The Washington Redskins' defense would have improved dramatically this year even if the only offseason acquisition had been coordinator Ray Rhodes. The closest thing the NFL has today to Buddy Ryan and Richie Petitbon, Rhodes is an aggressive and creative defensive zealot whose every move is made with intent to disrupt an offense. Opponents had better hope there's some disconnect between the Redskins' defense on paper and the Redskins' defense on the field. If there isn't, opposing offenses are in serious trouble. Any time you want to get a fair and accurate assessment of an NFL team or one of its units, you'd be hard pressed to find anyone more qualified than Ron Jaworski, the ESPN analyst, former Eagles quarterback and a man who essentially lives in the NFL Films vault.
Communication is so important on defense when it comes to making adjustments and changing coverages.
And you can't run around blocks in the NFL, you must be physical enough to take blocks on. But this year is a different story. The positions where tackling is critical, they've upgraded. And Ray Rhodes is a tremendous coach. From a talent standpoint, I love this group.