Why is William Jackson struggling in Washington?
Taking a closer look at the reasons behind Jackson’s slow start with Washington
Washington's premier free agent signing this offseason was cornerback William Jackson. Jackson arrived on a three-year, $40.5 million contract having left the Bengals with the reputation of a strong man-cover corner. The start to his career in Washington has been poor. He’s struggled when being asked to play the various forms of zone coverage that Washington likes to use, and his technique in man coverage hasn’t been quite up to scratch either.
So what’s happened to cause Jackson so many issues since signing for Washington? Let’s take a closer look.
Unsure of assignments
One of the biggest issues that pops up every week with Jackson is that he’s unsure of exactly what his assignment is. Either he’s not receiving the coverage call, or he’s not sure exactly what his role is within certain calls. But it’s often clear to see that he’s not sure what he’s meant to be doing.
Here’s an example of what I’m talking about. The Chiefs line up in a trips set to the right on third and eight. Jackson aligns as the outside corner to that side, but before the ball is snapped we can see him looking to the safeties with his arms out, suggesting he hasn’t received the call. When the ball is snapped, Jackson bails out deep while the rest of the defenders appear to match their coverage to a specific receiver. This leaves the outside receiver Jackson initially lined up over wide open as he spots up and the Chiefs are able to make an easy conversion.
It wasn’t just one occasion either. This was happening throughout the game.
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