Aug 19, 20185 min read

The Other Guy From Alabama: The Rise of Cam

Updated: May 11, 2023

Welcome back to the Burgundy and Gold Report.

The Redskins starting defensive unit came to play versus the Jets Thursday night. The 1st round duo of John Allen & Daron Payne gave the Redskins a glimpse of why they have heavily invested in the Alabama pipeline. As we know, Allen and Payne were taken in back to back drafts, but what about the 5th Crimson Tide prospect on the roster?

If fans didn’t know the name Cam Sims, they do now. The former Crimson Tide receiver recorded his second consecutive 50+ receiving effort of the preseason. Versus the Patriots, Sims led the team with 74 receiving yards on only 2 rec, but he had an eye popping 57 yard reception from Colt McCoy that he nearly broke for a score.He followed that performance up with 3 receptions for a team-leading 57 rec yards against the Jets.

However, the stats don’t begin to tell the true story of the impact he had on the game.

Cam Sims’ rise up the depth chart might have more to do with the injury of Robert Davis (broken leg and LCL tear), but his talent is undeniable. The B&G Report mentioned Sims in as one of the 5 Undrafted Free Agents to Watch https://burgundyandgoldreport.wordpress.com/2018/05/14/5-undrafted-redskins-rookie-free-agents-to

Tale of the Tape

Sims made his first catch of the night in the 2nd quarter. It was a short pass towards the sideline from Colt McCoy. After a 5 yard gain, Sims was hit. Rather than fall out of bounds, he instead spun off the defender and pushed passed the first down marker with the second effort. That’s not the type of play an undrafted receiver makes, but Sims knew he had to get to the marker and he made the play.

On the second target of the game, Sims made a leaping catch, only to have the ball bounce of his hands and into the defenders. Unfortunately for the Redskins, this occured in the red zone. The polarizing play could have led to Sims fading into obscurity, but the receiver had other plans.

Later in the game, Colt dropped back with Sims in his sights and threw a touch ball over the defenders. Sims snagged the jump ball between two defenders and come down with an impressive reception. Standing at 6’5″, he easily sprung over two defenders for the reception. This showed Sims might be one of those rare finds. After the play, the Jets were hit with a roughing the passer penalty for a helmet to helmet shot to McCoy. The play would prove to be a momentum shifter.

Once again in the red zone, McCoy connected with Sims as he went airborne in the back of the end zone. The Crimson Tide receiver came down again between two defenders making an acrobatic reception. Alas, yellow laundry littered the field and the call would go against the Skins for illegal formation. No touchdown was called and once again they settled for a field goal.

The Redskins would again find themselves within the Jets 30 yard line. At the snap, Sims would get a step on the Jets defender only to be held the entire route. When the ball shot out of McCoy’s hand, Sims had an opportunity to make the reception only to be pulled down. The pass was incomplete with no flags on the play. This would be the second consecutive red zone appearance for Washington in which Sims would be robbed of a touchdown.

The last offensive snap of the game showed their resilience. With the clock under twenty seconds and the Redskins down 13-12, McCoy looked again to his favorite target of the night, Cam Sims. As the Jets loaded the box for an all out blitz on possibly the last play of the game, the Redskins sent their receivers on go-routes. McCoy hit the open Sims for another acrobatic reception, which put the Redskins in field goal range. Hopkins nailed the game winning 40 yarder as the game clock expired.

His performance may look mediocre on paper, but the impact of Cam Sims in the red zone was undeniable. Two bogus penalties and non-calls took two touchdowns off the board for the Redskins and Sims. With injuries to the other Skins receivers, the door has opened for Sims to push veteran receiver Brian Quick for the final receiver spot on the roster.

I’m not delusional to think that Sims is the second coming of Randy Moss, but I see a lot of a Plaxico Burress type qualities in the Alabama receiver. Based on his red zone capabilities, Sims could be a ten snap per game receiver to start and could still score 6-10 touchdowns per season. This might be overly optimistic, but this kid has the it factor. The bottom line is, mediocre players don’t play for Nick Saban and Sims could add to the long list of success stories, who could have a fruitful pro-career.

According to JP Finlay of NBC Sports Washington’s post game interview with Cam Sims. He asked.. How do you stack up against the other receivers?

“I go early and I leave late. I just keep pushing.”

Next JP asked what he was thinking at the end of the game with the Redskins down two.

“I just knew I had to make a play to set up the field goal”

Injuries to promising receiver Robert Davis (sent to IR) and nagging injuries to Mo Harris and more recently Jamison Crowder, gives the Sims and others meaningful preseason tape. Although Harris & Crowder should be ready for the season, it still opens the door for another rookie to get the coaches’ attention. Fellow rookie and fan favorite Trey Quinn seems to have cemented his role in the receiving group.

Sims will have two more games to showcase what Alabama Head Coach Nick Saban and John Gruden see in him. Most Redskins fans want to fast forward to the the regular season to avoid further injuries, but these are the games the roster hopefuls fight for the honor to wear the burgundy and gold.

Thanks for checking out another edition Burgundy and Gold Report. The season opener is only 3 weeks away with fans & players eager to get things going!

On a side note…

Here at the B&G Report we were disappointed to learn of the news that our Small School Prospect Martez Carter was released. Although it was only reported as a minor knee injury, he could still be a practice squad candidate if gets healthy in time. Either way, good luck Mr.Excitement!