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Washington Commanders seventh-round draft pick, Jacory Croskey-Merritt is turning heads at training camp, and they're only two days into it. Head coach Dan Quinn was asked what jumps out to him about Croskey-Merrit, and how does he fit into the running backs room?
"Yeah, at that position, like I said, it's a hard one to evaluate in non-pads because you don't know, did the person make the tackle? Did he break the tackle? And so it's the offensive line, the defensive line, the running backs are sometimes the hardest," he said. "But what you can evaluate is the explosion on the cut, the assignment, was the read correct Having Anthony (Lynn, running backs coach) here is a really big deal, from a running back standpoint. He's got so much experience and can give the insight to the players to absolutely get them right.
"But I think it's the violence of the cuts," he continued regarding Croskey-Merritt. "That he can get his shoulders square and get downhill fast, so I'm very excited to see, once we get into some opportunities. Does he get tackled? Does he not? Does he run through some? But he's off to a really good start."
The 245th overall pick, Croskey-Merritt was almost Mr. Irrelevant. But he's proving that his six seasons of collegiate experience were worth it. He played four seasons at Alabama State before transferring for one season to the University of New Mexico, finishing up his career at Arizona. Croskey-Merritt's draft status was hurt by an NCAA eligibility issue that cost him most of his final season at Arizona. He has spent the most time as a running back, but he has also been used as a receiver and a return man on special teams.
If Croskey-Merritt doesn't see time on the field as a running back this fall, expect to see him on special teams at some point, especially if he keeps getting the attention of Dan Quinn.
This article originally appeared on Commanders Wire: Dan Quinn says Jacory Croskey-Merritt is 'off to a really good start'
Continue reading...
"Yeah, at that position, like I said, it's a hard one to evaluate in non-pads because you don't know, did the person make the tackle? Did he break the tackle? And so it's the offensive line, the defensive line, the running backs are sometimes the hardest," he said. "But what you can evaluate is the explosion on the cut, the assignment, was the read correct Having Anthony (Lynn, running backs coach) here is a really big deal, from a running back standpoint. He's got so much experience and can give the insight to the players to absolutely get them right.
"But I think it's the violence of the cuts," he continued regarding Croskey-Merritt. "That he can get his shoulders square and get downhill fast, so I'm very excited to see, once we get into some opportunities. Does he get tackled? Does he not? Does he run through some? But he's off to a really good start."
The 245th overall pick, Croskey-Merritt was almost Mr. Irrelevant. But he's proving that his six seasons of collegiate experience were worth it. He played four seasons at Alabama State before transferring for one season to the University of New Mexico, finishing up his career at Arizona. Croskey-Merritt's draft status was hurt by an NCAA eligibility issue that cost him most of his final season at Arizona. He has spent the most time as a running back, but he has also been used as a receiver and a return man on special teams.
If Croskey-Merritt doesn't see time on the field as a running back this fall, expect to see him on special teams at some point, especially if he keeps getting the attention of Dan Quinn.
This article originally appeared on Commanders Wire: Dan Quinn says Jacory Croskey-Merritt is 'off to a really good start'
Continue reading...