We all know that Washington Redskins DE Chase Young is a rare athletic specimen who has the ability to explode off the line and make life hard on the opposing quarterback, and we saw Ohio State use him well in 2019, spurring him on to a total of 16.5 sacks in 14 games. So how will the Redskins use him in the NFL?
That we don’t quite know yet.
While the coaching staff in Washington is obviously excited that they could bring Young to the Redskins with the No. 2 pick in the NFL Draft, they haven’t yet divulged how they plan to use him on defense. The team is in the midst of a scheme transition from a 3-4 front to a 4-3, and figuring out where Young fits there is a bit up in the air to the public at the moment, and the coaches won’t likely know the perfect way to utilize him until they get a chance to see him work in person.
“You have to be realistic about that and know that there are certain times and situations where you’ve got to rotate him out,” coach Ron Rivera said, via Redskins.com. “So, what we’d like to do is get him out there, get him going, see where he’s going to fit and then from that point use him, but use him the right way.”
One thing that the coaching staff does know, though, is that the embarrassment of talent they have on the front line will allow them to rotate in and out regularly, keeping players fresh while not missing a beat on the field. The Redskins depth up front consists of Young, Montez Sweat, Daron Payne, Jonathan Allen, Matt Ioannidis, and Ryan Kerrigan — that group with fresh legs deep into a game? Forget about it. So while he could stake his claim among the starters, don’t be surprised to see Young rotate in and out with the second unit as well.
“Chase could be in there with one group of guys and rotate, and the next thing you know he’s in with another group, but we’re going to use him to be a dynamic player,” Rivera said.
A dynamic player rushing alongside a dynamic defensive front, with arguably the perfect coach to overlook it all. We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again — the 2020 season can’t come soon enough.
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