FPC Roundtable: Who is a Potential Breakout Candidate for Washington?

Each and every year an “unknown” NFL player will walk onto a practice field and make a name for himself.

Last year, Washington had several candidates fall under this category, with the meteoric rise of safety Kam Curl and tight end Logan Thomas.

Sure, Thomas had some starting NFL experience. But no one predicted that he would breakout to the tune of 72 catches, 670 yards and six touchdowns. Shoot, he actually doubled his career total (35) of receptions in one season.

This year, the crew at Full Press Coverage Washington were tasked to identify a candidate who would truly go “next level” with their performance heading into next season and beyond.

Hence the Question: “Who is Washington’s Breakout Candidate for Next Season?” and the responses below.

Take a look and let us know what you think…

Staff Writer Tony Wheat, @TonyJWheat

Benjamin St Juste: Regarded as a reach by many, St-Juste turned heads at mini camp with his relentless drive and play-making ability. Coaches and reporters raved about St-Juste’s pleasing habit of breaking up passes and general awareness. It’s wise to be wary of mini-camp stars, but St-Juste appears to have the size (6ft 3 and 200lbs) and short area quickness to make an impact when it counts.

Playing behind a potentially dominant defensive line, the emergence of St-Juste could be a real fillip for a secondary that already contains William Jackson and Kendall Fuller, and may allow some flexibility for moving guys around.

For St-Juste, a strong training camp following his excellent first impression in the spring, could propel him into the starting lineup, which would be a great early return on investment for Ron Rivera.

Jackson, Fuller and St-Juste could be a potentially formidable threesome to supplement a strong pass rush and the added coverage skills of first round pick LB, Jamin Davis.

Staff Writer Trevor Stores, @TrevStoresWFT

William Jackson III is flying under the radar, and that’s the way we like to be. The big ticket FA signing out of Cincy is known for his lockdown man coverage, something WFT DBs have been lacking in recent years.  He is the perfect complement to Kyle Fuller who is a sneaky good ball hawk himself. Playing behind a stout D-Line and high octane LB group should provide more opportunities for WJ3 to make plays.

I believe he lands in the top-five CB conversation in terms of INTS, making this his breakout season. He’s already shown he can be a dynamic defensive back. This year is where he puts it all together.

Staff Writer George Carmi, @Gcarmi21

I’m going to go a little outside of the box and make a claim for my guy, Cole Holcomb. The 2019, 5th-round pick was known to be a developmental linebacker coming out of UNC, and I think the best is yet to come for the former Tarheel.

Coming out of Chapel Hill, Holcomb posted a 4.56 40-yard dash and a 10.91 speed score according to Player Profiler. Both of these traits places Holcomb in the 90th and 96th percentile in his draft class.

Considered a coverage backer coming out of college, Holcomb is now learning the nuances of playing linebacker at the pro level and is steadily improving his standing with Coaches Ron Rivera and Jack Del Rio. After missing weeks 2-5 last year due to a knee injury, his snap count grew exponentially. In fact, he approached nearly 70 snaps a game in the final three contests of the season as the starting WILL backer.

He also played 97% of the defensive snaps in the playoff game against Tampa Bay, recording seven tackles.

I envision Holcomb as the starting WILL Backer paired with rookie Jamin Davis who will man the middle. This pairing would create a dynamic, athletic group who can run down ball carriers and be disruptive in the pass game. Both LBs would offer sub-4.6 speed and the potential to stay on the field in Nickel situations.

Write Holcomb down for 80+ tackles next season, with a handful of interceptions and a few sacks. And put that in pen.

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