A bit of optimistic uncertainty around the Commanders Wednesday after Ron Rivera's presser: it seems like Chase Young and Terry McLaurin might suit up, and the just re-signed (to the practice squad) Jamison Crowder could be in the mix, too.
When it comes to the first of those three, there's one former pass rusher who knows what a defensive lineman can do to dominate even if he misses a game or a few and isn't 100 percent – and that's Shawne Merriman, who had a league-leading 17 sacks in just 12 games in 2006, and was a Pro Bowler and third in Defensive Player of the Year voting.
That same Shawne Merriman joined Grant & Danny Wednesday after some phone troubles delayed his appearance, and he was ready to put the pads back on after seeing Nick Bosa get a hug contract, joking "I still have 20 or 30 snaps left in me" after explaining how the role of pass rushers has changed within the game a lot even since he retired.
So what does Chase Young have to do to live up to his pedigree, as much as he can, this year?
"We have a lot of similarity with Chase and there's a lot of hype behind it, and deservedly," Merriman said. "So his thing is, when you have an injury and it takes a lot longer than people expect for him to come back, he's not going to get on the field and be himself. He has to get confident again, feel good and know that he can plant that thing and go around the corner and come off the edge and burst off of it. The physical aspect is the first part of it, and the second part is you can go out there and play like you used to play without having these mental worries of am I gonna get hurt again? So, I would just expect everybody just give them a little bit more time."
We've seen what Young is capable of, and Merriman knows what it's like to be kind of rogue and do your own thing, because he was once the guy who worked out with the team but also had his own pass rush coach and was into mixed martial arts as a training method.
You have to do what's best for yourself, he said, but you also want that camaraderie in the locker room, so "I don't like guys just staying completely away from the team, because you have to show face. They need to see you working, hold you accountable and then be held accountable."
Take a listen to Merriman's entire segment above, which includes thoughts on his Chargers and other Super Bowl contenders, surprise squads good and bad (spoiler: you'll love his answer on the latter), individual awards candidates, his MMA ventures, and more!
