ESPN’s Bill Barnwell not high on Washington’s offensive weapons

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The Washington Football Team made major upgrades at the wide receiver position in the offseason. Washington’s big splash in free agency was former Carolina Panther Curtis Samuel.

The Football Team also brought in veteran slot receiver Adam Humphries and used a third-round pick on the dynamic Dyami Brown of North Carolina.

Samuel is coming off a career year and gives offensive coordinator Scott Turner plenty of options. He can line up everywhere. Humphries is reliable, and his best years were with quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick in Tampa Bay.

Brown is a big play waiting to happen. He went over 1,000 yards in each of the last two seasons and averaged over 20 yards per reception.

Washington is hoping that Samuel, Humphries and Brown paired with Terry McLaurin and Fitzpatrick will give the team a much-improved offense in 2021.

Bill Barnwell of ESPN recently ranked every NFL team’s offensive weapons from 1-32 and, surprisingly, has Washington at No. 24.

Now, offensive weapons include running back and tight end, too. Washington returns a strong duo at running back in Antonio Gibson and J.D. McKissic. Tight end Logan Thomas caught 72 passes last season.

There were signs of life around Terry McLaurin last season! At running back, Antonio Gibson was a Week 1 starter and proved to be an effective player despite his lack of experience, averaging 4.7 yards per carry while finishing sixth in the league in DVOA. The other surprising seasons weren’t quite as impressive; J.D. McKissic’s 80-catch effort was mostly a product of Alex Smith tossing the former Seahawks tailback checkdowns, while Logan Thomas ranked 35th among tight ends in yards per target. They were both more effective in fantasy football than the real thing.

All of those players return to the fold, though, and Washington supplemented this group by bringing in Curtis Samuel, who produced 1,051 yards from scrimmage for Carolina a year ago. Samuel should be more efficient and explosive with his touches than either McKissic or Thomas were in 2020. The more Washington can concentrate the football into the hands of its three top weapons, the better it will be on offense. Veteran quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick had no qualms about tossing the ball up to Mike Evans and Chris Godwin in 2019.

Barnwell didn’t say anything really negative about Washington’s group. He isn’t as high on J.D. McKissic, and his comment about being Smith’s primary checkdown was correct. However, Thomas did more on the field than he gets credit for. Considering his level of experience, it was an amazing season for the former quarterback.

Until this group of skill players does it on the field this season, you really can’t dispute ranking them in the bottom third of the league.

The Philadelphia Eagles were the only NFC East team ranked lower than Washington.