Countdown to Camp: Can the Redskins’s Defense Rank Among The NFL’s Top Ten?

Whether one wants to admit it or not, the Redskins have been on the brink of a breakthrough for some amount of time now. The management has identified the deficiencies of the team and addressed them over the past couple of off-seasons, primarily the defense. The Redskins have bolstered up the front seven at both the interior and inside linebacker positions, giving defensive coordinator Greg Manusky and defensive line coach Jim Tomsula new pieces to work with and develop.

The front seven is filled with young and physical defenders who have developed tremendously under the tutelage of the old San Francisco 49ers coaching duo, and with second-year defensive back coach Torrian Gray proving to be the right hire, the entire defensive side of the football may be ready to take a giant leap in 2018.

The Redskins pass rush, highlighted by iron man Ryan Kerrigan and Jonathan Allen’s return from an injury-shortened rookie campaign, has been considered one of the better in the NFL over the past couple of seasons. Expect Washington to continue and maybe even improve their ability to get after opposing quarterbacks barring injuries to the front seven.

When it comes to liabilities, there are potential issues with the cornerbacks for Washington. The Redskins lost a good amount of experience this offseason in Bashaud Breeland and Kendall Fuller, replacing the two with Quinton Dunbar/Fabian Moreau and Orlando Scandrick, who has the most amount of accumulated experience behind Josh Norman. If things play out well with the front seven, the essential unit of the defense, expect the secondary as a whole to hold their own throughout the season.

Overall, I expect the Redskins defense to be much better than their offense in 2018, finishing as a top ten unit. How do you feel about the Redskins defense headed into the 2018 season?