The Redskins may look to raid a division rival to upgrade its receiver corps.
Speaking to the Sports Junkies on 106.7 The Fan in Washington, Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk said that the Redskins are going to make a big effort to sign Giants wide receiver Mario Manningham.
When he last saw Manningham, the was making a nice catch of a 38-yard pass from Eli Manning, getting his feet inbounds to move the Giants from their 12 to midfield in the late going. New York went on to drive in for the game-winning touchdown.
Would Manningham be a good fit for the Redskins? It depends on the contract. The Redskins do need to upgrade their receiver corps, no doubt about it. And Manningham would represent and upgrad.
But if he gets paid close to what top free agent receivers like Vincent Jackson will get, in the neighborhood of $10 million per year, it would not be a good acquisition for the Redskins. Even at $7 million, the Redskins would be paying him like a No. 1 receiver when his production is that of a No. 2 or 3 receiver.
In 2011, Manningham caught 39 passes for 523 yards and four touchdowns. He missed four games with a knee injury. Playing a full season in 2010, he had 60 receptions for 944 yards and nine TD’s. Even the better season is more like a second wide receiver in a competent offense.
At something more like $5 million or so per year, Manningham could be a good acquisition. Even though when he came in he might be the No. 1 receiver, he wouldn’t remain that for long as the Redskins would continue to try to upgrade.
The feeling here is that some team with even more cap space than the Redskins have will pay Manningham well over his market value. It would be surprising to see the Super Bowl hero ending up in Washington.
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