Redskins Go on Defensive About Their Line Play

Although they aren’t quite cocky enough to come out and say it, the Philadelphia Eagles apparently believe they will be able to exploit the middle of the Redskins’ defense when they visit Washington’s RFK Stadium this Sunday.

It is a sensation the Redskins can readily understand, given their yield of 394 yards, 159 of them rushing, in Monday’s 27-24 loss to the New York Giants.

“They should be feeling that way; if they saw films of the Giants’ game, it stands to reason they’d think that way,” linebacker coach Larry Peccatiello said at Redskin Park. “We didn’t do a good job in the middle of our defense against the run.”

But the performance has not caused the Redskins to look elsewhere for help. “Defensive linemen are always thin (in quantity ) and we just feel we can go with what we have,” General Manager Charley Casserly said. “We need to play better than we did the other night, and I’m sure we will play better. But right now the plan is to go with what’s here and we’ll evaluate at the end of the game.”

The Redskins have a pair of rookie linemen, Lybrant Robinson and Pat Marbatt, on the six-man developmental squad, but either would have to pass through waivers before being activated. Earlier this week, Washington brought in at least two linemen, 33-year-old Mike Stensrud, who has played with Houston and Kansas City, and Nate Hill for tryouts.

In Monday’s game, middle linebacker Neal Olkewicz had four tackles and two assists, and defensive tackle Darryl Grant excelled with two tackles and 1 1/2 sacks, but Markus Koch played virtually the entire game without a tackle during the humid, balmy evening.

Koch has played with a dislocated knuckle in his left hand since late in the pre-season. The converted end, who appeared to be shouldering much of the blame for New York’s success, declined to comment, joking that any talking he did would have to be in German. As it was, both teammates and coaches came to his defense.

“We hadn’t played Markus there much, but Monday wasn’t one person’s fault; it was team breakdown,” said defensive-line coach Torgy Torgeson.

“We have to perform better as a team and we’re going to get the job done now,” said defensive end Dexter Manley. “I truly believe that because I believe in my teammates. I’m sure the Eagles feel they can come right back and run against us because the Giants were successful at it. Fine. I’m supposed to be the weak one on the line, tell ‘em to run at me, me and Darryl.”

Given the weather, it seemed natural that rookie defensive tackle Tracy Rocker would see plenty of action, but the third-round draft choice’s activity was limited to occasional short-yardage and special-teams play.

“I just have to wait for my turn,” Rocker said. “I’m not upset or anything, the guys that were in there were doing a good job.”

Despite having players in for a look, the Redskins are not expected to make a roster move on the defensive line. “I’m concerned. We have to play better than we did last week,” Coach Joe Gibbs said. “We didn’t substitute too much; we were able to use some packages that gave the guys a rest when they needed it. We were going to do that anyway; right now we still have six healthy defensive linemen so we’re okay. If it got down to four you’d be a little worried.”

Gibbs and Torgeson felt that talk of vulnerability and short-handedness would be a moot point if the Redskins had played with more consistency against the Giants.

The Giants’ 159 rushing yards and 4.3-yard-per-carry average were both higher than Washington’s prescribed goals, but both coaches said the Redskins’ defense was in control except for a few lapses that led to big plays. Gibbs said this is an area the Redskins were “trying to make a special emphasis.”

Some think the Eagles are intent on making quarterback Randall Cunningham a picture-perfect pocket passer. That could work in the Redskins’ favor because, as evidenced by Cunningham’s status as the team’s leading rusher the last two seasons (the first quarterback to accomplish that since Green Bay’s Tobin Rote in 1951-52), the rest of Philadelphia’s ground game has been mediocre.

Of course, the same was being said about the Giants without the injured Joe Morris. But the Redskins say reputation won’t matter as much as actual performance.

“We have to have better technique and just beat more blockers,” Peccatiello said. “We just have to play better.”