From increasing his football IQ to sharpening his fundamentals, Redskins cornerback Bashaud Breeland seeks to improve his overall game this offseason. 

When the bell rung last season, Washington Redskins cornerback Bashaud Breeland answered.

While Breeland, a fourth-round pick in the 2014 NFL Draft, was originally expected to hone his skills behind veterans like DeAngelo Hall and Tracy Porter, the Clemson product filled in for both after they went down with injury.

Sure, the pressure could have gotten to Breeland, but he thrived instead, leading the team in interceptions while also making several huge plays that didn't show up in the stat sheet.

With his rookie NFL season in the books, Breeland is using his first full offseason to ensure he's growing as an overall player.

"I'm trying to improve on every aspect of my game," he told Redskins.com. "I wasn't perfect. I jumped a lot of passes, but I'm trying to improve on my tracking as well as my technique at the line with my checking. I'm also trying to gain more football knowledge. My football IQ can be much better."

Breeland's biggest moment may have come against the Dallas Cowboys on Monday Night Football, when he was tasked with stopping All-Pro Dez Bryant.

While Bryant had a three-inch and 23-pound advantage on Breeland, the rookie helped hold him to just 30 yards on three receptions.

In the third quarter, with the Cowboys on the Redskins' five-yard line, quarterback Tony Romo looked for Bryant in the end zone on back-to-back plays.

It was Breeland who got the advantage on two contested balls in the air.   

This offseason, he's looking to improve on his body, especially his flexibility, so that he can make plays like that in seasons to come.

After taking a few weeks off directly after the conclusion of the season, Breeland is back getting his body ready for his second NFL season, and incorporating yoga into his regimen in the process.

"I'm doing a lot of hot yoga sessions at Lifetime Fitness, which is where I'm currently working out at right now a little bit on my own," he said. "I did one session during the season last year, but I'm just getting back to it. It helps me gain more flexibility."

While both Hall and Porter are both expected to return healthy at some point in the coming months, the opportunity to show he can play in the NFL was important to Breeland.

"[The season] taught me a lot of things about myself as a player," he said. "It showed me that I was capable of things that others didn't think I was capable of doing. I just kept faith and believed in myself. It turned out good for me."

RELATED LINKS:
--FedEx Tracking: Secondary Changes
--Breeland's Late-Game Interception Leads To 2014 Winner 

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