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Kirby Lee/Image of Sport-US PRESSWIREWill Jason Campbell be the Redskins starting quarterback in 2010?

Try as he might, there’s no way Redskins quarterback Jason Campbell can tune out the talk radio or even the random folks who recognize him at the movies. He’s once again involved in a familiar storyline in which his team’s fanbase (and perhaps the front office) yearn for the next franchise quarterback.



Never mind the fact that Campbell somehow put up respectable numbers during a season in which he lined up behind arguably the worst offensive line in the league. Campbell was set up to fail by an administration that neglected the offensive line for the better part of a decade.



No quarterback in the league took more of a beating than Campbell, but even when given the opportunity to tap out, he kept showing up in the huddle. And given the way owner Dan Snyder and his former henchman Vinny Cerrato treated him, I’m sure Campbell thought taking a play or two off might lead to a full-time demotion. For the record, Campbell actually enjoyed his time with interim play-caller Sherman Lewis, who was plucked from a bingo-calling assignment by Cerrato.



The Redskins played themselves into the No. 4 overall pick in this April’s draft, so all the speculation is that new head coach Mike Shanahan will select either Oklahoma quarterback Sam Bradford or Notre Dame quarterback Jimmy Clausen. But until further notice, Campbell remains the starting quarterback of this team. He’ll be an unrestricted free agent, which means he’ll likely receive the highest contract tender of roughly $3.1 million. And if the Redskins are shopping Campbell, they’re doing a pretty nice job of keeping it a secret this offseason.



I caught up with Campbell via phone Thursday and asked him about his initial impressions of Shanahan. The two sat down in Shanahan’s office and talked about the organization’s future. But what about Campbell’s future?



“The plan is that I’m going to be here,” said Campbell. “[Shanahan] told me that he liked how I’d handled everything over the past couple of years and the whole conversation was real positive. But we really didn’t talk much about the past. When a team goes 4-12, most of the bad publicity goes to the quarterback. But I was still able to put up one of my best seasons despite all the turmoil.”



Campbell showed a lot of loyalty to former coach Jim Zorn, but he knew early on that the organization was asking Zorn to wear too many hats. Campbell, who has lost count of how many offensive coordinators he’s played for dating back to his Auburn days, said that Shanahan has brought instant credibility to the Redskins.



“With Coach Shanahan and Bruce Allen, there’s already a new feeling to the team,” said Campbell. “Guys are going to follow [Shanahan] because he has a proven résumé. The main thing we need is discipline, and you can already see that guys are carrying themselves in a different manner.”



Campbell spent part of Super Bowl week in South Florida doing some research on the Redskins’ new regime. Skins wide receiver Santana Moss is close friends with Texans receiver Andre Johnson, who had great things to say about new offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan. And Campbell had a long conversation with Texans running back Ryan Moats about what it was like playing for Shanahan in Houston.



“The main thing Ryan told me is that I’ll have a lot of fun playing for Kyle,” said Campbell. “And he told me that Kyle was incredibly knowledgeable for such a young guy.”



Campbell has handled the situation in Washington with a lot of grace, but he bristles when he hears critics talk about how he didn’t throw the ball downfield enough in ’09. In fact, I happened to catch him on the phone last month after he’d heard SI.com’s Peter King criticizing him on a local radio station in Washington.



“I don’t know how anyone can say something like that,” said Campbell on Thursday. “Don’t you think I wanted to throw the ball downfield? By the time I looked up, I was getting hit. I’m certainly hoping we have an opportunity to make some big plays next season.”



For now, Campbell is attempting to avoid the mock draft industry. I helpfully informed him that ESPN’s Mel Kiper now has the Skins selecting Clausen at No. 4 overall. In fact, here’s how Kiper explained that pick on a conference call Wednesday:



“In the case of a player like Clausen or Bradford, I would take the quarterback first. I have Clausen and Bradford rated higher than [Anthony] Davis and [Russell] Okung. So I would go the quarterback first, then try to get the offensive tackle in the second round and hope that a Bruce Campbell or a [Bryan] Bulaga or somebody like that fell down to me.”



Campbell didn’t feel like it was his place to inquire about Shanahan’s approach to the draft. He said he trusts the coach’s experience in that department and will be prepared for whatever happens.



“I have to do whatever it takes to help us win,” said Campbell. “All that other stuff will take care of itself. I’m certainly not going to be out campaigning for them to take other positions. They know how to do this stuff.”

Note: Thursday and Friday, Scouts Inc.’s Matt Williamson is reviewing key aspects of AFC East teams. Below, he reviews and ranks the division’s secondaries from best to worst.



1. New York Jets



A lot has been written about Darrelle Revis. Like many, I put him at the top of the cornerback list. He would have been my NFL Defensive Player of the Year for 2009. But he can cover only one receiver at a time.



I contend that New York’s biggest offseason need is a starting cornerback opposite Revis. Donald Strickland, Lito Sheppard and Dwight Lowery are all best suited for third cornerback duties. Lowery is my favorite of these three, but he has physical limitations.



Jets head coach Rex Ryan obviously expects a lot out of this position and an upgrade could make an excellent defense even better. Strong safety Jim Leonhard is a personal favorite of mine. The guy has some limitations of course, but he just makes plays — especially as a coverage player. Free safety Kerry Rhodes took some criticism during the 2009 season, but I contend that he is a well above average all-around safety. Year 2 in this defense could really yield dividends for Rhodes. Backup free safety Eric Smith could leave via free agency, but he was a liability for most of the season.



Overall, the Jets get the edge as the best secondary in the division weighted heavily on what Revis brings to the table.



2. New England Patriots



While I give the Buffalo Bills’ set of safeties the nod as the division’s best pair, I’m high on the Patriots’ Brandon Meriweather. He’s the best safety overall in the AFC East. As good as he is at strong safety, Meriweather and the Patriots would benefit from an upgrade at free safety. Brandon McGowan is a force against the run, but is too often exposed in coverage. Fellow free safety James Sanders is too ordinary in both facets.



At cornerback, veterans Leigh Bodden and Shawn Springs caught way too much heat for New England’s pass defense issues. Remember, this is a defense that lacks much of a pass rush. These two are still starting caliber, particularly Bodden (an unrestricted free agent).



The younger guys are the problem. Surely they will improve, but Darius Butler, Terrence Wheatley and Jonathan Wilhite collectively did little to get excited about in 2009. If Bodden is retained, the Pats squeak ahead of the Bills as the second-best secondary in the division. Without Bodden, Buffalo has a distinct advantage.



3. Buffalo Bills



When evaluating the safeties in this division, I think you have to give that position to the Bills. In 2009, safety Jairus Byrd obviously made a ton of impact plays as a rookie and was an extremely pleasant surprise. His ability to play the ball and his coverage abilities overall are very strong, but when it comes to playing the run, let’s just say that isn’t his specialty. I am a big fan of safety Donte Whitner, too. Last season wasn’t his best campaign, but he is very talented and versatile. Fellow safeties George Wilson and Bryan Scott are not household names, but both are very solid players who deserve playing time, though Scott might leave via free agency. I still have hope for Leodis McKelvin to develop into an upper-tier cornerback. Overall, the threesome of McKelvin, Drayton Florence and Terrence McGee was underwhelming in 2009.



4. Miami Dolphins



Vontae Davis and Sean Smith get a lot of ink as the Dolphins’ starting rookie cornerbacks. Smith began the season strong, but his unusual body type and struggles flipping his hips always might hold him back. To me, he finished the season as a somewhat overrated player.



But Davis could be on the verge of stardom. Like Smith, he made some rookie mistakes, but this kid has it all physically. He will be a true No. 1 cover man — maybe as soon as next season. Third cornerback Will Allen is serviceable, but not dynamic.



Gibril Wilson and Yeremiah Bell are both average starting caliber strong safeties. But the problem in Miami is that neither has the skill set for deep patrol. The lack of a true free safety-type hurt this pass defense and is a clear offseason need.

First, the faults.



Selecting an all-division team is an imperfect process. It’s somewhat uncomfortable to bestow the same honor on the league MVP (Peyton Manning) and Offensive Player of the Year (Chris Johnson) as the best of a less-than-great group of guards.



But once we committed to this, we had to see it through.



You offered a good deal of feedback through this post, in which I listed shoo-ins and a few either/or choices and left blanks, asking for your assistance. Once I had the team sketched out, I needed some help at a couple of spots and called on a couple of scouts. They offered good, if sometimes conflicting, input.



With all that in mind, here is my completed 2009 All-AFC South Team:



Proactive: Jaguars fans will crush me, I am sure. But part of the Jaguars’ lack of presence here is just bad fortune. Maurice Jones-Drew would probably be the running back on seven other all-division teams, but can’t be in front of Johnson and his 2,000-yard season here.



John Henderson and Rashean Mathis, still good players, lived more on reputation than production in 2009. Daryl Smith is a quality player, but was a clear third to me at outside linebacker behind Brian Cushing (Houston) and Clint Session (Indianapolis). Uche Nwaneri lost out in similar circumstances — see the guards entry below. Terrance Knighton and Derek Cox are definite risers, but were not quite as good as their competition in the division this season.



And although Montell Owens was the Jaguars’ leading tackler on special teams, William Middleton stood out more in some games I saw. I don’t defer to Profootballfocus.com on everything; when I checked its special-teams ratings, Middleton was tied for ninth, well ahead of Houston’s Xavier Adibi (next in the AFC South at 20th) as well as Owens (tied with a huge group for 377th).



Guards: One scout suggested I leave at least one of these spots blank, but I couldn’t leave Manning with no inside protection or Johnson with no interior blocking. The Colts’ Ryan Lilja isn’t especially strong but he was very efficient. Although the scouts didn’t love him, both chose the Titans’ Jake Scott over Nwaneri.



Defensive tackles: A lot of readers wanted Henderson here, but he was good (not great) and didn’t draw my attention the way others did, so players on the rise got ahead of him. Tennessee’s Tony Brown was a consistently disruptive force and Antonio Johnson caused problems for people who presumed the Colts would be soft in the middle.



Corners: Tennessee’s Cortland Finnegan started slowly and dealt with an injury. But he eventually got back to form. The bulk of readers and both scouts rated him as the best in the division, as do I. The second spot was a tough call with Dunta Robinson, Mathis, Cox and Jerraud Powers all getting consideration. I really liked Powers’ ability to fill in effectively for the Colts when they expected him to be a nickel at most in his rookie season.



Mario vs. Mathis: Is Mario Williams equipped to be a more complete player than Robert Mathis? Absolutely. Was he in 2009? No. The shoulder injury was a factor, but Williams was not his best self while Mathis was a terror who still gets downgraded as if he cannot play the run even though he is just fine against it.



Ryans vs. Brackett: One of the scouts said that as good as Indy’s Gary Brackett was, Houston’s DeMeco Ryans is such a consistent playmaker he has to be at the head of the line. That was more than good enough for me to break my initial tie at middle linebacker.



Pollard vs. Bullitt: I put Bernard Pollard in as a lock on my initial ballot, but some of you made a good case for Melvin Bullitt. I love Bullitt and thought he had an excellent season. But Pollard was a transforming presence after he joined the Texans.



Thanks, but…: I appreciated the push for Owen Daniels (half a season vs. Dallas Clark’s 100 catches made it no contest), the reader who rated Chris Johnson as a “one-trick pony” and the mention of Mike Pollak.

PFT Daily: Mike Florio gives his reasons why the Eagles might wait until the preseason to trade Mike Vick. (NBC Sports)

PFT Daily: Mike Florio gives his reasons why the Eagles might wait until the preseason to trade Mike Vick. (NBC Sports)