1 of 2 | Carolina Panthers wide receiver Ted Ginn Jr. tries to break free from New Orleans Saints linebacker Junior Galette. UPI/Nell Redmond . |
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ASHBURN, Va. -- As if coach Jay Gruden needed more bad news in his second season with Washington after a 4-12 debut and a continued sputtering performance this summer, the Redskins lost projected starting outside linebacker Junior Galette to a torn left Achilles tendon Wednesday.
Washington signed Galette on July 31, just four days after the 27-year-old was let go by the New Orleans Saints because of bad behavior on the sideline and allegedly off the field. There were questions about whether he might be suspended for some amount of time. Now he is out of the season.
Galette, whose 22 sacks the past two seasons for the Saints ranked third among NFL linebackers, was expected to team with fellow outside linebacker Ryan Kerrigan -- 13.5 sacks in 2014 -- to give the Redskins a better pass rush tandem than they had in Kerrigan and Brian Orakpo, now with the Tennessee Titans.
Gruden told reporters that Galette sustained a left ankle injury, saying, "It was just at the end of practice. He was running around the corner and went down. He's not the type of guy that would lay down if there was nothing, so I'm very concerned."
However, word soon filtered out that Galette tore the Achilles, less than a year after the Redskins lost three-time Pro Bowl cornerback DeAngelo Hall to a similar injury. Since Galette's one-year contract gave Washington the option to keep him for 2016, he is not going anywhere, but his loss is still a major blow for Gruden and new defensive coordinator Joe Barry.
With Galette out only three days before he was going to make his Redskins debut in a preseason game at Baltimore, Trent Murphy, Washington's second-round pick in the 2014 draft, and Preston Smith, taken in the same round this spring, are competing to start opposite Kerrigan.
Gruden was more effusive about Murphy than Smith this summer, but if one out performs the other against the Ravens, that could make a huge difference.
NOTES: Tight end Jordan Reed (hamstring) is expected to make his 2015 debut Saturday at Baltimore after missing the first two preseason games. ... Wide receiver DeSean Jackson (sprained shoulder) will miss a third consecutive preseason game. ... Defensive end Frank Kearse (shoulder) will miss a second straight preseason game. ... Also missing Saturday's game will be safety Akeem Davis (hamstring) and defensive lineman Corey Crawford (strained Achilles).
