The Washington Redskins’ plan B at quarterback (if they need one).
By jonfox
Last week, Adam Schefter tweeted out what was merely being whispered about on the internet: the the Redskins and Kirk Cousins’ talks over a new contract had totally hit a wall and that talked ceased.
The rumor mill had various theories about why this happened, but the most plausible theory is that while the Redskins’ GM Scot McCloughan gave star players Ryan Kerrigan and Trent Williams big new contracts, both accepted deals where the Redskins could offload the contracts after a season or two without much dead cap space. There have been rumblings that the Redskins will listen to offers on Kerrigan this offseason.
For instance, Trent Williams is due a large roster bonus in April 2016. he’s certainly see the bonus money this season. Ryan Kerrigan has a similar payment due in April 2017. It’s much less certain that he’ll see that check.
The rumors are that Cousins not only wants a contract in excess of 100 million dollars, which the Redskins are sort of willing to do, he wants a contract that can’t be dumped after 2 seasons. He wants a full commitment from the franchise. It’s doubtful that he’ll get that and either free agency or a franchise tag are looming if the sides can’t compromise.
In his pre-combine presser, Scot McCloughan only gave us one morsel to nibble on about the state of these negotiations. He said that he’d love to give Cousins a long term contract but not one which cripples the franchise’s cap for years to come(paraphrasing him).
So what is the Redskins’ Plan B at quarterback if Cousins is franchise tagged or leaves via free agency(or is tagged and then traded). There are two immutable truths(for now) that probably will guide the Redskins’ plans:
1-Robert Griffin III is not in the Redskins’ plans. It’s nothing personal but Gruden’s offense and RG3’s skill set were never going to work together. RG3 is a play action passer who needs a quality run game to thrive. Gruden wants to pass the ball 65-plus-percent of the time.
2-Even if they gave Cousins the contract he wants, the Redskins were always going to draft a quarterback higher than pundits expected. Before this whole Cousins drama hit the internet, they were probably looking at guys in the 3rd or 4th round.
The Redskins aren’t going to spend a ton of cap room replacing Kirk Cousins, whether or not he walks in 2016. So an option like Jay Cutler or Joe Flacco isn’t going to be on the table unless either guy takes a significant paycut in his hypothetical contract with the Redskins.
Neither will the team go out and try to sign someone like Sam Bradford. He’ll cost too much and isn’t that big an upgrade on Cousins (if at all).
The Redskins will sign a veteran quarterback this offseason, whether that’s bringing back Colt McCoy or bringing in someone like Drew Stanton or Chase Daniel (who, if you believe the Redskins rumor mill, was someone McCloughan was interested in last spring).
However no matter what they do in a hypothetical “Cousins gets franchise tagged and plays out 2016 with the Redskins on it” or “Kirk Cousins is elsewhere in 2016” scenario, they will be targeting a quarterback sometime before they pick in the 3rd round.
Specifically, they’ll looking at their second round pick or moving up in that round for a potential Cousins replacement. And the three names that make sense in this scenario would be:
1-Paxton Lynch, Memphis. The Redskins probably have to move up in the 2nd round to get him if he makes it out of the first. But the risk is probably worth the reward. He has top flight arm talent and is willing to take a hit to step through a throw(something that neither RG3 or Cousins could do consistently). There are concerns about his mechanics and the offense he played in, but this would be the best pick that they could make.
2-Kevin Hogan, Stanford. He checks a lot of the boxes that Scot McCloughan looks for in a prospect and he’s not afraid to take a player he likes far earlier than their perceived draft stock. Hogan is a smart, tough, experienced (and experienced in a pro style offense) passer who’s funky delivery and maybe not great arm talent has the scouts mixed about his potential.
3-Jacoby Brissett, NC State. His draft stock is mixed because the film is showing that he struggles when rushed (especially up the middle). This is a problem that the Redskins have been dealing with when RG3 and Cousins have been on the field for them of late. His (Brissett’s) arm talent and mobility is undeniable so perhaps sitting for a season so that the Redskins can upgrade their offensive line could work out well for both sides.