Receiver upgrade earns approval

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Jason Campbell saw firsthand last year how nagging injuries piled up on the Washington Redskins' receivers, limiting the options he had in the passing game.

And recently, Campbell has seen on DVD how the Seattle Seahawks — whose staff included new Redskins coach Jim Zorn — used 25 three-receiver formations and 13 four-receiver formations in their playoff win over the Redskins.

So it's not surprising Campbell rubber-stamped the addition of tight end Fred Davis and receivers Devin Thomas and Malcolm Kelly in last weekend's draft.

"I thought we had a really good draft simply because we already had two good receivers with [Antwaan] Randle El and Santana [Moss], two guys who can catch it and make things happen," Campbell said. "Now we add two guys and the big tight end, and it's going to make us more dynamic."

The quarterback was host of the first Jason Campbell Classic at Lowes Island Club yesterday. The tournament, which formerly had Mark Brunell as host, benefits the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.

"It's something Mark did the first two years, and once he went to another team, the committee came to me and ask if I wanted to get involved, and I told them absolutely," Campbell said. "The guys coming out to participate, it really means a lot to me."

Many players participated, including starters Clinton Portis, Chris Cooley, Randle El, Moss, Fred Smoot, Carlos Rogers and Reed Doughty. Hall of Famer Darrell Green played in Campbell's group.

Receiver developed into an area of need when the Redskins released Brandon Lloyd and didn't get much production outside of Moss and Randle El.

"It's now a deeper position, which means a lot because last year we had a lot of groin and hamstring injuries," Campbell said. "Now we can throw guys in there and still continue to be successful."

When the Redskins ran four-receiver sets last year, Cooley often moved into the slot position. Now Zorn can use four true receivers in the formation and try to get Cooley matched up with a linebacker.

"I feel it fits us very well," Campbell said. "Seattle did a lot of four-wide sets, and we definitely have four guys who can go on the field and make things happen. I think that was the big reason why they went after those guys."

Last week, Campbell was part of a contingent that traveled to Norman, Okla., to work out the 6-foot-4 Kelly.

"A lot of people want to talk about his 40[-yard dash] time, but he seems faster on the field," Campbell said. "The way he ran routes, he looked really smooth."

The offense hasn't started installing the passing game yet, but Campbell expects a smooth transition.

"It's something I ran my senior year at Auburn," he said. "I really adapted quick to it, and hopefully we'll have the same results here. Once I get the things down that [Zorn] wants me to do, I think it's going to really elevate my game."

The Redskins get their first on-field work with Zorn starting tomorrow with two minicamp practices.

"It's going to be fun and interesting to get the offense going and get the basics down," Campbell said. "The main thing is getting everybody back here and back into the flow of playing."