The Washington Redskins have been a below average defense for a number of years now. For too long, the “bend but don’t break” approach was allowed to exist in Washington. The problem with that method is that it hasn’t worked, like ever, in the history of the world. Establishing an identity is vital in pro sports. Agreeing it’s okay to suck and give up historic chunks of yardage with hopes that you can hold teams to field goals instead of touchdowns is not an identity, it’s insanity.

With that said, Scot McCloughan and Joe Barry have a clear vision of establishing a credible, respectable and even exciting defensive identity. Ricky Jean-Francois and Stephen Paea will be nice additions to the defensive line. However, I still can’t figure out how the Skins got Terrance Knighton for pennies on the dollar. From a player efficiency standpoint, only Ndamukong Suh was more efficient than Knighton last season. Knighton also led the Denver Broncos to the second-best defensive line efficiency rating against the run. Also, his nickname is Pot Roast — nuff said.

Washington’s linebackers have been a strength during the lean years. Perry Riley Jr. and Keenan Robinson are solid inside linebackers who make the plays they are supposed to make. Ryan Kerrigan imposing his will on one side, and Trent Murphy and Preston Smith on the other, will give the Skins the mandatory pass rush needed for a top defense. But the most exciting unit for me is the secondary.

Most people recognize Bashaud Breeland as a raw talent with a huge ceiling, and he earned that recognition. DeAngelo Hall is a vet who will prove highly effective when only having to guard the third or fourth best receiver on opposing teams. But it’s the new guys who are going to turn heads this season. For years, fans had to watch an amazing cover corner in Carlos Rogers who had hands made of stone. He could have drenched his hands in tar and he still wouldn’t have caught a ball, but this season Chris Culliver is going to wipe away those memories.

Culliver is young, fast and coming off a career year. What you might not know is that he was a five-star recruit coming out of high school not only as a cornerback, but also as a wide receiver. Some outlets even had him ranked as the third best WR in the country. Needless to say, if Culliver gets his hands on the ball, it will be a catch. Dashon Goldson was one of the top safeties in the game before taking the money and knowingly going to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to play in a system that would handcuff him. The Redskins are going to unleash him and let him return to his ball hawking days, like he did for the San Francisco 49ers.

Most intriguing of all of the signings, though, is Jeron Johnson. You won’t find much if you google him. He was a backup in Seattle, however, even though Seattle was and still is stacked at the safety position, they placed a second-round tender on him. If a team with the best secondary in the league places that high of a tender on a backup, you best believe he can ball. And that is precisely what he’s going to do in Washington this season.

2012 was the last playoff appearance for the Skins. They had the 28th ranked defense that season. If you’re a fan of the Redskins, go ahead and treat yourself to a daydream of what you could do with a top five defense.