Overall, Friday night's 16-7 defeat of the Pittsburgh Steelers in the preseason opener was a rousing success for the Washington Redskins. The offense looked like a well-oiled machine, and the defense looked active and was effective in pressuring the quarterback. The only real negative was the kicking game, as least for one of the potential place kickers. Veteran Shayne Graham, brought in to compete with incumbent Skins kicker Graham Gano, had an awful night, missing two field goals, a chip shot from 29 yards out and also a 49 yard attempt. Well, it appears Shayne kicked himself right out of a job with that performance. Via Adam Caplan of Sirius XM radio:
It didn't help Graham that Gano went out and made three kicks in the second half, from 32, 34 and 45 yards out. Gano also has the much stronger leg, and with these new kickoff rules in the NFL, he is likely to assure the Redskins of touchbacks on virtually every one of his kickoffs this season. Note to NFL: change that kickoff rule, and soon, please.