Jay Gruden feels very strongly about the move the Washington Redskins made on the back end of the secondary in free agency.

The head coach spoke to the assembled media at the NFL Owners Meetings in Phoenix earlier this week, where he raved about new signing D.J. Swearinger and how he will fit on the roster.

“I think the good thing about D.J. is his ability, his growth,” Gruden said, via Redskins.com. “I think D.J., when you watch him in his career, he maybe disappointed a little bit early, but last year I think he played as good as any safety in the NFL, quite frankly. He’s done it in different spots, wasn’t just a box safety, he played in the hole, he played half the field, he played corners, he played everything.”

Just talking to him and shaking his hand for the first time, you just had a good feeling about the sense of how much he loved football. The history, even the Sean Taylor and the Redskins and all that, you can tell he loves playing safety and he’s going to be a good one.”

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Swearinger will play free safety with Su'a Cravens sliding back from linebacker to strong safety. He likes what he sees there, as well.

“Knowing Su’a, I don’t think there’s a lot of things he can’t do so I’m excited to see him back there,” Gruden said. “I think he’s going to have a lot more range than people give him credit for right now. He didn’t run the greatest 40 time, but he plays fast on the football field and that’s more important.”

Behind them on the depth chart is an experienced veteran in DeAngelo Hall, who is coming off of a torn ACL. He may not have much football left in the tank, but he could still be an important veteran presence for the team.

“Even though he’s an experienced player, he’s not experienced at the position he’s competing to play,” Gruden said. “He needs to get back quick, but we can’t push him. It’s a fine line there, but we’re excited about DeAngelo and the things that he brings not only on the field, but off the field are very important for this football team.”

It would not be a surprise to see the Redskins take a safety in the draft, but it does appear they are content with Swearinger and Cravens to see how that experiment goes.