The Washington Redskins return to practice Wednesday and, as usual, there will be media availability. Here are three areas of interest:
Offensive line. It’s a shame that Shawn Lauvao was injured considering he was off to a good start and a critical part of the run game. But this is why the Redskins hired Bill Callahan and it’s why they’ve focused hard on the offensive line in recent offseasons. They’ve drafted three guards the past two years (Spencer Long, Brandon Scherff and Arie Kouandjio) in addition to signing Lauvao. But it’s uncertain how the Redskins will replace Lauvao. Josh LeRibeus took over vs. the Giants, but hurt his calf. That likely would bump up Long, who opened camp as the starting right guard. Long pulled a decent amount in more of a power-based scheme at Nebraska. Kouandjio is still learning to block on the move (the Redskins were using Lauvao as a puller).
Quarterback Kirk Cousins. It’s a big week for Cousins, who addresses the media today. He’ll be asked quite a bit about the interceptions. I went back and watched last year’s picks to see if there’s any common theme that has carried over. A pick is a pick, but was there a recurring issue? Again, they need to be reduced regardless, but just looking for answers to what might be a tough one to answer. For what it’s worth: Jay Gruden said receiver Pierre Garcon's route was not a good one on the first interception vs. New York . I had heard from another coach who said the same, that Garcon did something at the top of his route he normally doesn’t do on that particular play. But I chalk that pick up as much to the Giants knowing the Redskins tendencies as anything. Anyway, I’ll have more on that later Wednesday.
Secondary depth. The Redskins’ secondary has already undergone quite a change. From the original 10 defensive backs, they’ve now lost three players in Duke Ihenacho (injured reserve), Justin Rogers (IR) and David Amerson (cut, now playing for Oakland), and DeAngelo Hall is out for three-to-four weeks. It’s not ideal. The one good news for the Redskins is that they play just one good passing team in the next four weeks (Atlanta). Still, it's not an ideal situation -- and this was the area I was most concerned about when they were all healthy.