Much was made in August about whether Alex Smith and the Redskins key players on offense took enough reps in preseason games.

Turns out, DJ Swearinger has some opinions on how the guys on the other side of the ball in Washington were handled in the exhibition contests.

"I think we could've gotten a little more, for sure," Swearinger told JP Finlay in this Redskins Talk podcast interview from Thursday when asked for his thoughts on how much his unit saw the field. "Especially that third game, we should've played more."

The matchup the safety is referring to is the 'Skins-Broncos dress rehearsal, in which the Burgundy and Gold's defense struggled to do anything right. Royce Freeman and Emmanuel Sanders both scored on the ground, Case Keenum faced no pressure at QB and Greg Manusky's group had major issues tackling.

"I was pretty heated that we came out," Swearinger said. He and the rest of the starters didn't return to action in the second half.

"It's a simple fact that we didn't do anything," he continued. "We probably got a stop, but as far as what I see, a dominating defense, we didn't get that stop Game 3."

That night was especially disappointing because of what the Redskins looked like — albeit in very limited snaps — in their first two preseason showings. But since then, the DB has been pleased with how he and his teammates have rebounded.

"I think the work we put in since the third game is really gonna help us on Sunday," Swearinger said. "I think we've been making good strides these last three practices so I definitely feel way more confident than I did after Game 3."

That's encouraging to hear, because a season-opening matchup vs. David Johnson and Larry Fitzgerald awaits. For the Redskins to finally start a season off 1-0, they'll need their defense to be on point. Like really, really on point.

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For Swearinger's FULL interview, check out the below episode of the Redskins Talk podcast. Subscribe to it, too, because there's plenty more great interviews coming all year.