One school of thought is that teams which bring back their entire coaching staffs and key starters will be at a big advantage in the 2020 season if there are no OTAs and shortened camps because of the familiarity factor. The Washington Redskins, though, have an entirely new coaching staff, led by head coach Ron Rivera and offensive coordinator Scott Turner – both from Carolina.
Incumbent Redskins starting quarterback Dwayne Haskins, who was rather inconsistent in limited time as a rookie in 2019, has never worked with either. However, presumed No. 2 Kyle Allen was acquired by Rivera last month in a trade from the Panthers and thus is with the offense Turner will be installing. And that could be what leads Allen to starting Week 1 – the NFL schedule will be released by May 9 – over Haskins if training camp is shortened, according to Rivera.
"If that was the situation Kyle would have a leg up on the situation, most certainly. … If we were told, hey, you've got two weeks to go, I would feel very comfortable with Kyle because here's a guy that knows the system, has been in the system and could handle it for us for a period of time, and we'll see how that goes," Rivera said to SI.com. "That's kind of the thought process behind it for us."
Allen was 6-7 in his two-year career with the Panthers as a starter. He was very good early last year after replacing an injured Cam Newton but then faded big-time down the stretch. Haskins, the No. 15 overall pick out of Ohio State last year, went 2-5 in his seven starts.
Washington's early-season slate also could affect Rivera's decision under center. The Redskins have the fifth-easiest strength of schedule in the NFL in 2020 in terms of their opponents' combined winning percentage of .465 last year (118-136-2). The Skins do host the Panthers.
At William Hill sportsbook, Washington is given an Over/Under win total of 5.5, with the Under a slight favorite. Early projections have the Skins as betting favorites in just two games: at home vs. the Panthers and Bengals.
