During Wednesday's pre-draft press conference, Redskins head coach Mike Shanahan gave positive reviews of right tackle Jammal Brown's injured hip and overall status.

"That hip that he's had that tear on looks better than it's ever looked," he said.  "His flexibility is 100 percent different than it was the last two years."

"Right now I feel better about Jammal Brown than I have since I've been here."

In the last two seasons since Brown arrived in Washington, he has missed six starts due to injury, including four in 2012.

Shanahan addressed Brown's status unsolicited, and said that his health has improved thanks to a new Pilates and yoga regimen.

"He's been doing this for the last couple of months," Shanahan reported.  "He's been working extremely hard, so I feel better about that situation right now."

The Redskins were thought to be interested in drafting a tackle in the middle rounds, after losing both Brown and Trent Williams for extended periods last season.  Shanahan suggested today that alternative option may already be on the roster.

"You bring in a guy like Tyler Polumbus and he played pretty good in the games that he played," Shanahan said.  "We've got a guy named James Lee who we brought in from Tampa who started a number of games and has some experience.  He fits in our system."

Polumbus started four games between the tackle and guard positions last season.  Undrafted rookie Willie Smith also started three games in 2012, and is the youngest option currently on the team.

"We believe we helped ourselves just with [Brown] getting better," Shanahan reiterated.  "Hopefully these other guys keep on getting better and give us some depth as well."