Redskins Rookie Report at the Halfway Point

OLB Trent Murphy:

-Murphy was the Redskins 2nd round pick and was initially being used as a 3rd pass rusher on passing downs and a sub for the starters Ryan Kerrigan and Brian Orakpo. Now with Orakpo’s injury Murphy has been thrust into a starting role and will be asked to be a key pass rusher on this defense, playing quite a bit versus left tackles. Murphy hasn’t looked that good so far and in his first start he rarely showed much as a pass rusher. He’s been okay in run defense (though not great) and has a long ways to go to prove that he can handle the ROLB role.

OT Morgan Moses:

-Moses looked raw in much of camp and had an up-and-down preseason so the jury is still out on the 3rd round rookie. In his limited work he has one really bad snap where it appears he either didn’t know his assignment or the snap count and the defender blew by him for an easy pressure. Moses is behind Tom Compton in the tackle battle and now appears to be Compton’s understudy with Polumbus on the bench. Moses could push Compton soon if, the 3rd year tackle doesn’t improve from his initial start against Dallas where he made some mistakes. As of now the only value Moses has brought is future value, he still could end up being the long term option at RT, but it’s a huge unknown.

OG Spencer Long:

-Long has gotten very little work this season, but could be called upon soon if Chris Chester continues to struggle. The Redskins coaches drafted Long so he could even pass Josh LeRibeus on the depth chart in the coming weeks. Right now though they haven’t gotten much of a return for their 3rd rounder. Long’s preseason and camp weren’t too impressive and he’s been inactive a number of weeks. He still has a long way to go to prove his value, but right now the early returns are incomplete.

CB Bashaud Breeland:

-Breeland was a 4th round corner for the Redskins and he was expected to spend most of the year playing special teams, getting only a handful of snaps as the Redskins 4th corner. Injuries to the Redskins top corner DeAngelo Hall and their 3rd corner Tracey Porter have forced Breeland into the starting line-up and a lot of playing time. Early on Breeland was getting picked on relentlessly and gave up a number of big plays, but he’s started to play much better these past two weeks. On Monday night versus Dallas, Breeland came up with a number of big plays which were crucial in the Redskins victory over Dallas on the road. Breeland will still probably make some rookie mistakes, but his future is promising.

WR Ryan Grant:

-Grant was the Redskins 5th round pick and he had a tremendous camp/preseason which vaulted him to 4th on the WR depth chart  He got some work early in the season when DeSean Jackson was a little banged up, but since then has only gotten a few snaps a game. Barring an injury this likely will remain his role throughout the season. As a 5th rounder though the Redskins can be happy with this kind off return. If there were an injury to any of the Redskins top three starters, Grant has shown the route running, catching ability and poise to at least give solid production.

RB Silas Redd:

-Redd beat out 6th round rookie Lache Seastrunk, and former draft picks Evan Royster (6th) and Chris Thompson (5th) for the Redskins 3rd running back spot. That right there is impressive and shows just how much the coaching staff believed in Redd. With two more established backs ahead of him Redd has gotten very limited offensive work this season. When he has gotten some chances he’s shown some nice burst and potential and definitely looks to have a future in this offense. Considering he was undrafted the Redskins coaches have to be extremely pleased with the return on their investment.