As I tip my hat to Extreme Skins, some explanation is in order. The Barbarian is Kedric Golston. The Mountain is, of course, Anthony Montgomery, uncleverly altered to Anthony Mt. Gomery in reference to his frame -- 315 pounds, 8 feet tall, shoots lightning bolts out of his arse, that kind of thing. (I don't know why or where I come up with this garbage.)

Fitting also that they should duke it out as both joined the team around the same time, in the same draft, separated by just 43 other players in 2006. And although the hype was larger for Montgomery, who was rumored to be physically dominant, it was Golston who had the first laugh. A recap:

2006: Golston played in 16 games, with 12 starts, and recorded 59 tackles (35 solo), a half-sack and one fumble recovery. He finished third among Redskins' defensive linemen in tackles.

 

• Made his NFL debut in Week 1 vs. Minnesota, recording four tackles (three solo).

   

• Earned his first NFL start in Week 3 at Houston. He logged three tackles and a fumble recovery.

   

In Week 6 vs. Tennessee, he recorded a season-high seven tackles (three solo) and a half-sack of QB Vince Young. It was Golston's first career sack (combined with fellow 2006 rookie Anthony Montgomery).

But Montgomery with the last laugh:

2007: Montgomery emerged as a regular starter in his second NFL seasons. He logged 47 tackles (35 solo), a half-sack and two fumble recoveries.

 

• In Week 5 vs. Detroit, he helped the Redskins' defense limit the Lions to just 68 rushing yards.

   

• He logged a half-sack of Brett Favre in Week 6 at Green Bay. He also had two tackles and one pass deflection.

   

Recorded three tackles in Week 17 vs. Dallas. He helped limit the Cowboys to just 1 rushing yard in the game.

So who is laughing now? Who knows, says the Official Site:

The Redskins have a competition brewing at defensive tackle, where Kedric Golston and Anthony Montgomery are in a "heated" battle for the starting job, defensive coordinator Greg Blache said on Monday.

More from Greg Blache via The Washington Times:

"That position, no one owns that," Blache said in his weekly meeting with the media. "That's a position that's definitely going to be won week to week, day to day. We look at those guys actually on the same basis. That's been a heated competition since the start of OTAs. They've both been told that. They both bring certain strengths to the table. It's just matter of who's got the hot hand at a given time. This is a 'What have you done for me lately' business and a guy that gets a little fat, thinks for a second, 'That's my job,' they're mistaken."

It's tough to pick a winner this early. If I'm going by stats, and that's typically where I go first, Golston is winning this thing: he out tackled Montgomery's 2007 numbers in his rookie year, despite fewer starts, and neither distinguished themselves elsewhere (both have .5 sacks and it is four against three passes defensed, wash). A more reliable analysis would factor in snaps, but guessing that Golston had fewer and more tackles, I have to lean on him.

But Montgomery won the position battle last year, which tells me the coaches weren't only interested in stats, at least at the time.

Looking forward I'm picking Golston to win on this one, given that a season's worth of stats (two, really) is enough of a sample size to state: For whatever reasons Kedric Golston found his way to the football more when he was on the field than Anthony Montgomery, and that's what I want defensive tackles to do. But let's do this the democratic way, poll below:

Who wins the position battle at DT?

Redskins 360 takes an early stab at the defensive depth chart and notices that we're going to lose at least one deserving player on the defensive line somewhere along the way. He says:

Defensive line (9)
Set: Phillip Daniels, Cornelius Griffin, Andre Carter, Anthony Montgomery, Kedric Golston, Demetric Evans and Lorenzo Alexander.
Competition: A bunch of players for two spots -- Chris Wilson, Erasmus James or Alex Buzbee as an athletic pass rusher? Does Ryan Boschetti continue to be a survivor at tackle due to his work ethic?
Prediction: Injuries could play into how many linemen are kept for Week 1. If Rocky McIntosh and/or Carlos Rogers aren't ready, that's bad news for the D-line. James is a wild card because he's coming off knee surgery. I really like the flash Wilson showed as a third-down pass rusher so he makes the team. James will get a shot on the final roster.

I'll tentatively agree on these locks: Daniels, Griffin, Carter, Montgomery, and Golston. I do not include Demetric Evans in that list because I'm not certain he's a better defensive end than Chris Wilson. I think he's a much better complete player than Wilson in that he's better against the run. I also think his experience is a positive. That said, in 14 games last season he had one sack vs. Wilson's four in 8 games. Having made that point, I would say that Evans' statistical resume on the whole last year was better than Wilson's, especially considering his 3 passes defensed and nearly twice as many tackles in less than twice as many games. None of that factors in snaps.

Why I'm down on Evans -- and let me be clear that I'm not down on him, I just think this might be the year he gets lost in a roster shuffle -- is he hasn't shown any growth whatsoever. He's the same player now that he was in 2004 when he came to Washington. Statistically he's been remarkably consistent, that is, consistently unremarkable. Tackles as a Redskin:

17, 17, 14, 19

Sacks as a Redskin:

2.5, 3, 2, 1

Stuffs as a Redskin:

3, 0, 2.5, 2.5

Etc. Not all of that is Evans fault because he might not be getting the requisite snaps to improve those numbers. But, then again, it's his job to win those snaps away from the people in front of him.

Was Chris Wilson so great? No, not really, but he at least showed more potential last season as a remarkable pass rusher than Evans has in four seasons. The team might end up being presented with a business decision: Do you take the reliable (if nothing special) veteran in Evans but by doing so sacrifice Wilson to the practice squad and, potentially, to someone else? Wilson could end up a great pass rusher in this league and we may never have the opportunity to realize his potential here in Washington if we don't continue developing him right now.

And what's to be done with Erasmus James, who was somehow one of the most talented College d-linemen just a few years ago yet has now found his way to our roster for a 7th round pick?

Defining the "problem": We have, by my count, more than nine defensive linemen who probably could make this roster but can't spend many more roster spots at this position. This list is end heavy as well; Griffin, Golston, Montgomery are the defensive tackles that Redskins 360 lists. Phillip Daniels can line up on the inside too, but he's also our starting end. And with injuries at linebacker and cornerback won't we have to burn some spots elsewhere?

Before I offer my own solution to this alleged problem, let's hear from reader(s). How do your own lists match up with Redskins 360's?

First, who is this Dr. Darrell Green? Redskins 360:

Green was introduced as Dr. Darrell Green. Did No. 28 receive a doctorate in the land of the rising sun? No. Green said he has honorary doctorates from George Washington, Marymount and St. Paul's (Va.).

Indeed he does, per Wikipedia which informs me that he received two Doctorates of Humane Letters. Is there anything this man can't do? No, there isn't anything he can't do, up to and including successful use of triple negatives. I model my life after his (except for the part about having talent).

So what's all the hub-bub about?

I [David Elfin of Redskins 360] just got back from a reception in honor of Hall of Fame inductee-to-be Darrell Green given by Japanese ambassador Ryozo Kato. Green and the ambassador became friendly in 2002 when the Redskins were preparing for their preseason game in Osaka and have stayed in touch since.

Mr. Elfin also notes that Jim Zorn, Kedric the Barbarian, and former Redskins Darryl Pounds and Dexter Manchild Manley were all on hand. This provided an excellent opportunity for Manley and Zorn to bond with one another once more, where just decades ago they faced each other on the field (I believe in 1983 the Redskins and Seahawks played each other while both Manley and Zorn were on their respective teams) in an episode I'm now calling "Hey weren't you that guy who tried to pay my running backs coach to fumble back in the dizzay?" Dan Steinberg tells it better in a collection of truly print worthy quotes (Mr. Irrelevant approves) from Dexter Manley who, like Darrell Green, was also a Doctor (his was an honorary degree from the University of Dexter Manley, where he received his doctorate under the pseudonym Dr. D). Enjoy, and here's a sampling:

To new Redskins assistant head coach-running backs Stump Mitchell, when he was still an NFL RB, winter of 1983: Dexter Manley, the Redskins' all-pro defensive end, surprised Cardinals running back Stump Mitchell with his ever-active mouth today. Just before the Cardinals scored a first-half touchdown, Mitchell said Dexter the prankster offered him $5,000 to fumble the ball. Presumably, he was joking. But, even for Manley, that was a tad outrageous.

If by outrageous you mean bodacious and by tad you mean totally, yea, I'd agree. Andre Carter take note, although I wonder how many running backs will be willing to accept payment in the form of formerly collected souls. With the dollar in the dumps, anything is possible.

Congrats to Doctor Green on his much deserved reception in his honor. Enough good things cannot be said of this man and I continue to sing his praises to anyone willing to listen.

Football Outsiders has their post-draft analysis of the NFC East up, go enjoy. Author is a guest, one Mike McGibbon, and all seems to be in order in the story. I found no glaring errors, though I'm not sure the Redskins got, as McGibbon wrote, 10 draft picks as a result of our 1st round draft pick trade (I thought we gave up a 1st, 3rd, 5th ro a 2nd, 2nd, 4th. It's been a minute, though, so maybe my memory doesn't serve).

Either way, McGibbon knows a lot more about our undrafted free agents than I do, and thus I direct your attention to some guys to watch, per him:

Undrafted Free Agents

In all, the Redskins brought in 13 undrafted rookie free agents. Of those 13, four were offensive linemen. And of those four, Florida State’s Shannon Boatman and New Mexico’s Devin Clark may have the best chance to make the team, given that both started for most of their final two seasons. Dorian Smith, an All-Pac 10 first-team defensive end from Oregon State, will also challenge for a spot.

Quick look at the roster reveals that Shannon Boatman has already been lost. He, uhh, failed a physical. Tough break, guy. But both Dorian Smith and Devin Clark are, as of this writing, still with the team. The team has a lot of defensive ends (nine) and certainly more than we will by final cuts. Locks would be, in my opinion, Phillip Daniels and Andre Carter as starters with Demetric Evans and Chris Wilson backing up. Let's speculate that the team keeps 9-10 defensive linemen, and you have to imagine Kedric the Barbarian, Mt. Gomery, and Cornelius Griffin, with Lorenzo Alexander and Ryan Boschetti both in good position to make the team (although Alexander could make the team in any number of his superhuman capacities, so maybe he wouldn't even count as a D-Linemen). We're in need of upgrade on the defensive line, but that doesn't mean any rookie can just step in and take the spot of one of the more established veterans. That might've been the case a few years ago, but young linemen Anthony Montgomery, Chris wilson and Kedric Golston have started a youth movement at that position. Until Griffin and Daniels take the long walk, the Dorian Smiths of the world will have to earn a place on this team.

At offensive line I think recent injuries may encourage Coach Zorn -- a former expansion team quarterback who knew a thing or two about the perils of a bad offensive line -- to keep a larger than normal contingent of offensive linemen on the roster. Locks are the starters, obviously, in Jon Jansen, Randy Thomas, Chris Samuels, Casey Rabach, and Pete Kendall. I think Fabini and Stephon Heyer will probably be around as well. I hope Chad Rinehart makes the team, and he should. On Todd Wade I'm indifferent, as he hasn't done much to impress. We'll need to keep someone about to backup Casey Rabach at center; with versatile Mike Pucillo gone, the spot as of now belongs to Kyle DeVan, unless there is someone else on the team who can snap the football and block effectively.

Question to readers is: We've got a good crop of undrafted rookie free agents. These things are remarkably difficult to predict, and we are really at the mercy of the team in telling us who has impressed thus far, but is anyone willing to go on record on who will or will not make the roster? Who will be this year's Stephon Heyer (acknowledging that his position was aided in large part by factors outside control or prediction: injuries)? I'm aspecifically soliciting commentary on players local to reader(s) markets that maybe the rest of us haven't seen play so much.