Why are the Redskins paying Josh Norman $75 million to not cover Antonio Brown?
There were plenty of questions to be asked after the Washington Redskins were thumped by 22 points in their Monday night home opener against the Pittsburgh Steelers. Can Kirk Cousins recapture the magic that led to an NFC East title in 2015? Will the Redskins' running game be able to keep the defense off the field? And when that defense comes on the field -- a defense that was supposed to score a massive upgrade with former Panthers cornerback Josh Norman -- how can it avoid getting torched like Ben Roethlisberger and Antonio Brown did to it in Week 1?
The obvious answer to the last part -- and one that's been a popular discussion over the past 12 hours -- is that it never should have happened: Norman, who lined up on a side of the field, not against one a specific player, should have covered Brown, the best receiver in the league. Yet, for some reason, Norman was isolated on one side, playing Eli Rogers in his NFL debut, while Bashaud Breeland, the Redskins' other corner, was usually tasked with staying on Brown, who caught eight passes for 126 yards and two touchdowns.
Now, I'm not going to presume to know what was happening in the Redskins' meetings rooms this week, what was in the mind of Redskins defensive coordinator Joe Barry, and won't try and break down things down in terms of schemes and strategies. I can't pretend to know 1 percent of what NFL coaches and players know, and no amount of playing Madden or reading Football Outsiders will get me or you any closer.
But you can still question things (it's the American way!), and this one is simple: Why do you have Josh Norman if you aren't going to line him up on the best wide receiver in the NFL?
Norman stayed glued to the right side of the field, meaning he was locked into defending whichever Pittsburgh receiver lined up against him. So, Pittsburgh offensive coordinator Todd Haley simply moved Brown to the other side, opposite Breeland, and left Norman to defend a young receiver playing his first game. Of course he did. You don't pitch to Mike Trout when [name literally any other Angels player] is on deck. (It was actually amazing that Brown lined up against Norman even once. You'd think he'd have been kept away from him like he had the plague. When they're giving you a present, you open it every time.)
It was a question that was asked in all circles. Jon Gruden mentioned it on ESPN's broadcast, Norman's positioning was the hot topic of conversation on DC sports radio Tuesday morning, and every sports debate show on television will be asking the same thing throughout the day. You pay Norman $75 million and are going to line him up against Eli Freakin' Rogers, leaving Breeland on his own island against Brown? What? Why? How?
1. It's not as if Norman solely played on the right side of the field in Carolina. He was mostly there -- sure -- but in big games (like when the Panthers played Julio Jones and the Falcons twice a year) he would follow the receiver around the field.
2. But maybe this explains why the Panthers were willing to let Norman leave. There's been much speculation about why the Panthers let Norman go when he had time left on his contract. Did his desire to stay near one sideline help in his ouster? Paying top dollar for a guy who only wants to cover 50 percent of the field -- especially on a team with so many salary needs -- might not have been attractive.
3. As an example of how this can work, Gruden used Seattle's setup of having Richard Sherman permanently ensconced on the opposite side of the field as Norman. Sherman stays left almost exclusively, and it's been a boon to one of the best defenses in the NFL. It's a great point except that the Redskins aren't the Seahawks. They don't have Earl Thomas and Kam Chancellor -- two of the best safeties in the league -- playing behind the corners. They don't have a defensive line for which run stopping is aspirational. If you have the defensive depth, you can afford to put Norman wherever he wants. The Redskins don't. Then again, it's not as if Haley couldn't have shifted the offense with screens or motion had Norman lined up directly on Brown. The Redskins just made it easy for him.
4. Just move him! For five years, $75 million, he should have learned to be long snapper if the coaching staff had asked.
5. The Redskins trusted Breeland. Breeland isn't Norman, but he's not exactly a replacement player. He was a revelation for the 2015 Redskins en route to that playoff berth. Sure, he's not making anybody in D.C. forget about Darrell Green, but he was good enough to put on Brown with the reasonable expectation that Brown wouldn't go Jerry Rice on him. Breeland is a professional football player, not some bum they pulled from a tailgate. He should be able to do a decent job on Brown.
6. Sometimes you just get kicked in the teeth. On the first touchdown pass to Brown, a 26-yard pass on fourth-and-1, Breeland had perfect coverage and had a chance to get his hands on the ball. But the pass was a bit high and Brown, who was behind him, jumped up and caught the perfect ball in the end zone. It was an exceptional pass and catch. Breeland got beat on the other touchdown (while playing in press coverage, which made the curious curiouser), but it was hardly an embarrassment. Roethlisberger and Brown were just better. If the 'Skins had caught them on an off week, the Norman thing might not have even been mentioned.
Norman summed it up best. "They had an excellent game plan," he said, "they executed it flawlessly, they took us behind the woodshed -- a good ol' fashioned butt-whuppin."
It happens.
