Redskins defensive end Matt Ioannidis during training camp last month in Richmond. “You can kind of feel the urgency, but at the same time you can’t treat it any differently,” the fifth-round pick out of Temple said of the team’s third preseason game Friday vs. Buffalo. (John McDonnell/The Washington Post)

The opportunities to make an impression are dwindling. After Friday’s third preseason game against the Buffalo Bills, Washington Redskins Coach Jay Gruden and General Manager Scot McCloughan will have 36 cuts to make over the next two weeks to get down to their 53-man roster.

This game, considered something of a dress rehearsal, is the one in which the Redskins hope to figure out roles along the defensive line — one of the team’s biggest weaknesses heading into training camp. Washington has 10 linemen seeking to carve out playing time either as a starter, backup or on special teams.

“That’s all this third game is really about,” defensive end Ricky Jean Francois said. “We know what guys can do. . . . Now we just need to make sure we can, in a live game, know what situations we can put guys in and what positions we can put guys in.”

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The organization has clarity at certain positions, but things are murky beyond the starters. The Redskins have stuck with defensive end Chris Baker, who could miss the game because of a sore quadriceps, and nose tackle Kedric Golston in their base 3-4 alignment while rotating Francois and Kendall Reyes, a free agent acquisition, at left defensive end.

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After that, it has been a tight competition for the remaining spots.

“We feel good about where we are with the numbers, and now it is a matter of getting the right five guys on game day to play, and that is going to be the tricky one,” Gruden said. “Whether it is five or six, we don’t know yet.”

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The most consistent lineman among the remaining six players has been Ziggy Hood. The eight-year veteran has been arguably the best offseason acquisition on the defensive line. Hood, 29, has jumped from third team on the depth chart to mixing in with the starters at times during camp. The Amarillo, Tex., native played just two games with the Chicago Bears last year because of a foot injury, but Hood had not missed a game before that in six NFL seasons with the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Jacksonville Jaguars.

Hood signed with the Redskins because of his familiarity with some of the veterans and the chance to have a role on a competitive team after consecutive losing seasons in Chicago and Jacksonville.

“You can’t take a day and relax knowing that the guy next to you is as good as anybody else,” Hood said. “That’s going to have you come in and play your A game every day because you never know when your number is going to get called. You’ve just got to be ready to perform.”

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It’s the eighth preseason experience for Hood but the first for rookies Anthony Lanier and Matt Ioannidis. The Redskins have used Lanier, an undrafted free agent out of Alabama A&M, at defensive end. He has flashed his ability during one-on-one sessions and last week against the New York Jets when he produced a sack, two quarterback hits and a forced fumble in 21 snaps.

Ioannidis, a fifth-round pick out of Temple, has been quiet at nose tackle both in camp and during 40 preseason snaps. He has the versatility to play every position on the defensive line, however, and feels like he’s progressed since arriving.

“You can kind of feel the urgency, but at the same time you can’t treat it any differently,” Ioannidis said. “From start to finish, you have to approach it with that urgency. You can’t just flip a switch game three and say, ‘Oh, we only have two games left.’ From the time you open camp to the time you close camp, you have to have that urgency.”

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Defensive end Stephen Paea, one of the team’s biggest free agent signings last year, could be on the outside looking in. The 28-year-old signed a four-year deal worth $21 million and has a $3.3 million base salary this season, but he has been limited to a pass rusher in the team’s nickel package with the second and third teams. One of his 10 snaps last week against the Jets did include a sack of third-string quarterback Bryce Petty in the third quarter.

Gruden acknowledged some difficult decisions ahead before the Sept. 12 season opener against the Steelers.

“We have a lot of guys in there to choose from that have all shown the ability to play at the defensive line position, but now putting them in the right spots, putting them in the spots where they can be successful, that’s where we’re still working through that right now as a staff,” the coach said. “The third preseason game will be important, the fourth one, and then obviously we will have to make a decision before Pittsburgh.”