Jason Taylor

Damn, I'm a crappy blogger. I haven't touched this site in months, but felt inspired by the Redskins trade of 2 draft picks to Miami for Jason Taylor. I think this is a great move even if Taylor might not be around for more than a year. There will be a lot of question marks with the Redskins this year with the Jim Zorn era starting. However, if he does a decent job handling the team, they have the talent here already to make the playoffs. Hell...they did it last season despite losing some games that they never should have.

Now that Taylor is in the fold the Redskins have a chance to become an elite NFC team. A great defensive end can immensely improve the play of the other 10 guys on the defense. Look at the current Super Bowl champs. Would the Giants have won with all of Eli Manning's blunders if Michael Strahan had not come back for another year of football? I would argue against that.

So will Jason Taylor have a Strahan-esque influence on the Redskins D? The guy he is replacing, Phillip Daniels, had just 2.5 sacks last season. I have no doubt that Taylor will far exceed that number if he stays healthy. And staying healthy doesn't appear to be an "if." Just looking at Taylor you can tell that he keeps himself in amazing shape. However, he has started all 16 games each season since 2000. He has had single digit sacks for the season just twice in that stretch, and both years he wasn't far off from 10.

For the last few seasons Redskins fans have complained during draft time that the 'Skins needed a pass rushing defensive lineman. They never acquired that guy during the draft, but they have done so now. Their defense should be a lot better this season, assuming it doesn't fall to pieces without Gregg Williams. A legitimate pass rush from the D-line will mean more turnovers and 3rd and longs. I feel the defense will provide Jason Campbell and the offense with a lot more easy scoring opportunities this season. Welcome Jason...and that #55 looks damn good for the Burgundy and Gold.