ASHBURN, Va. -- The path he traveled last summer left him stunned and then frustrated. Duke Ihenacho went from starting in the Super Bowl with Denver, to being cut. He arrived in Washington anticipating good things only to soon end up on injured reserve.
It wasn’t easy.
"It was pretty frustrating," Ihenacho said. "I didn’t let it get me down. I just kept working."
Fortunately, or unfortunately, for him Ihenacho is used to dealing with adversity in the NFL. He arrived in Denver as an undrafted free agent in 2012, rising to starting status in 2013 (in part because of injuries to others). He and Jeron Johnson, with whom he’s competing for the starting strong safety job, have similar backgrounds in that regard. Johnson, too, was an undrafted free agent, though playing behind Earl Thomas and Kam Chancellor in Seattle limited him to one start.
"I feel like I belong here," Ihenacho said. "I have the experience and I’m a competitor. No one gave me anything ... It’s familiar territory."
Johnson and Ihenacho have rotated with the starters throughout the spring workouts. During the one-day-a-week portions open to the media, Ihenacho has worked with the starters. Johnson has also worked at free safety, though it’s hard to imagine anyone but Dashon Goldson starting at that spot. The Redskins like the swagger he brings to the position.
At strong safety, though, they call it an open competition. For Ihenacho, it represents a chance to grab a job he figured would be his at some point last season.
"I came here expecting to play and then eventually to start," he said. "Definitely frustrating, man."
Ihenacho was placed on injured reserve with a fractured foot in Week 3. He also said he’s a different player than he was last summer. A big knock on him in Denver: Pass coverage. It’s why the Broncos wanted to upgrade the position after the 2013 season. But Ihenacho hopes the changes he’s made result in better play.
"I’m better in space, I’m lighter, I’m leaner," he said. "I take better care of my body. I don’t think I can throw my body in places I shouldn’t be throwing my body in this year, because I know it’s a long season. I have more patience so I can see the field better."
He and Johnson know one another and have common friends, owing to growing up about 10 miles apart in Southern California. Ihenacho said they competed in high school and played in the same conference college, with Johnson two years older.
"There’s no animosity," Ihenacho said. "We understand the nature of the business. Someone has to play. He comes from a winning program [Seattle], I came from a winning program [Denver]. It’s all love between us. But we’re still competitors and we still understand someone has to get the job."
