Cut Players the Skins Should Consider (and Avoid)

NFL teams are cutting down their rosters to 53 today, which means other teams may release players of use to the Skins. Here are two players the Skins should consider signing, and two others they should avoid.

Consider Signing

• Fernando Velasco (Center) - Velasco was cut by the Titans after starting all 16 games last season, and he has experience in a zone-blocking scheme. Meanwhile, the Skins have reportedly cut both their backup centers Kevin Matthew and Tevita Stevens. Sure, starting guards Lichtensteiger or Chester could play center if needed, but then the Skins would be playing backups at both the center and guard positions.

What Mattered in Pre-Season Game 4

As expected, the Skins rested their starters for pre-season game 4.  But there were still important issues to be addressed involving some potentially key players, including Kai Forbath, Evan Royster, Chris Thompson, and Pat White.  Let's handle these one at a time.

Is Kai Forbath reliable on kickoffs?
Forbath is extremely accurate on FGs, but he is below average on kickoffs.  In fact, in college he only handled FGs, and he has struggled to kick the ball deep in the NFL.

Four Observations From Pre-Season Game 3: Skins vs. Bills

It's Skins vs. Buffalo in the 3rd game of the pre-season.  The stakes are low, but there is still much to be learned about the team. Below are 4 observations about RB depth, kickoffs, turnovers, and backup QBs.  

The View from FedExField

Some of you  may know that I live in Vancouver, Canada.  So I don't get to attend many Skins games -- a far cry from childhood when my dad took me to every home game from 1983-1987.  But I happened to have a meeting in Maryland this week, and took the opportunity to catch tonight's pre-season game against the Steelers.

It had been awhile since I last saw a Skins game in person, and I appreciated being able to experience some things, mostly small things, that are not part of the television experience:

1.  Before the game I saw Dan Snyder casually hanging out on the field talking with ex-Washington, now Pittsburgh special teams coach Danny Smith.  Snyder looked like a nice, friendly, confident, short, frumpy man-child.

What Did We Learn From Preseason Game 1?

You can't learn much from a preseason game, but here are a couple tidbits that I think were apparent from the film:

• Kirk Cousins looks sharp.  Cousins showed great footwork, mechanics, and tempo, and every one of his throws was accurate.  And I mean really accurate -- he practically placed the ball into the hands of his receivers.  If Cousins can show similar accuracy on the long ball, he's the real deal.

• Kai Forbath still has trouble on kickoffs.  The Skins and Titans each kicked the ball off 4 times, yet the Skins had 1 kickoff return and the Titans 4.  Short kickoffs were a problem last year too, and giving the opponent opportunities for returns is not a good thing.