Russ shares insight into linebacker group
August 6, 2020
by Steve Thomas
New Washington linebackers coach Steve Russ spoke to the assembled local media via a Zoom press conference on Tuesday, and beyond the fact that he confirmed that Ryan Anderson has been working with the defensive line group, not the linebackers, a few things really jumped out at me from his comments that could impact the regular season lineup for this group.
First, Russ was effusive in his praise of Reuben Foster’s efforts during the limited offseason. He made particular note of Foster’s work ethic, praising his efforts to learn during the Zoom call meetings:
Reuben has been fantastic. I mean, he’s back there taking mental reps. He’s making the calls. He’s lining up. He’s putting himself in that position. He’s saying out loud what he’s going to do. I quiz guys a lot in meetings and one of the things I like to do with Reuben is Reuben will, push, mute. And I see Reuben making all the calls with his hands whether I asked him or not, and, I can see his lips moving whether I asked him a question or not. So, I told him, I don’t have to ask you a question for you to be able to answer it. And I really like where Reuben is, I like his intent. I really like his focus. I like his discipline right now.
Obviously, Foster’s health is a huge question mark, and he’s on the Physically Unable to Perform list right now, with no indication that he’ll be ready to play by the time the season starts. If he is, though, it seems pretty clear that Russ, at least, will opt to put Foster into a prime role on the defense.
Russ’ comments as to Cole Holcomb weren’t quite the same. He certainly praised Holcomb, but at the same time acknowledged some weaknesses and development points that made me think Holcomb might need another year two before reaching his fullest potential:
You see Cole out there being thrust into a role with some injuries and what not, you see the raw talent. He can run, he’s aggressive, he does have some instincts, but I also see a very raw player . . . He’s got very good football IQ. He studies the game, he loves the game. He puts time in away from the game. He’s one of those football junkies and I really, really like coaching those football junkies because they’re a lot of fun to be around. You see some rough edges that you’d love to be able to polish up, and I think as a coach that’s going to be my job to make sure that A, he knows what he’s doing, but not only that, how he does it. Some of his key reads, some of his initial footwork. You know, being locked in all the time, as far as what he’s supposed to do. Part of that is being a rookie. You get a lot thrown at you, you get thrust into a role. You saw him flash. You see him make plays. You see him show up. He was productive. But, there’s a lot of rush [sic] edges on him we’re working on. He knows it. He’s the first one to say, ‘How can I improve? I want to improve.’ . . . I think if we can help smooth out those rough edges, we can hopefully see some really, really good improvement from him from year one to year two. He’s one of those guys where you’ve got some physicality to you, you’ve got some juice to you where you can run and cover, in this modern NFL that’s going to be very, very important. So we look for guys who can play blocks and play in the run but also be very productive in the passing game. I think we can spruce up some things blitz-wise to help him be a little more productive there as well.
Apologies for the long quote, but you’re here for some football insight, right? Read the whole thing. What Russ seems to be saying here is that Holcomb is a smart, tough, motivated football player who needs some development, which is both positive and a bit negative at the same time, in contrast to how he handled the question about Foster. It’s obvious that Russ likes Holcomb, so don’t get me wrong, but his comments were open and honest, which is a rarity in press conferences, and indicate a need for improvement.
Then, in response to a question about Thomas Davis, Russ praised the veteran linebacker, stating,
To this day, I always thought that Steve [Atwater] was the best player-leader I had been around . . . When I started coaching Thomas, I said to myself, ‘Wow, he’s better than Steve [Atwater].’ And that’s no knock on Steve. That’s just how exceptional Thomas is as a leader. Everybody knows the career he’s had, but just the man and the leadership that he brings is tremendous. You couldn’t ask for a better example for some of those younger guys because nobody holds himself accountable as much as Thomas Davis . . . When he doesn’t live up to the standard that he’s set for himself, he’ll be the first to tell you that. He can lead by word, he can lead by example. He’s got a great presence to him. He’s obviously got incredible credibility, and I think Thomas Davis is not only helping our room tremendously, he’s going to help our football team kind of get what [Head Coach Ron] Rivera would like and what Coach Rivera and [defensive coordinator] Coach [Jack] Del Rio are doing. He’s going to be great in that role. He’s still playing at a good level, too . . . I learn a lot from Thomas Davis.
These comments make me think the team’s ideal plan for the starting group is for Jonathan Bostic to man the middle, with Thomas Davis on the weak side, and a healthy Foster on the strong side. If Foster can’t play for health reasons, then major changes may have to be made, but at least based on Russ’ presser, this seems to be the depth chart irrespective of injury. In the event Foster can’t go, perhaps Bostic moves to strong side and Shaun Dion Hamilton plays the middle, or vice versa. Either way, this is going to be an important battle to keep an eye on throughout training camp.