Redskins Add/Subtract in Free Agency, Still Searching for Long-Term Answers
While the Patriots’ Super Bowl celebrations continue to ebb on into the spring months, the rest of the NFL is hard at work leveraging the free agent wire. The moving and shaking that occurs between the end of the season and the draft in April is frenetic, to put it mildly, and the Washington Redskins are just one of many teams doing their fair share of player-dealing in recent days.
Latest among the moves made by Dan Snyder’s outfit is the signing of former Giants safety Landon Collins to a six-year, $84 million
Collins, a former 33rd overall draft pick out of Alabama, led the Giants with 96 tackles last season and has tallied an impressive 437 tackles since 2015, a figure that leads all safeties in the league during that span. Collins is an absolute force in run-stoppage, though it’s equally fair to say that he still needs to develop a bit in coverage. He’s young 25-year old, which is good when you consider that he’s two years younger than DJ Swearinger, the erstwhile Redskins safety that he’s presumed to be replacing.
While Collins is without question a solid player, the signing has already managed to prove somewhat divisive. This isn’t the first time Washington has set the market at a particular position in free agency. We’re only a few years removed from the massive deal handed to Josh Norman ($50 million guaranteed) and any number of past contracts, from Deion Sanders to Albert Haynesworth, make Redskins fans ball up their fists and deservedly so. There’s a long-standing precedent in D.C. for monster, long-term deals that never return on investment and, more times than not, end unceremoniously.
Collins may turn out to be transformative and elevate the Redskins defense to that “next’ level. Maybe and, perhaps more likely, he won’t. The ‘Skins still have a lot more work to do and decisions to make regarding other significant members of the roster including Zach Brown, Mason Foster
Passing Collins on his way down from New York is receiver Jamison Crowder, who just agreed to a three year, $28.5 million deal with the New York Jets. The Jets are in year two of trying to build up and around QB Sam Darnold and Crowder will give them a legitimate weapon in the slot to help streamline said build.
Crowder was injured for a good portion of last season an even when healthy was plagued by a Redskins quarterback carousel that turned comical by season’s end. When healthy, Crowder is a burner with great ball skills and a toolset that makes him dangerous in the open field. With 2,628 career yards to go along with an 11.9 YPC career average, Crowder takes a significant amount of production north with him and the Redskins, who now lean on a WR corps consisting of the oft-injured Josh Doctson, Jehu Chesson, Maurice Harris and recently acquired Michael Floyd are going to need answers in short order if they hope to make either Case Keenum or Colt McCoy look at all confident under center.
The NFL offseason is long and in this modern era of the NFL, moves happen overnight. What the Redskins do from here with remaining cap space leading up to the draft, is anyone’s guess. For the burgundy and gold nation that has had little reason to cheer in recent years, however, there’s still a long way to go before winning ways return to old D.C.