guard - ✔️

Saahdiq Charles gone - ❌ (Although this could still happen. Big difference between making the Final 53 and being part of the 90 for Camp)

4 hours ago, EatsMoreChicken said:

That ball placement from Sam 😍

 

Psch! That was weak! We should have brought in some other guys, like this tantalizing duo down in Tampa Bay! (Warning, below is not safe for Tampa fans)

 

 

[kingdaddy]

6 hours ago, Chump Bailey said:

Logan Thomas, IMO, could be in line for a nice year if he can stay healthy. I am strongly considering him for my FF/PPR league - Sam too

Sam will be on my roster without question....late round backup. LT will be easy to get late too.

[Chris 44]

10 hours ago, Always A Commander Never A Captain said:

Disappointed Charles is getting 1st team looks at LG. I get it if this is a "Let's figure out before training camp starts if he looks better or not" thing, but otherwise he's the last piece of fixing the OL that wasn't checked. The fact that he's even got some questionmarks among the coaches to where they think he could start has me worried. This isn't a veteran or longevity thing. He ain't it. Chris Paul put up better tape than Charles did last season. I was hoping him not making the roster despite a year of his cheap rookie deal being left would mean our Guard depth was looking good. But 1st team reps...even if it's just a test, is not what I hoped for.

 

Trai Turner gone - ✔️

Andrew Norwell not starting - ✔️

Center health issues addressed - ✔️

New RT so Sam Cosmi moves to Guard - ✔️

Saahdiq Charles gone - ❌ (Although this could still happen. Big difference between making the Final 53 and being part of the 90 for Camp)

 

Psch! That was weak! We should have brought in some other guys, like this tantalizing duo down in Tampa Bay! (Warning, below is not safe for Tampa fans)

 

 

Their Tight Ends look extremely athletic.

 

sarcasm

Edited May 31, 2023 by Chris 44

[philibusters]

So we freed up a little money yesterday by releasing Dantzler.  We don't have a ton of cap room this year, so I hoping that we can use the money freed up to help address O-Line and LB.  It seems like we should have more cap room given that we have a QB on a rookie deal and Payne is only counting 8.6 million against the cap this year.   This season Jonathan Allen is the biggest cap hit at 21.4 million  with Curtis Samuel in second at 13 million.  Given that some teams have QB's with a 45 million cap hit it seems like our cap situation should be better.  Granted as others have posted we don't really try to push things out.  I think in the link below, Roullier is still being counted as on the team, so that will free up 8 million.  If you take Roullier off, that will get our top 50 down to 199 million (cap is 224.8 million)  Obviously you will have 53 rather than 50 so you can add a couple million to that for maybe 201.

 

https://overthecap.com/salary-cap/washington-commanders

[HigSkin]

The Washington Commanders began another week of OTAs on Tuesday. Let's take a look at some of the top observations.

 

-- It seems to be a recurring theme, but Eric Bieniemy appears to be getting more vocal with each practice. Perhaps part of that was because the team planned on ending the day with two-minute drills (more on that later), but he was constantly reminding his players to pick up the pace and get in and out of the huddle with more urgency. "We need to wake up!" he yelled at one point. "We got work to do!"

 

-- Before we get into the team drills, here are a couple things of note from individual drills: sixth-round pick Chris Rodriguez looked more comfortable to start the day. He was more decisive, ran with increased quickness and looked as though he was acting more on muscle memory than overthinking each step.

 

On the other end of the field, the quarterbacks and receivers were practicing throws under duress. One of the coaches would act as a blitzer, and the quarterbacks had to lob their passer over the simulated pass rush. Bieniemy was observing most of the drill, and he gave some specific praise to Curtis Samuel and Dax Milne for the sharpness of their routes and getting upfield.

 

On to 7-on-7 drills. It was a strong start for both Sam Howell and Jacoby Brissett, as they completed all their passes. One play that stood out during the session was Howell's pass to Dyami Brown, who created separation from Benjamin St-Juste to give Howell a window for a modest gain.

 

-- Speaking of Brown, it's clear that he and Howell's connection from their days together at North Carolina has lost none of its luster. Howell targeted Brown six times during practice, and the wideout was able to haul in four passes.

 

-- Moving on to the red zone, Emmanuel Forbes was one of the clear defensive standouts. Howell threw his way on back-to-back plays -- once to Brown and once to John Bates -- and the first-round pick forced him to make off-target throws. On the throw to Bates, Forbes had the tight end pinned in the corner of the end zone with no room to stretch out and grab Howell's pass. Both Brown (195 pounds) and Bates (259 pounds) outweigh Forbes, so it was encouraging to see him hold his own against bigger pass-catchers.

 

-- The real highlight of the session was a wild play that started with a pass from Brissett to Milne. Milne's first attempt at making the reception bounced about 15 yards in the air. A scramble ensued with the defensive backs all making a grab for the ball, but after it was tipped a couple times, Milne still secured the reception for a touchdown.

 

-- Here are a few defensive highlights from 11-on-11 drills: after completing a pass to Samuel, Howell's ensuing attempt to Terry McLaurin was broken up by Kendall Fuller at the last second. Two plays later, Howell's pass was intercepted by Casey Toohill as he was scrambling to the left trying to keep a play alive.

 

-- In the same period, Andrew Wylie and Sam Cosmi did a solid job of passing off a stunt on the final play for the starters. The two haven't spent much time together yet, but it looks like their chemistry is developing well at this point of the offseason.

 

-- Howell ended the day on a good note during two-minute drills. The offense had 90 seconds to move down the field, and Howell looked like he had command of the unit as he completed 5-of-7 passes. The first two passes were examples of him trusting his receivers. Logan Thomas made a leaping catch over Khaleke Hudson to start the drill, and that was followed up by McLaurin wrestling the ball away from Fuller. Howell targeted Brown on three of his last four attempts with the last one falling just out of Brown's reach near the goal line. The starters ended the drive with a field goal from 41 yards out.

 

-- Undrafted free agents need to find ways to stand out if they hope to make the roster, and Jalen Sample did that by supplying the catch of the day over Tariq Castro-Fields. Quarterback Jake Fromm floated a 40-yard shot downfield in Sample's direction, and while he did have to slow up to get in position for the catch, he managed to leap over Castro-Fields.

[Professor_Nutter_Butter]

18 hours ago, Califan007 The Constipated said:

 

 

Careful with the knee.

[Skinsinparadise]

Caught up with a new Paulsen podcast, sounds like he was privvy to a practice the rest of the media was not, last Thursday.

 

A.  Howell looked good but not as good as the earlier week practices.

 

B.  the defense in this practice unlike the others were blitzing and bringing on pressure

 

C.  Impressed with the new offenses checks-hot routes to deal with the blitzing versus last year which had little answers from the offense scheme wise to blitzes.  He said last year (implying Wentz) when it was blitz-pressure day from the defense, the offense looked dysfunctional in OTAs.

 

D.  He seemed to politely say he's not blown away by Brissett.  He holds on to the ball a but too long and doesn't come off decisive.  Wonders if the Browns scheme worked around that, saying he thrives with more time, play action, etc.

 

E.  They played a lot of 13 personnel. 3 TEs and passed the ball off of it.

 

F.  Multiple receivers run choice routes in this scheme versus last year which wasn't as diverse

 

G. Anderson, one of their minor FA signings, looked good, playing 3 technique

 

H. Quan Martin is looking sharp, is savvy about following WR route running, which surprises him that he's on his game so early in his tenure.

 

I.  Forbes looked good.

 

J.  Gibson used a bunch as a receiving option but he also said they aren't really running the ball at all in practice

 

K.  Forrest and Butler play with a lot of energy and cover a lot of ground and are fun to watch

Edited May 31, 2023 by Skinsinparadise

[KDawg]

14 minutes ago, Skinsinparadise said:

Caught up with a new Paulsen podcast, sounds like he was privvy to a practice the rest of the media was not, last Thursday.

 

A.  Howell looked good but not as good as the earlier week practices.

 

B.  the defense in this practice unlike the others were blitzing and bringing on pressure

 

C.  Impressed with the new offenses checks-hot routes to deal with the blitzing versus last year which had little answers from the offense scheme wise to blitzes.  He said last year (implying Wentz) when it was blitz-pressure day from the defense, the offense looked dysfunctional in OTAs.

 

D.  He seemed to politely say he's not blown away by Brissett.  He holds on to the ball a but too long and doesn't come off decisive.  Wonders if the Browns scheme worked around that, saying he thrives with more time, play action, etc.

 

E.  They played a lot of 13 personnel. 3 TEs and passed the ball off of it.

 

F.  Multiple receivers run choice routes in this scheme versus last year which wasn't as diverse

 

G. Anderson, one of their minor FA signings, looked good, playing 3 technique

 

H. Quan Martin is looking sharp, is savvy about following WR route running, which surprises him that he's on his game so early in his tenure.

 

I.  Forbes looked good.

 

J.  Gibson used a bunch as a receiving option but he also said they aren't really running the ball at all in practice

 

K.  Forrest and Butler play with a lot of energy and cover a lot of ground and are fun to watch

 

The offense isn't supposed to look good early in camp. They are almost always behind the defense. Even the note that Howell, "looked good but not as good as the earlier week practices" seems more like praise than not given that. First time seeing blitz action and still looking good is a good indicator. 

 

The choice routes is no surprise. Kelce does that in KC and is a staple with that offense. I believe Hill did it, too, when he was there. I would guess Juju and Toney did it as well. 

 

The KC philosophy SEEMS to be that the playmakers can run choices as long as it doesn't interfere with other called routes. I wouldn't be surprised to see Terry, Samuel and Dotson do a lot of that. Maybe even Thomas, who is a smart player even if he's a banged up one. 

[UK Skins]

KD, is a "choice route" that thing in Madden where the route has two options for one of the receivers?

[formerly4skins]

17 hours ago, Chump Bailey said:

Logan Thomas, IMO, could be in line for a nice year if he can stay healthy. I am strongly considering him for my FF/PPR league - Sam too

Sadly since his injury, Thomas never has recovered fully and (in my opinion) never will be able to return to his 2020 form. 

 

For a dude his size, that could move like he did pre-injury, tearing the ACL + MCL + both meniscus may just be insurmountable.

 

Hope I'm wrong, TE needs help. 

Edited May 31, 2023 by formerly4skins