The second of three pre-season games is at hand. It will be the first time since January for the fanbase to see Jayden Daniels taking snaps during a game. Enjoy each and every snap. There will not be many. As has been noted here and seemingly everywhere else the pre-season has evolved into less and less meaningfulness. But, this game stands out as a bit of a real test. Or, it did about a week ago. Cincinnati is apparently desperate to overcome their nasty habit of starting slowly. So, they intend to start their first team in at least their first two pre-season games. It was thought Washington would return serve. Especially given the whipping they received from New England in the first game. What is taking the field for the WFT will be absent some 12-players, 8 of which are Starters. So, maybe it won’t be a “Real Test.” A small quiz would be more accurate.
Mid-August
It doesn’t take long for Training Camp to get old. The aches and pains become part of the daily tableau. Players “Lose their legs” about this time. All the conditioning in the lexicon is not enough preparation for the drills day in and day out. It’s about this time in the proceedings when names one would not expect abruptly retire. “No mas.” Injuries mount from innocuous non-contact situations. The Chargers cancelled their joint scrimmage because the team had so many injuries the afterguard thought it best to skip it. Washington and Baltimore followed suit. Two-a-days in pads are a distant memory. But, modern Camps still manage to provide Medical Staffs with more than enough work.
No football organization wants to lose players in a game without real meaning. What were once nuisance-type injuries are treated more seriously this time of year. Hence, Dan Quinn is bubble-wrapping a number of key players. While the game outcome doesn’t matter the film produced certainly does. Ideally the Bengals will play their true #1 units. That will put a lot of the depth pieces on film against legitimate opposition. That film will be the real value of the game.
Items of Interest
–Josh Johnson is the most Journeyman QB ever, it seems. The 39-year-old is supposedly a hot commodity. The WFT has been fielding trade calls about him according to various reports. Looking at teams the temptation is to focus on the QB1. The problem is that QB1’s rarely play all 17 games. Some 63 QBs started games in the League last year. The math says that’s just about 2 per team. So, who has a QB2 that should not be more than a Practice Squad player? Try Miami on for size. Zach Wilson is the poster child for the First-Round QB Bust. To Miami Johnson would be an upgrade. If Josh plays a lot tonight it could be to showcase him.
–Brian Robinson is supposedly being shopped. When “Bill” Jacory Croskey-Merritt seemed to be pushing someone out of the Running Back Room the assumption was that it would be RB4 or RB5. Instead it could be RB1. This sort of move is exactly what Detroit has done. In Dan Campbell‘s fourth season there were only THREE players on the roster that were there when he arrived. General Managers like the guys they draft. Players drafted by the previous Front Office are often discarded. That’s especially true here where Ron Rivera, good guy that he is, drafted like it was an exercise in buying Lotto tickets. The flip side of that coin is that the new GM loves the guys he drafted in his previous job. Hence, Peters signed Javon Kinlaw in the off-season. Kinlaw had been drafted by the 49ers (with Peters as Assistant GM) in 2020. He’s been regarded as an under-achiever. But, what Peters saw five-years ago is what drove him to acquire Javon. If looking around the League at rosters this theme happens time after time.
-Speaking of BRob; there are miles of film on him. If he is truly on the block he should be in bubble wrap tonight. Or, he could get a lot of work to give him the opportunity to impress the WFT afterguard. That will be something to keep an eye on.
-The Offensive Line was the primary object of improvement efforts over the off-season. You won’t see the new-and-improved version tonight. Laremy Tunsil will sit as will both starting Guards. Zach Ertz will also sit. All told only five Offensive Starters are in this game. Watch Trenton Scott at Left Tackle. If he can be respectable as an LT2 that won’t hurt. There may also be a bit of a camp battle at Center #2. Michael Deiter was gawdawful when called upon last year. Julian Good-Jones and Dieter should get a lot of reps tonight. One of them won’t make the roster.
-On Defense the starting Secondary will play behind a Front missing the best Pass Rusher and best Linebacker on the team. Joe Burrow and his two All-World Receivers against a weak pass rush will put a big test on this group. It will be good practice for Washington. The Giants are coming in Week#1 and their Receivers are really good as well. There are clips out there of Russell Wilson hitting a deep shot to a Rookie beating double coverage in their pre-season game against the Jets. That’s what Russ does best. It’s a good idea to be ready for it.
-This game will give some idea of where things stand mostly at depth positions. If the Secondary gets torched all night while Burrow is playing the pearl clutching in the WFT fanbase will be intense and continuous. Just remember one thing: Joe Burrow lights up everybody. He does that behind a poor O-Line to boot. If they only had a Defense the Super Bowl that has eluded them for decades could be there for them.
Game Information
Pre-Season Game #2: August 18 @ 8:00 pm
National TV: ESPN;
Live Streaming: Fubo
Local Radio: FM 100.3 (Washington)
