Well, we have been gone quite a while, but we are now back. After completely retooling(goodbye, Camel pic) and firing everyone on the staff, we started back up and set out to begin a new weekly offseason report. However, that new staff was also terrible, so we fired all of them as well. We are now on our third set of employees in a very short period of time and have everyone on pins and needles with job insecurity, but we feel the best results are always brought about by a healthy dose of the "stick" approach.
When we last posted, I was congratulating our select group of winners from the 2013 season of the Hump Day Pick'em contest, of which I was not a member. We are launching this new weekly post as a way to keep up with weekly Redskins moves as well as other news items that strike our fancy. While we will not be doing a weekly giveaway, we will give away gifts from time to time when the opportunity strikes, so stay vigilant.
Also, be on the lookout for a new group of segments, including the Redskins Player Spotlight, Redskins Hullabaloo of the Week, Team Having the Best Week, Team Having the Worst Week, Dale Jr. Report (aka Why Junior is Awesome) and others. We may add or remove things as we go depending on what is going on that week.
Basically, we hope to have a lot of fun and kill some time between now and the NFL draft and then continue through the start of the 2014 season, when we will get back into the Pick'em. Won't you join us?
Of course you will! So here we go:
Redskins Player Spotlight:
Our Redskins spotlight this week shines brightly on our newest shiny addition: wide receiver DeSean Jackson. One of the first things I thought when Jackson joined the Burgundy and Gold was, "I bet the loyal Hump Day readers would love to know my thoughts on this." My second thought was, "I wish I could find my car keys." My third thought, however, was, "Sweet, merciful crap, we just got DeSean Jackson!" My feelings on it are quite simple: I LOVE the move and think the upside is huge while the downside is less of a worry (for now). Former Saints and newly signed Eagles free safety Malcolm Jenkins put it best when he came on the NFL Network's Total Access show on Monday and indicated that defenses will have to set up coverages based solely on where DeSean Jackson is lined up on the field. Someone please tell me the last time the Redskins had a player of that ilk? He went on to say "When you have a guy who dictates defense(s) like he does, then, obviously that's a big boy when you lose a guy like that. You don't want to play a player like him when they're angry and got something to prove. We'll have to get jacked up to meet his intensity." Good luck with all that, rest of the NFL.
Redskins Hullabaloo of the Week:
- Speaking of Desean Jackson, he finally arrived at Redskins Park this week after a much talked about and maligned (by some) vacation. He tweeted out photos of himself walking through the airport and then a photo of his new #11 jersey. We were then treated, thanks to the guys over at Redskins Nation, to videos of him lifting weights and doing push-ups and such. This guy is going to be under a microscope this year, so we might as well get used to it now.
- In a weird circumstance, the Redskins had to redo the contract for new free agent safety Akeem Davis after the league rejected the first one he signed with the team. I do not know exactly why this happened (nor did I do much digging), but probably because of his low-level status, the whole ordeal flew mostly under the radar until it was fixed. One of our followers on Twitter sent us a tweet saying "imagine the s--- storm if this happened with DeSean." I chose not to imagine that.
- Defensive End/Outside linebacker Marcus Smith, an incoming NFL prospect from Louisville, was in town on Monday night to visit with Redskins brass. Safety Tre Boston (UNC) visited as well this week, along with DE Scott Crichton(Oregon), LB Kyle Van Noy(BYU), OT Cameron Fleming(Stanford) and WR Brandon Coleman(Rutgers). The team scheduled a private workout with RB Marion Grice from ASU and WR Cody Latimer out of Indiana. We also know that they attended the pro day for Alabama tackle Cyrus Kouandijo.
- Quarterback guru Terry Shea worked out with our hero Robert Griffin III in March and was quoted in the USA Today this week as saying, "He looked 100% healthy. I didn't let up on him and boy, he kept coming - and he reminded me of the old Robert Griffin that I knew coming out of Baylor." I'll say again, good luck with all that, rest of the NFL.
- Former Eagles teammate LeSean McCoy was quoted on Sunday as saying, "I think anybody that tells you that they're happy about it, I don't know how honest that would be." The "it" he is referring to, of course, is the fact that Desean Jackson is no longer wearing the ugly green uniforms of the Eagles.
- Former Redskins wide receiver and fan favorite Anthony Armstrong, who is currently out of the league, caused a stir when he tweeted a picture of Redskins Park and indicated he was visiting Ashburn. He was not just here to say hello to his old mates, but was indeed trying out for the team. He left without a contract but indicated the two sides are still talking. Free agent wide receiver Brian Hernandez and safety Christian (not to be confused with second year RB Chris) Thompson worked out as well. None of them left with contracts, either.
- In a bit of excitement that quickly faded, the Redskins announced their 2014 preseason schedule. They will play the Patriots and Browns at home, and then close out the last two weeks on the road against the Ravens and Buccaneers. The NFL announced on Monday that they are NOT announcing the regular season schedule this week and basically stated they will get to it when they feel like it and we fans can just deal. Then on Tuesday, all became right with the world when it was reported by NBC Sports that the schedule would be announced on April 22.
- Finally, formerly newest wide receiver to the Redskins Andre Roberts came on ESPN 980 last Thursday to discuss the Jackson signing and his now-changed role on the team. "That's how the league is. Going into my situation, I wanted to be the number two receiver." He added however, "Wherever they want to put me, I'm ready and willing to do that." We at the Hump Day offices are big fans of Roberts and what he will be bring to the Redskins special teams and offense, so kudos to him on his handling of the situation.
Team Having the Best Week:
The St. Louis Rams - The Rams just came up with a creative way to get their fans even more interested in the regular season schedule release. They announced this week that they will give $100,000 to anyone who can guess their schedule. According the story on ESPN.com, the winner must correctly hit on all facets of it, including each week's opponent, location, and exact date of the game along with correctly guessing the team's bye week. Hopefully you will finish reading this post before you run off and sign up.
Team Having the Worst Week:
The San Francisco 49ers - The poor 49ers are struggling this week. First, word broke that police were investigating a possible sexual assault charge that may involve their golden boy quarterback Colin Kaepernick. Then, a day or so later news broke that pass rushing demon Aldon Smith had been arrested at an airport for allegedly mentioning a bomb and being belligerent with security. Remember when people thought RG3's new logo was a big deal?
Huge Redskins Fan Dale Jr. Report (Aka Why Junior is Awesome):
We feel Dale Earnhardt Jr. deserves his own section of our post, as he is a massive Redskins fan and often tweets about the team. We will give updates to his season each week along with showing any Redskins related tweets here. Junior had an unfortunate hand dealt to him this past weekend in Darlington, SC. He finished second, which would normally be a good thing, but was unhappy afterwards after being in first place with only two laps to go until a caution flag came out and made his sizeable lead disappear. Then, Kevin Harvick overtook him on the restart. He is now fourth in the point standings for the season and will be heading to the Richmond International Raceway for the Toyota Owners 400 on Saturday, April 26th. We are hoping he brings his good luck charms with him to Richmond and has a great showing.
"@GabbehGabbeh: @DaleJr do you have a lucky article of clothing?" Maybe a few @Redskins caps I own.
— Dale Earnhardt Jr. (@DaleJr) April 12, 2014
Random UnRedskins Item:
This week's random item comes to us from the world of minor league baseball. Some of you may remember a former major league baseball player by the name of Jeff Francoeur. He played ten years in the majors for five different teams and even won a Gold Glove in 2007. Well, he now plays in the minor leagues, and his teammates there were able to pull off a tremendous prank on him and then document the whole affair. Please watch and enjoy:
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On Jeff Ears (via Antihero Baseball/Daylight Films)
Days until the Redskins First Pick in the 2014 draft: 23 painstaking days
Our Top 5 Mock Draft:
1) Houston Texans - Jadeveon Clowney, DE, South Carolina
2) St. Louis Rams - Greg Robinson, OT, Auburn
3) Minnesota Vikings - Blake Bortles, QB, Central Florida
4) Cleveland Browns - Johnny Manziel, QB, Texas A&M
5) Oakland Raiders - Khalil Mack, DE/OLB, Buffalo
Redskins Mock First Pick (34th):
- Bradley Roby, CB, Ohio State
So that is it for now! Hopefully you enjoyed it. Please let us know if there is anything else you would like to see or anything we may have missed. Just like the Hump Day Pick'em, we always appreciate constructive feedback but also reserve the right to completely ignore any requests.
Until next week.......