Chase is Already Chasing

It's been a strange road already for the most hyped Washington Football draft pick since Robert Griffin III. Chase Young is already chasing.

Long before the Washington Football Team selected Ohio State defensive end Chase Young with the No. 2 overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft, expectations were almost unimaginable.

Young was called a generational talent and many in the draft community said he would be better than former Ohio State star pass-rushers Nick and Joey Bosa.

And he still has yet to take a snap in the NFL.

HOT READ: Chase Young Buries Logan Thomas

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Young’s indoctrination into the NFL has been anything but normal. Young could not participate in OTAs, minicamps or lift weights at the facility and didn’t meet many of his teammates until he reported to training camp in August.

Once Young arrived in camp, he didn’t immediately run with the defensive starters. Washington returns veterans Ryan Kerrigan and Ryan Anderson, as well as rising star Montez Sweat as the top defensive ends.

As it turns out, Young was battling a hip flexor injury that did cause him to miss some time in camp, but he’s ready now as he told a group of reporters on Zoom after practice on Monday.

Chase Young: "I feel about 97%" on his hip flexor.

Says it was cool to play 12 minutes from his home.

"It felt good out there."

@WSHFootballSI @SInow @theMMQB

— Chris Russell AKA the 🐓🐓! (@Russellmania621) August 31, 2020

There is a tendency to immediately put players as talented as Young on the field immediately. And, for good reason. But Washington is an enviable position with Young. Kerrigan should break the team’s all-time sack record early in the season, while Sweat showed star potential at times late last season.

Washington doesn’t need Young to dominate early.

WashingtonFootball.com

At some point this season, perhaps even early in the season, Young will move into the starting lineup and never look back. Whether he starts or not, head coach Ron Rivera will use a judicious approach with his pass-rushers, insuring each stay fresh late into games.

Make no mistake, Young wants to start Week 1 against Philadelphia but also understands he must take care of small things before worrying about who starts.

Chase Young on potentially starting week one: "It would mean a lot" but says his No.1 priority is getting everything corrected.

Says Ryan Kerrigan tells him "What did I (you) do for your body, today?"

— Chris Russell AKA the 🐓🐓! (@Russellmania621) August 31, 2020

We know Young can rush the passer. The one (minor) knock some had on him at Ohio State was his ability to defend the run.

Young answered that with one hit on Sunday.

Young met future Hall-of-Famer Adrian Peterson in the hole on practice Sunday and let’s just say he got the better end of the deal.

Access Denied ❌❌❌ pic.twitter.com/207Uwnv8Zp

— Washington Commanders (@Commanders) August 30, 2020

If Young isn’t on the field to begin the game in Week 1, it won’t be due to his run defense.

So, what should we expect from the precocious rookie against the Eagles in less than two weeks?

Philadelphia has some issues along the offensive line right now. The Eagles lost projected starter Andre Dillard to a season-ending injury and are sliding 38-year-old Jason Peters over from guard to replace him.

Washington and defensive coordinator Jack Del Rio have to like the possibilities.

Sure, Peters is an All-Pro who has had a stellar career. However, he went unsigned for most of the season and the Eagles re-signed him to play guard after Brandon Brooks was also lost for the season.

Del Rio and Rivera are more than excited to throw Young and a host of fresh bodies at Peters in the season’s first game.

As of now, the reasonable expectations are for the staff to rotate Young early in the season. But if he makes an immediate impact — which he is certainly capable of — it will be hard to take him off the field.

The goal for Del Rio and his staff will be to use Young in obvious passing situations early to get him acclimated.

That shouldn’t take long.

As things stand now, Young could be on track to have a breakout performance in the very first game of his NFL career. 

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Bryan Manning writes about the Washington Football Team for 'Washington Football' and contributed to All Hokies on SI.com as well. He has covered the NFL, MLB, NBA, college football and college basketball for almost 10 years for various outlets such as Bleacher Report, SB Nation, FanSided, USA Today SMG, and others. For his day job, Bryan works in engineering for a major communications company.