All Eyes on Jason Campbell In DC

As the Redskins go through mini-camps this spring, the most important development will be how things progress with their starting quarterback, Jason Campbell. It's no secret the Redskins pursued other options during the offseason, only to come up short and end up "stuck" with the 27-year-old Auburn product.

After three seasons, and finally one full one, under his belt, it's time for Campbell to take the next step and become a franchise quarterback. Finally getting a second season in the same offensive system -- 2009 will be the first time -- is a great start for the 6-foot-5 signal-caller. He's also getting more comfortable in his leadership role.

"It's been put on Jason to be a definite leader of this team," tight end Chris Cooley told FanHouse during mini-camp, "I think that's one of the biggest things that's understood, he's worked really hard to be that role. I was proud of the way he treated that, he looks great on the field right now. Jason's really seeing the field and feels very comfortable."

We can't discount how much leadership matters when it comes to being a successful quarterback. The nature of the position automatically assigns the person playing it to be a leader -- whether or not he's actually a natural-born hands-on leader. With Campbell's laid-back personality, being a leader isn't something that came easy to him when he first entered the league. As he heads into his fourth season, though, he seems eager to be the man in charge of the huddle.

"You kind of grow into it on your own (leadership role)," Campbell says, "There's guys I've talked to, everyone said you kind of mature into it, grow into it on your own. A lot of it has to do with experience, being in the same system, that you just feel naturally comfortable with the guys around you."

And there's the mention of knowing the system again. Having to go through three different systems -- including the ridiculously cumbersome Al Saunders playbook -- in three seasons was nearly akin to Campbell enduring three separate rookie seasons. He never got the chance to develop at the NFL level in a system in which he found personal comfort. Now, he and his coach are able to focus on other things than just learning the plays.

"I like the position that Jason's getting himself in," says head coach Jim Zorn.

"He's making much better decisions, because he knows the offense, he's not just learning the offense. We're putting him through the paces of working on his release, making those releases efficient. He was very accurate this week, pretty impressive the things that he did. Ball speed and accuracy: you can't put a premium on that."

Not everyone is going to be Matt Ryan and find their groove directly out of college, especially when they weren't an immediate full-time starter. Any knee-jerk reactions formed during Campbell's first three seasons shouldn't be summarily dismissed, but he definitely needs more time before we form a final judgment on his effectiveness as an NFL quarterback. Just ask Mike Holmgren.

Holmgren, the venerable Super Bowl champion coach, has overseen the development of Brett Favre and Matt Hasselbeck as a head coach, in addition to Steve Young and Joe Montana as an assistant. The recently retired Holmgren visited Zorn -- who worked with Holmgren in Seattle -- during the latest mini-camp and had some words about the progress of Campbell.

"Here you have a young quarterback and a really good young quarterback and coach, it seems like a marriage made in heaven," said Holmgren who watched Zorn develop his star quarterback, Matt Hasselbeck, years ago in Seattle. "The thing is you have to have some patience. He's a young guy. And he may come in soon and shock everybody. Look at the young quarterback in Baltimore [Joe] Flacco, he's not being asked to do the same things as Campbell. He's not throwing the ball as much as Jason. If you're in the West Coast offense, you're going to be asked to do a lot more."

Considering the track record Holmgren has with quarterbacks, I'll take his word for it.

As for Campbell himself? He's happy where the team is because of "just how far along we are as an offensive unit and defensive unit, this time this year compared to last year at this time."

And the prospects of a high-powered passing offense this season in Washington?

"A lot is going to depend on how well our young guys proceed," says Campbell. "Santana (Moss)'s always going to draw attention, (Antwaan) Randle El's a guy that's a veteran and will move around from inside to outside, Cooley will draw attention. The two guys that can really help us are Devin (Thomas) and Malcolm (Kelly) – right now, Devin's looking really well running routes, he's matured a lot and Malcolm's doing the best he can to get back for June OTAs. The guy has great hands, everything he catches, he catches with his hands. We're feeling positive about those two guys coming into the season."

It sounds like cautious optimism as Campbell describes the weapons at his disposal in the passing attack, and he's going to go a long way when it comes to how the young receivers come together as professional pass-catchers. The key in the equation is Campbell himself. If he becomes a franchise quarterback, it only speeds up the growth of Thomas and Kelly. It's entirely possible that happens in 2009, if you hear it from both Holmgren and Zorn.

Campbell is a polarizing figure for Redskins fans who watched the team tank down the stretch in 2008 after watching a career backup take them to the playoffs in 2007 (after Campbell fell injured). We rarely post anything about him without an ensuing argument in the comments section as to whether or not he's suited to move forward as Washington's quarterback -- and God forbid anyone bring up Colt Brennan.

Everyone should take a step back and listen to Holmgren and Zorn. They know what they are doing when it comes to that position.

Give Campbell a chance.