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5 breakout stars to watch for Washington Redskins in 2020

By Russell S. Baxter

INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA - FEBRUARY 26: Head coach Ron Rivera of the Washington Redskins interviews during the second day of the 2020 NFL Scouting Combine at Lucas Oil Stadium on February 26, 2020 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Alika Jenner/Getty Images)
INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA - FEBRUARY 26: Head coach Ron Rivera of the Washington Redskins interviews during the second day of the 2020 NFL Scouting Combine at Lucas Oil Stadium on February 26, 2020 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Alika Jenner/Getty Images) /
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Photo by Jacob Kupferman/Getty Images
Photo by Jacob Kupferman/Getty Images /

2. DT Matt Ioannidis

Earlier this year, new defensive coordinator Jack Del Rio made it perfectly clear that the Washington Redskins (via Larry Michael of Redskins Nation) would be making the move from the 3-4 to the 4-3.

“Well, you’ve got guys like Montez Sweat, [Ryan] Kerrigan. These are guys that are some of your premier edge rushers. And it just makes more sense to have them covering less and rushing more. I’ll keep it as simple as that. It’s just philosophy…When Ron and I talked about the roster, talked about the fit, talked about the people that we have here and that we can build around and we can grow with then for both of us, it was obvious that a 4-3 would be a good fit.”

The ‘Skins certainly have their share of first-round talent on the defensive front. Along with the aforementioned Sweat (7.0) and Kerrigan (5.5), there’s also Jonathan Allen (6.0) and Daron Payne (2.0). That quartet alone accounted for 20.5 of the club’s 46 sacks this past season.

But the performer who actually led Washington in quarterback traps in 2019 was versatile Matt Ioannidis, a 2016 fifth-round pick from Temple who set career-bests this past year in games played (16), starts (15), tackles (64) and sacks (8.5). His ability to play inside or outside gives Del Rio plenty of options.

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