The Redskins wrapped up their offseason program on Wednesday with their second and final minicamp practice. Here are my observations.
—Nico Marley is still in there working with the inside linebackers. At 5-8, 200 lbs., he certainly looks out of place. But he is making good progress on the fundamentals and techniques considering that he is an undrafted rookie. He could become a fan favorite in training camp but it’s hard to see him making it higher than the practice squad.
—The more I watch NT Phil Taylor, the more I like his chances of making the team. He seems to be healthy and problems staying on the field are what kept him out of the league for the last two years. Of course, the pads have to go on in training camp before we get a solid idea of what the 343-pounder has left at age 29. I’ll still put him at less than 50-50 to make the team but he seems to be on the right path.
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—Free agent WR Brian Quick pulled up lame during individual drills and if he was in team drills it was only briefly. Word is that the coaches are not very happy with his progress in picking up the offense and his practice performance. He will have to turn things around in Richmond to make the team.
—In 11-on-11 work, Kirk Cousins launched one deep to a quadruple-covered Terrelle Pryor. The throw didn’t have enough on it and Josh Norman made the interception. It was one of two interceptions on the day for Cousins, who said that he decided to be a “little more aggressive” to see where his limits are.
—Rookie RB Samaje Perine made a nice run on a play with some counter action to it. He did a good job finding a lane going against the grain.
—In seven-on-seven, Cousins tried to hit Pryor deep again. This time he overthrew the pass and Pryor had to grab DJ Swearinger to prevent another interception.
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—Cousins’ second interception was the result of a mixup between quarterback and receiver. Josh Doctson cut his route short, Cousins thought he would keep going and Swearinger had an easy interception.
—It wasn’t just Cousins who had the interception bug. In red zone drills, CB Dashaun Phillips stepped in front of a Colt McCoy pass and took off down the sideline to the cheers of the defensive unit.
—There were a couple of successful red zone passes. Cousins fired one over the middle right into the arms of Pryor. Then Niles Paul reached up and hauled in a McCoy pass right at the goal line.
—Jay Gruden ended practice about 15 minutes early and sent the players off for the six-week break before training camp starts.
Stay up to date on the Redskins! Rich Tandler covers the team 365 days a year. Like his Facebook page Facebook.com/TandlerCSN and follow him on Twitter @Rich_TandlerCSN.