Washington Redskins: Early impressions from rookie minicamp

The Washington Redskins began rookie minicamp on Friday with media availability. Which players stood out?

The Washington Redskins opened rookie minicamp on Friday, and, as expected, much of the attention was focused on first-round pick Da’Ron Payne and second-round running back Derrius Guice.

Those players didn’t disappoint, particularly Guice, who head coach Jay Gruden described as a “ball of energy.”

Outside of Payne and Guice, there were 72 others participating on the opening day of this rookie minicamp. Of those players, 46 are rookies competing this weekend on a tryout basis, eight are draft picks, six are first-year players who spent time on Washington’s roster last year and the remaining are the 14 undrafted free agents the team signed after the 2018 NFL Draft.

In some surprising news, one of the team’s undrafted free agents, Iowa offensive lineman Sean Welsh, unexpectedly retired after practice. Welsh had a really good shot of making the team as a backup interior lineman this season. The Redskins still don’t have a starting left guard and little depth on the interior. Welsh received the highest bonus ($15K) of any rookie free agent the Redskins signed, along with Timon Parris.

As far as on-field drills, some players did stand out. Mr. Irrelevant, wide receiver Trey Quinn, put on a clinic with his route running and hands. Already a favorite of Gruden, Quinn has an outstanding opportunity in front of him when the entire team reports for a full-squad minicamp. If Quinn can beat veteran defensive backs, he’ll earn a roster spot as a backup receiver this fall.

Fellow seventh-round pick, cornerback Greg Stroman of Virginia Tech, looked good in drills. Stroman also fielded punts, in addition to his duties at corner. If Stroman shows promise as a punt returner — he was an outstanding punt returner in college — then he’ll force his way onto the roster. Defensive backs coach Torrian Gray recruited Stroman out of high school and coached him two years in college.

In his meeting with the media after practice, Gruden spoke about numerous players. One player he spoke of was undrafted free agent Quin Blanding. A four-year starter at safety from the University of Virginia, Blanding surprisingly wasn’t drafted. The Redskins quickly signed Blanding and Gruden believes he stands a good chance of sticking around. One thing Blanding does well is tackle. He could find a role but he’ll need to show coaches he isn’t a liability coverage.

Unfortunately, the media doesn’t have access to the rest of the weekend’s practices but, thankfully, they did get this gem of a video of defensive line coach Jim Tomsula coaching his guys up.

There’s still plenty more of offseason workouts on the horizon, but things are looking promising for the young guys in Redskins camp.