ASHBURN — Will Blackmon knows what it takes for a defense to weather a storm of injuries in the secondary.
The nine-year veteran cornerback helped the New York Giants do so in 2011 when they beat the New England Patriots, 21-17, in Super Bowl XLVI despite five cornerbacks being placed on injured reserve that season.
“You just make sure you’re training your depth,” Blackmon said. “That’s the most important part. You have faith that the veterans will be professionals and do their job, but it’s really important that you train your depth so that when their number is called they’re ready to go.”
It’s no surprise that Blackmon’s experience has been a steadying force in the Washington Redskins’ secondary, which has endured injuries to cornerbacks Bashaud Breeland, Chris Culliver, DeAngelo Hall and Justin Rogers, as well as safeties Duke Ihenacho and Trenton Robinson.
The latest and biggest blow came on Friday, when coach Jay Gruden confirmed Culliver will miss the remainder of the season after tearing his ACL and MCL in his right knee during Thursday’s practice. Breeland also missed Friday’s practice with an illness and is questionable for Sunday’s game.
Culliver missed three games because of a left knee injury earlier this season. When Culliver and Hall were both out in games against Atlanta, the New York Jets and Tampa Bay, the Redskins relied on Breeland and Blackmon, while rookie free safety Kyshoen Jarrett manned the slot.
The Redskins very well could return to that plan on Sunday against the New York Giants, though rookie cornerbacks Quinton Dunbar and Deshazor Everett could also see an increase in playing time.
“The cool thing with them is when they were on the practice squad, they competed every day, gave Kirk [Cousins] issues in practice,” Blackmon said. “They really tried to pick his passes off and did a great job adjusting to it. Fortunately for them, we have me, D-Gold [free safety Dashon Goldson], Cully, D-Hall as veterans in there to help them get up to speed.”
Perhaps the lone silver lining is that the Redskins have several interchangeable parts they can plug into the secondary. Jarrett emerged as a dependable nickel corner and played some snaps at safety last week against Carolina. He rotated with Jeron Johnson, who has started in place of struggling strong safety Trenton Robinson the last two games.
Hall, who returned in Week 10 against New Orleans after missing five games because of a toe sprain, has also been plugged in at strong safety at times. When Hall returned, Gruden felt confident in the pairing of Breeland and Culliver at cornerback, with Blackmon and Jarrett in sub packages. It was also less taxing for Hall to play safety than corner as he continues to recover from his toe injury.
Though losing Culliver was a big blow, Gruden is confident in the depth that has emerged at the position.
“We have some versatility back there,” Gruden said. “If there is a saving grace with all the injuries that we’ve had, we’ve had to try to intermingle everybody in different spots, so they all have a pretty good general knowledge of nickel, corner, safety. So I think we’ll have it covered.
“Blackmon can play nickel and he can play corner. Kyshoen can play nickel and safety. D-Hall can play corner and safety. So we have all the spots filled, but you’d like to have better continuity with them being in one spot longer, but it what it is. Like I said, [defensive coordinator] Joe [Barry] and [defensive backs coach Perry] Fewell will have those guys schooled up wherever they are.”
If Breeland is unable to play on Sunday — though Gruden is hopeful it is just 24-hour virus — Dunbar or Everett would likely be pressed into significant playing time.
Dunbar, who is 6-foot-2, converted from wide receiver to cornerback during training camp. At various points in the season, the Redskins coaches have said they see Dunbar’s length as an asset, so it’s possible he gets the nod over Everett, who is two inches shorter, on Sunday.
It’s been a trying first season in Washington for Culliver, who signed a four-year, $32 million contract as a free agent in the offseason.
He played the entire game against Philadelphia in Week 4 despite a left knee injury that would keep him out the next three games. He was also dealing with a shoulder injury, which he had examined the day before tearing his ACL and MCL.
“It was tough just because he’s one of our main guys,” Blackmon said. “I’ve got nothing but respect for Cully because he fought through adversity, tried to be out there for us. He could have easily sat out games, collected his check and instead he tried to be a competitor and truly tried to make a difference for this team. I’m just ready for wherever.
“Everyone is interchangeable, so that’s the one thing we’re not panicking about. We’ve been down this road before.”
• Anthony Gulizia can be reached at agulizia@washingtontimes.com.
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