Five Chief Concerns

There is not much going on in football. The standard everybody is going to the Super Bowl Stuff.

The chief worries in Washington are:

1. The Owner

2. The Offensive Line

3. The Offensive Line Coach

4. The Size of Emmanuel Forbes

5. The Quarterback

The Quarterback is always a chief worry in Washington, even when the position is solid. People want confirmation of Sam Howell's worthiness. My feeling is he will at the least be good enough. Good enough is good enough to win and go to the playoffs. Jacoby Brissett is also good enough in almost the exact same measure. But nothing will be known for sure until four or five games into the regular season.

The size of Emmanuel Forbes is unimportant. There will be NFL head games played. Other teams will try to run right at him if only to crush his psyche. See, all the talking heads are right about you. You're so bony I can walk my dog with you. But Forbes will be OK. He might create a takeaway mindset in team-mates. That'd be good.

The Offensive Line Coach is Travelle Wharton. I guess we have to wait for the Owner's arrival to get confirmation.

The Offensive Line was improved by free agency and the draft. Is it enough? It badly needs healthy players. People who don't play aren't going to help. It is going to come down to health. I wish it came down to talent. But that isn't the history here the last few years. The "best" players tend to be on the injured list. That has to change or really we're not going to advance beyond last year's win total.

There are ways to compensate. They say run the ball to hide a bad line. That worked a little bit last year. You can also play the young guys. Just bite the bullet and put youth on the field. And run the ball.

But we won't know about the line until the season is half over. It is hoped they are improved enough that we'll be able to say they are good enough. It is the same as the QBs. Good enough will win and make the playoffs.

Good enough should permit the passing game to function well enough to score more points than last year. It is a scandal to have the receivers we do and not get them the "damn ball".

Of course, the chief concerns could take on a new character when the new owner gets here and gives the go-aheads necessary to make further gains.