The Washington Redskins made tight end E.J. Bibbs their first training camp signee last Thursday, after an impressive showing during his tryout. With Bibbs, the Redskins now have six tight ends on the 90-man roster. If you want to bet on the Redskins this season, check out the NFL odds for the Washington Redskins.
After he earned the roster spot, Bibbs got to practice with his new teammates. He told reporters that he thought he was just coming in to try out and expected a pretty easy day. However, after making the team, he had to practice after the tryouts as well. Although he admitted he was a little tired, he acknowledged that the rigorous workouts and practice are part of football.
Opportunities to sign with a team after workouts don’t come around very often, unless there is an injury or injuries. In Bibbs’ case, the injuries are to Pro Bowl tight end Jordan Reed, who is currently on the physically unable to perform list, and Vernon Davis, who is nursing a hamstring injury.
Bibbs spent last season on Jacksonville’s practice squad, and currently lives in Jacksonville. On Monday, he received a call from the Redskins inviting him to come tryout for the team. He arrived on Wednesday and had the tryout on Thursday morning.
Bibbs was undrafted coming out of Iowa State, but was signed by the Cleveland Browns and played seven games as a rookie in 2015. He had one reception for seven yards with the Browns.
After spending last season on the Jaguars practice squad, Bibbs plans to make the most of his opportunity with the Redskins and hopefully make the team’s final roster.
Bibbs only had a few hours to try and grasp the Redskins playbook, putting him at an obvious disadvantage with the guys he was going up against, with most of them having had at least the offseason to learn the playbook.
As expected Bibbs made a few mistakes since he was still getting used to the playbook and terminology used by the Redskins. On one play, he jumped before the snap and was called for a false start. He was pulled after the play and spent the rest of the series on the sidelines next to tight ends coach Wes Phillips, who was trying to explain the nuances of the offense to him.
Bibbs told reporters Phillips told him mistakes are going to happen in practice, but he has to learn to move quickly through them.
After practice, Bibbs got to his hotel room at 9 PM., and studied the playbook in the dark until 11:30 PM, because he didn’t want to wake up his roommate, cornerback Fabian Moreau.
Vernon Davis told reporters he can sympathize with Bibbs because he went through a similar situation when he was traded from the San Francisco 49ers to the Denver Broncos during the 2015 season. Davis said playing while trying to learn a new playbook is like being thrown in the fire.
With Reed expected to be activated soon, Bibbs doesn’t have much time to prove himself. But he hopes his performance so far will convince the Redskins to keep him around.