Trent Murphy had spent the offseason becoming a larger human. He was done playing linebacker for the Washington Redskins, he thought, and added weight to fill a need at defensive lineman. Murphy worked out in Scottsdale, Arizona, to add the necessary bulk for a position transition.
When Junior Galette first tore his right Achilles tendon before training camp, the Redskins still had Murphy at defensive end. After a week of training camp in Richmond, they moved him back to linebacker.
Without Galette, the pass rush from linebackers became a key concern for Washington. Ryan Kerrigan had been to the Pro Bowl in 2012, so the Redskins were sure about one of the pass-rushing linebackers. Murphy, who was trying shed the 32 pounds he gained in the offseason and Preston Smith were each projects in their own way.
Move to midway through the season. Kerrigan and Murphy each have seven sacks, tying them for eighth in the NFL and placing the duo just three back of sack leaders Lorenzo Alexander of the Buffalo Bills and Dee Ford of the Kansas City Chiefs, who have 10 sacks apiece. Washington is one of two teams with two players among the top eight in sacks. The other is the Seattle Seahawks, led by Cliff Avril (9) and Frank Clark (7.5). As a team, Washington is tied for fifth in the NFL in sacks. They have evolved from a passive three-man rush unit on crucial downs to a blitzing aggressor. The outside linebackers have been a large influence on that.
The Redskins now would like to figure out how to make Smith a consistent part of the pass rush. Sunday, he more than doubled his season sack total by picking up two, boosting him to 3.5 sacks. Smith had eight sacks his rookie season in 2015. He had a minimalist influence on this season until Sunday, a situation that left him desperate and Washington coach Jay Gruden harping on Smith to do better.
“Earlier in the season, he was getting frustrated,” linebacker Su’a Cravens said of Smith. “Saying, ’I got to do something.’”
If he could face quarterback Sam Bradford each week, Smith would have a chance to lead the league in sacks. There’s nothing in either player’s biography that tethers them together. Bradford grew up in Oklahoma, played for Oklahoma and became the No. 1 overall pick in 2010. Smith is a Georgia kid who played his college football at Mississippi State and was drafted in the second round in 2015. Yet, when they get on the same football field, there seems to be a connection.
Of Smith’s 11.5 sacks in his first season-plus as a pro, six have been of Bradford. In Week 4 of the 2015 season, Smith hauled down Bradford once. In Week 15 of that year, Smith sacked Bradford three more times. Then, twice in Sunday’s win.
“I think he’s my good-luck charm,” Smith said. “He makes it so easy to get a sack against him.”
Smith even theorized there was a magnetic connection between the two.
That Smith is yet to achieve as expected provides both disappointment and hope for the Redskins. While explaining his winning plays to the media Sunday in the locker room, he was also being playfully heckled from behind by veteran defensive linemen who wanted Smith to talk about why the coaches were “cussing” him out just before his game-altering interception and game-sealing second sack.
“He’s been close a lot this season,” Kerrigan said. “I don’t know how many sacks he’s had so far, but he’s close on a lot of plays and it’s good to see him finish those plays [Sunday].”
Smith’s short track record could be cause for inspiration. Last season, he had six of his eight sacks in Washington’s final seven games. If he puts together a similar run, the Redskins will have three of the league’s better pass-rushing threats at linebacker, a position that was in question when they kicked off in September.
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