Washington Football Team: Landon Collins at linebacker worth a try

The Washington Football Team has an elite defense, could Landon Collins at linebacker make them even more formidable?

The Washington Football Team rode an elite defense to the NFC East title in 2020. This offseason, they’ve managed to make it even better. Not only will be getting the progression of young superstars like Chase Young, Kamren Curl, and Montez Sweat but they’ve added some great talent as well.

One great piece they just added was safety Bobby McCain. McCain was a captain for the Miami Dolphins and has plenty of flexibility. Due to that, you could see Washington trying to move him around so they can keep Curl and Landon Collins on the field at all times as well.

However, they could also try something that’s been brought up a few times over the last few years: moving Collins to linebacker.

This is something that’s been kicked around in the past. By no means is it a new idea — but that doesn’t mean it shouldn’t be brought up again though. It makes sense too. Collins is known for his run support but struggles a little bit in coverage. Most of his best plays with Washington so far have come when he was rushing.

Now imagine Collins as a linebacker. He’s suddenly an elite coverage backer while having elite speed for pass rushing and run support. At 6-0, 216 pounds it’s not like he’s undersized either. He’s maybe a little light, but nothing that crazy. Collins has shown he can hit hard and get to the hole already so it clearly won’t affect him all that much.

The big issue here would be that he might not be too thrilled with the position change, especially considering that Washington has stated multiple times they see him as a safety.

And sure, you could run three-safety sets. That’s especially true with McCain and Curl both having past experience as cornerbacks, so the coverage won’t suffer much. But you could run those same three-safety sets with Collins set up as a linebacker. You wouldn’t even have to label him as a backer; you could just run him out there in a more “roam-happy” position.

Collins flying around the field could be extremely fun to watch. His unique skill set and combination of size, speed, strength, and athleticism could make him an elite defender once again.

The Washington Football Team will have an elite defense in 2021. There are too many major pieces for them to fail on that side of the ball. Why not utilize everyone’s best talents? For Landon Collins, keeping him out of coverage and letting him hit more would be perfect.