FanHouse DevinThomas

As the Redskins go through mini-camps this spring, the most important development will be how things progress with their starting quarterback, Jason Campbell. It's no secret the Redskins pursued other options during the offseason, only to come up short and end up "stuck" with the 27-year-old Auburn product.

After three seasons, and finally one full one, under his belt, it's time for Campbell to take the next step and become a franchise quarterback. Finally getting a second season in the same offensive system -- 2009 will be the first time -- is a great start for the 6-foot-5 signal-caller. He's also getting more comfortable in his leadership role.

With the draft approaching, we ignore projections and identify the dream scenario for each team in a series we call The Perfect Draft.

The Redskins made the biggest early splash this offseason, luring beastly defensive tackle Albert Haynesworth from Tennessee to anchor their defensive line. Their work, however, is not done. Unfortunately for Washington, it plays in arguably the best division in the NFL. Fortunately, the few holes the Redskins still have on their roster should be perfectly fixable. In fact, many could be done in-house, with younger players developing further.

Devin Thomas, a second-round pick of the Redskins in last year's draft, can make a significant impact on the Washington offense this season. If he shows some of the talent we saw at Michigan State, he gives Jason Campbell another weapon -- a much more explosive one than Antwaan Randle-El -- through the air.

For Thomas' part, he's certainly doing his part in staying relevant this offseason. There was a dispute as to whether or not he was showing up to voluntary workouts (he did). Now, we've stumbled upon his personal blog post where he talks about having more than one chip on his shoulder (note: this was posted a few weeks ago, but seeing as how there are less than 100 page views, not many people knew about it).

On Wednesday, I wrote that Redskins wide receiver Devin Thomas should probably make an effort to show up for voluntary workouts since his rookie season was, to say the least, underwhelming.

Well, thanks to a heads-up from FanHouse commenter Adam -- in addition to others -- it looks like Thomas has made his way to Redskins Park. And the only reason he missed the first few days of training was because he was at Michigan St. helping some of his former college teammates prepare for their pro day.

Twelve months ago, Devin Thomas was making his way up draft boards after an outstanding junior season at Michigan State and impressive combine and Pro Day performances. The previous fall, he had hauled in 79 passes for the Spartans, and then busted out a 4.40-40 in Indianapolis in February. By April, He would be the second wide receiver selected, going 34th overall to the Redskins.

In the weeks leading up to the draft, NFL Network's Mike Mayock admitted that Thomas had all the physical attributes teams look for in a wideout -- deep speed, the ability to get off the line of scrimmage and a knack for coming down with jump balls -- but he also cautioned that Thomas' junior season could be an anomaly.

Because the NFL season never ends, we present our 2009 Offseason Roadmaps for front offices to navigate through the summer.

The Redskins stormed out of the gate in Jim Zorn's first season as head coach, running their record to 6-2 at the halfway point. The second half of the season, unfortunately, was perfectly symmetrical -- they went 2-6 to finish 8-8.

They could have won three of those games in best-case scenarios, but the best teams come through instead of talking about what could have been. The reality is that the Redskins only played a half-season in '08.

One of the rallying cries for the Redskins during this season is that they are not the same team that were embarrassed by the Giants in Week 1. The team would win six of their next seven games and launch themselves into the playoff chase.

So when the Giants walked into D.C. today and pounded the Redskins, 23-7, you actually can tell what type of team Washington is.

Since their 6-2 start, they've lost at home to the Steelers, Cowboys and Giants in, basically, the same fashion: they were out-physicalled. The Giants dominated this game on both sides of the ball, controlling the ball for ten more minutes than the Redskins and racking up 404 yards of offense.

Four months ago, the Redskins used their three second-round picks on skill-position players. Specifically pass catchers, presumably in an effort to bolster a pretty pedestrian offense. Makes sense and unlike previous Danny-tastic personnel moves, selecting Devin Thomas, Malcolm Kelly and Fred Davis was understandable (if excessive).

Well, Washington's season begins Thursday night against the Giants, and both Thomas and Kelly have been supremely ineffective. This makes Jason Campbell very, very sad.

"I'd be lying if I said I wasn't disappointed about that," he said about Thomas and Kelly. "We had so much expectation for those guys contributing to our offense. I thought we'd grow together quickly. I went over to their place and visited with them about everything. I told them this was the real deal. They needed to show up on time for meetings and to study. We need them out there."

I guess Campbell's already given up on Davis.

To Thomas' credit, he admits to having trouble adjusting to life in the NFL.

The Jim Zorn era officially begins on Thursday, when the Redskins face the Giants in the regular-season opener. Despite a shiny, new offense and a retooled roster that includes a less insane punter, Washington has struggled on both sides of the ball during the preseason.

The team traded for Jason Taylor after Phillip Daniels was lost for the season with a torn ACL. Taylor would later injure his knee in the 'Skins' third preseason game and now it looks like he won't be available for Week 1.

Jason Taylor, who is out with a sprained knee/bone bruise, worked before practice with trainers but did nothing on the practice field. He, too, seems unlikely to play, but Zorn said the team will evaluate him right up through Thursday's warm-ups before making a final call. "Based on today, there's no way, but that's going to be a game-time decision." ...

Told ya. More proof that God has something against Dan Snyder: No. 2 wideout Antwaan Randle El has a broken bone in his left hand. He'll play against the Giants, however, but will have to wear a protective brace. That should hinder his ability to catch the ball.

Another day, another practice, another injury for the Washington Redskins.

After losing Phillip Daniels and Alex Buzbee for the season ... and Fred Smoot for a week or so ... now top draft pick Devin Thomas pulls a hamstring and is carted off the field.

Coach Jim Zorn says the team doesn't immediately know the extent of the injury.

Thomas was hurt Thursday while reaching over his head to catch a pass from quarterback Jason Campbell during 11-on-11 drills.

Washington also lost another defensive end ... Chris Wilson ... to a calf injury. Oh, and Clinton Portis probably won't play in the Hall of Fame game next week after turning his ankle. Pro-Bowler Chris Samuels is missing practices due to his surgically repaired shoulder acting up while Antwaan Randle El and Santana Moss aren't practicing either. And the batcave has been destroyed!

Zorn must feel like he's in a daze with all these injuries piling up around him. In the NFL, these things happen and there is always one team that seems to get bit hard in the preseason. This year, it looks like it is the "Z-man's" team.