Commander Country

Fuller is Filling Up The Box Score

Kendall Fuller returned home after being traded away and winning a Super Bowl. So far, it's been a dream reunion.

Bryan Manning

Josh Norman was an epic failure for the Washington Football Team as a big-ticket signing at cornerback in 2016. In his four years with Washington, Norman had become so bad; he was meme-worthy.

Washington finally released Norman when Ron Rivera took over as head coach in early 2020. Despite Norman’s ineffectiveness, Washington would still need to look to the free-agent market to replace him on the roster.

So, in March, Washington signed a pair of free agents in Ronald Darby and Kendall Fuller.

Darby, a sixth-year pro from nearby Oxon Hill, Md., was signed to a one-year deal to perhaps rehabilitate his value after several injuries over the last few seasons.

Fuller, another local product from Good Counsel High in Olney, Md., was signed to a four-year deal worth $40 million. Of course, Fuller was drafted by Washington in 2016 before being included in the trade for Alex Smith in 2018. He had spent the previous two seasons with the defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs.

Fuller was expected to primarily serve as Washington’s slot corner, an ever-important position in today’s rapidly-evolving NFL. However, he would also see time at outside cornerback and free safety too.

Through six weeks, Darby has performed well for Washington. Pro Football Focus has him ranked as the No. 26 cornerback in the NFL.

Fuller has been outstanding.

PFF has Fuller ranked No. 4 with an overall grade of 84.5 and a coverage grade of 88.5.

So, you don’t trust PFF as the sole metric?

That’s understandable.

Just watch Fuller with your own eyes.

In the loss to the Giants in Week 6, Fuller had an incredible interception in the back of the end zone to end one New York drive.

Fuller is tied for the lead in interceptions with four, despite missing two games. He is moving around Washington’s secondary, excelling in every role.

For once, Washington has signed a free agent who is actually outperforming the contract he signed.

The fifth-year corner from Virginia Tech has stabilized a position that was a major question mark entering the season. An intelligent player who has helped some of the communication issues in the secondary that has plagued Washington in recent years, Fuller is arguably the team’s top defender in 2020.

Fuller is allowing opposing quarterbacks a rating of just 8.7, second only to San Francisco’s Jason Verrett.

Washington’s secondary still has its share of issues, mainly both safety positions. Troy Apke isn’t an NFL-quality starter, while high-price free agent Landon Collins is failing to live up to the contract he signed one year ago.

Sound familiar?

But on a rebuilding roster where culture and performance matter, Fuller is proving Rivera right in both instances.

Washington secondary coach Chris Harris certainly knows what he has in Fuller.

The only question left for Fuller is can he play offense?

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. 

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Bryan Manning
BRYAN MANNING

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