Dwayne Haskins, now with Redskins, must produce under pressure again
He was drafted No. 15 overall by the Washington Redskins, an organization that was split on him entering the night. He joins a team whose coach, Jay Gruden, enters a must-win season and whose fan base has turned sour because of years ending in frustration -- and with legitimate hope too often lacking.
Regardless of any pre-draft divisions, all that matters now is how Washington handles it moving forward, and that's the internal spin. Haskins is a quarterback with special arm talent who can give this franchise -- and fan base -- a big jolt if he succeeds. And, oh man, do they need him to succeed.
Gruden enters his sixth season, with the last three ending the same way: no playoffs. Owner Dan Snyder and president Bruce Allen need to prove they can build a consistent winner, something the franchise hasn't had since coach Joe Gibbs retired the first time -- after the 1992 season. Since then, Washington has had no 11-win seasons, only three 10-win seasons and two playoff wins.cheap nike nfl jerseys wholesale
But quarterbacks represent hope. There's debate on Haskins' game, but it's not as if he were a reach at No. 15. The Redskins got a guy whom experts applauded without having to trade up to get him. For what it's worth, that option didn't seem to be in play anyway, as the Redskins believed he would be available at 15.
This isn't the first time the Redskins have been split on a player, nor will it be the last. With a first-round quarterback, though, you would like to have unanimity. But they must be unanimous moving forward. Otherwise: Unemployment awaits. The job now is to make it work. Haskins has arm talent, a willingness to work and is considered smart -- the Redskins liked how he handled the board work during their visit. That's a pretty strong base.cheap nfl nike jerseys china
The concerns revolve around his inexperience and mechanical issues. He does need to improve his footwork in the pocket; he does need to throw with anticipation at an NFL level; he does need to speed up his delivery at times.
He's also coming from an offense that featured a lot of run-pass options (RPOs), bubble screens and jet passes. While the NFL has turned more to the RPOs, the feeling among teams was that this style did not provide enough of a look at what he could do at the pro level. Ohio State had planned to build on concepts with him, anticipating his return. With NFL offensive concepts comes having to read defenses against those looks, so it's a definite back-to-the-starting-line situation for him. Hence, the drop to 15.
However, Haskins did throw a lot from the pocket, and that's something he'll do in the NFL. He was more involved in protections, too, and that's a big part of a quarterback's job. You don't get to 50 touchdowns and 4,831 yards in your first season of starting without having something big to offer.
