The Redskins return to practice with a much smaller roster after cutting it to the final 53. Here are three areas of interest for your wake-up call:
Roster tinkering. It would be surprising if the Redskins don’t tweak their roster with a move or two over the next few days. Happens all the time. So some players who were given the last spots can’t feel comfortable until they get to Wednesday morning. I wouldn’t be surprised if they added another linebacker (they only have eight). I was fine with them cutting outside linebacker Houston Bates; flashed early, but when he faced better tackles he was quiet. But there will still be some nervous people at Redskins Park.
Coach Jay Gruden. We’ll get a chance to ask questions about various roster decisions. In truth, there weren’t many surprises. My projected 53-man roster missed on only two players: linebacker Terrance Plummer and corner Deshazor Everett. Still, there’s one big question to ask him and that’s about quarterback Robert Griffin III. Gruden’s body language will be telling when answering questions about Griffin. Safe to say it was not a unanimous decision to keep him. If you’re a coach whose background is quarterbacks and you can’t go with the guys you want, it’s tough.
Player updates. When it comes to injuries, that is. Really, there shouldn’t be any issues as receiver DeSean Jackson has said for two weeks he’d be ready for Miami. So there’s no real intrigue. Then there’s Ryan Kerrigan, who has maintained he could have played this summer if the games mattered. Instead, he rested his knee. But I’m also curious to see if there are any tweaks to the lineups – they really like what defensive end Chris Baker has done this summer, but was it enough to unseat Stephen Paea?
