The Redskins are an older team transitioning to bringing in youth and trying not to still improve. Clinton Portis is an outstanding back on a great pace to wind up one of the better runningbacks of all time. He is already at 9200 yards and aside from an injury riddled 2006, he has 1262 yards as his lowest rushing output....lowest. Heading into year seven, two years shy of 30, Portis is still a top runningback. His backup is the once splendid backup Ladell Betts, who hasn't done anything of note lately. Marcus Mason was impressive last preseason but the little bugger isn't expected to play much, if at all. Dominique Dorsey is just 5 foot 7 inches and 170 pounds. He's just too small, despite his CFL success. Rock Cartwright is a tough runner and an excellent kick returner. Santana Moss is a dynamic player that gets hurt too often. The Redskins success is often right in tune with Moss' health. Antwaan Randel-El is a terrific team player and decent wide receiver. He can't be a top threat when Moss is out. He's a complimentary player, plain and simple. The Redskins drafted Malcolm Kelly and Devin Thomas last year to help solidify their wide receiver corps. They've just been rookie inexperienced wide receivers, raw prospects. They may produce in 2009, however 2010 seems more likely for either of them to make a significant contribution. Roydell Williams was a very effective wide receiver for run heavy Titans in 2007. He had surgery on his ankle and tried to recover in time for the 2008 season. He was relatively unexciting in preseason and then exploded for a long catch, showing a glimmer of hope. The Titans decided to part ways with him. Most claim his ankle injury was career ending, others think they didn't give him enough time to recover. He is determined to prove he can yet again be a starting wide receiver in the NFL. We'll see. He's certainly intriguing and could be a fine backup plan to Moss. James Thrash is entering his 23rd, I mean 13th year in the NFL. The other dark horse/sleeper candidate here is Marko Mitchell who had 117 catches for over 2000 yards and 18 touchdowns in one season of college play. He went to Nevada and...they're not "a name school". At 6 foot 4 inches tall and 218 pounds, he is built for success. Keep an eye on him. Chris Cooley is fantastic and had his best year in 2008 even if he only had one touchdown. The Redskins drafted one of the top college tight ends, Fred Davis, in the 2008 draft. Davis has done next to nothing in the NFL. H-back Mike Sellers was a pro-bowler in 2008 and is 33 years old. Rookie Eddie Williams was an effective college tight end that will play h-back and fullback for the Redskins. The Redskins line is getting old fast. Derrick Dockery has returned to resume his guard spot. Chris Samuels is a pro bowl regular but entering his tenth season. Randy Thomas is beginning his eleventh season as is the ineffective right tackle, Jon Jansen. Casey Rabach is a good center and an even better leader for the rest of the linemen. Big Mike Williams will try to salvage his career and beat out Jansen. Stephen Hayer took Jansen's job last summer then lost it due to injury. He surely wants it back. Williams had a wealth of potential and at this point he's one giant question mark. The Redskins can not succeed in the NFC East with a weak right tackle. This better get solidified in camp. The rest of the Redskins line depth is journeymen types that are unexciting. Joe Bugel is one of the best line coaches in the NFL. He'll find a way to get the backups ready to play and fix the right tackle problem. Jason Campbell is just average at a star position in the NFL. In his defense, he hasn't been asked to air it out a whole lot. Otherwise, he seems more like a very good backup than a starter. Colt Brennan looked like a star rookie in preseason last year. If he does again this summer, the Redskins really need to give him a chance to be the starter. Todd Collins is still playing in the NFL. The defense signed arguably the best defensive player in 2008, Albert Haynesworth. When Haynesworth was on the field, the Titans were the top defense in the NFL. In previous years, it wasn't all that different. Haynesworth is a wonderful defensive tackle with ridiculous athletic ability for his size. At 6 foot 6 inches tall and 325 pounds, Haynesworth should not be able to catch Reggie Wayne or Greg Jennings from behind, but he did. He commands two or three offensive linemen to block him and almost assures the defensive coordinator that the opposing offense will be keeping the tight end (and fullback) in to block on passing downs. The Titans defense was coached masterfully by Jeff Fisher and Jim Schwartz to funnel the plays right at Haynesworth. Many defensive coordinators attempt to do that and fail. It takes tremendous discipline and trust in the scheme. If Greg Blache wants the Redskins to do the same, it will be interesting. The Redskins were already the fourth ranked defense last year without Big Al. If they don't, the idea of Haynesworth just attacking the opposing offense without discipline has to be scary for the opposing offenses in 2009. Old veterans Phillip Daniels, Andre Carter and rookie Brian Orakpo get the benefit of playing alongside Haynesworth and likely not being double teamed all year. Cornelius Griffin is entering his tenth year in the NFL. A long time ago, Griffin did the unthinkable at defensive tackle and dropped back into coverage at times for the Giants. He used to, also have freakish speed. Now he's just old. Kedric Golston could supplant Griffin in camp. The linebackers are nothing special. London Fletcher is wonderful but he's lost a step and a middle linebacker that has lost a step is relatively uselss. The Cowboys unwittingly were a perfect example of this with Zach Thomas last year. H.B. Blades has a great tecmo like name but isn't anything special. Rocky McIntosh is weak on the weak side. Veteran Robert Thomas was signed as a free agent and could very likely be starting on opening day. The Redskins have two rookies at linebacker that are very intriguing. Cody Glenn played both runningback and linebacker in college and is quite the athlete. Robert Henson is the typical underappreciated middle linebacker that will always play tough and impress anyway. He led one of the best defenses in college last year. The Redskins are loaded at cornerback with two potential pro bowlers in DeAngelo Hall and Carlos Rogers. Fred Smoot is struggling in a nickel role although he has a wealth of talent. Rookie Kevin Barnes is a heady player that should be able to transition to the NFL and push Smoot for his spot. LaRon Landry can be exciting at safety and Chris Horton is getting better and better. Hunter Smith is a reliable punter. Shaun Suisham and Dave Rayner are less than exciting kickers. The lack of depth on offense is concerning. The linebacker play could be invigorated by the rookies if Blache will just give them a chance. The Redskins will be difficult to pass against and next to impossible to run up the middle on. Running outside is a distinct possibility and with weak linebacker play, that could be every team's target weak spot in their defense. They must switch to Colt or let Campbell air it out. They'll need to put up some points. This is a very well built defense with a lead. In a close game, their linebackers will be exposed. The Bengals, Rams and 49ers beat them last year. The Lions and Browns almost did. Linebacker is simply too important and having a star playing quarterback is a must.