Woody column: Westbrook's big role in Redskins' victory

The stars come out for the Washington Redskins.

Brian Orakpo, a first-round draft choice, gets his sacks.

Ryan Kerrigan, a first-round draft choice, knocks down passes.

Santana Moss, a first-round draft choice, catches touchdown passes.

Stars are necessary for success in the NFL.

But no team has a roster full of stars. There have to be backups who rarely get to practice with the first unit, yet have to be ready on game day.

For the Washington Redskins, Byron Westbrook is such a player.

Westbrook came into the NFL facing odds that were about as long as possible. He was an undrafted college free agent from Salisbury University, a Division III team.

"Go Salisbury," Westbrook said when he turned to face the small throng of media members around his locker. "They're 2-0. Check us out."

Actually, the Sea Gulls are 3-0.

And you can count the current number of Salisbury Sea Gulls players in the NFL on one hand. One finger actually.

Westbrook is the one and only.

Sunday, the former Sea Gull played a crucial role in helping the Redskins defeat the Arizona Cardinals 22-21 and improve to 2-0.

Westbrook, a backup cornerback and special teams player, was forced into action on defense when starting cornerback Josh Wilson suffered a back injury early in the third quarter.

And with the Cardinals attempting to drive within range for a game-winning field goal attempt, Westbrook tackled wide receiver Andre Roberts and knocked the ball loose.

Strong safety Reed Doughty recovered the fumble for the Redskins and the offense killed the final 1:39 of the clock.

With the exception of a few breakdowns — it's the NFL, the other guys also get paid a lot of money to make plays — the Redskins' defense held fast and saved the day.

Orakpo has the look of a perennial Pro Bowl player. Kerrigan is making the Redskins front office look like draft gurus. Both have been starters since they arrived.

Westbrook was a dominant player at Salisbury, but he was lucky to even get an invitation to an NFL camp. He spent two years on the Redskins practice squad.

When he finally made the active roster, he saw limited playing time on special teams. And when he was on the field, his youth and inexperience did not always serve him well.

Two years ago in Carolina, he was blocked into his punt returner — the man he was supposed to protect — and the result was a lost fumble in a game the Redskins lost.

Such moments can cost marginal players their jobs, maybe even their careers.

"I never look at it that way," Westbrook said. "If I thought like that, I'd have been out of the league two years ago. As a cornerback, you have to forget the last play. The same with special teams."

The Redskins have designs on a playoff spot. To get there, they need players other than Orakpo, Kerrigan, Moss, cornerback DeAngelo Hall (Virginia Tech) and middle linebacker London Fletcher to play well.

Occasionally, they have to have players such as Westbrook help them get through a game.

"Brooks has battled," Fletcher said of Westbrook. "He's had a tough road. I've seen him grow each year.

"He came in today and didn't blink. He was ready for the challenge. That forced fumble he had at the end of the game was huge."

Uh, yeah, you might say that.

"When you get an opportunity, you have to show you belong," Doughty said. "He's done that."

Westbrook did not have the luxury of being a third-round draft choice with the Philadelphia Eagles. That was his brother Brian Westbrook, who was almost an instant success in the NFL.

Instead, Byron had to take much smaller steps.

He wasn't even sure the Redskins would re-sign him for this season.

When they did, "I thought it was a great decision," he said.

And he laughed.

"I'm from Division III, we had to pay for our schooling," Westbrook said. "It doesn't bother me that I'm a special teams guy or I have to come in on defense when a guy gets hurt. As long as I'm helping the team and making sure we win, that's all I can do."

Sunday, Westbrook did all he could. It said something about him, and, possibly, the Redskins' season.