Rich Tandler's Real Redskins

What second-year players can step up to help cap crunch?

The Redskins have drafted 21 players in the past two years and 19 of them are still with the organization. With the possibility of some roster cuts and some free agents leaving it is time to examine the draft picks and see who might be ready to step up and start and who might be ready for an increased role. On Wednesday we looked at the 2011 draft class and today we look at 2012.

Already starters

From the 2012 draft class, Robert Griffin III (round 1) is the starting quarterback and Alfred Morris (6) is the running back.

Roles established

Kirk Cousins (4) will be the quarterback while Griffin is rehabbing his knee injury, no matter how long that takes and his backup when he returns.

Go here to read the post on CSNwashington.com

Need to Know: Beware of scouting reports

Here is what you need to know on this Thursday, February 28, 12 days before the start of the league year and free agency.

Beware of scouts’ opinions

If you are paying attention to the NFL draft process, you are hearing a lot of things about many players, both good and bad. That’s all well and good but it is important to remember that what is being said are just opinions.

If you need any proof, check out what a scout told Bob McGinn of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinal about a particular quarterback last year (via Pro Football Talk).

“‘Everybody is just assuming because of the Heisman and the socks and all that bs. . . . they are ignoring a lot of bad tape that he’s had,’” the scout said.  “‘I don’t think he has vision or pocket feel, which to me are the two most important components of quarterbacking.  He’s just running around winging it.  He’s [Michael] Vick, but not as good a thrower.’”

Another scout said, “He’s got a little bit of a selfish streak, too.  Everybody was laying on Cam [Newton], but for some reason this guy has become gloves off.  He doesn’t treat anybody good.”

I’m sure that you figure out quickly that the QB in question is one Robert Griffin III. And that we now know that these two scouts couldn’t be more wrong. He wasn’t perfect but he was good enough to post the best passer rating that any rookie quarterback has posted in NFL history. And there are no reports, none, that Griffin treated anyone, from coaches to players on his team to players on opposing teams to fans and the media, with anything but the upmost class and respect.

The lesson is that scouts can be wrong, very wrong. This doesn’t mean that they are bad at their jobs in general but, like anyone else, them make mistakes. So if you hear a player evaluated by a scout or, in the case of the draft, your favorite of the dozens of draft analysts out there and it doesn’t jibe with what you see, you may well be right.

Fortunately for the Redskins, it’s pretty certain that these scouts don’t work for them and that they didn’t have the ear of Mike Shanahan.

The draft is so inexact that it’s crazy to call it a science.

Morgan gets out in the community

Josh Morgan was in mid-season form yesterday.

Well, not physically. He’s coming off of surgery last month to remove a plate in his ankle, a device that was put there after he suffered a broken ankle in San Francisco in 2011, and on both of his hands.

But spent some time yesterday getting out into the community, helping out at an event at a school in Maryland. You could find him in a similar setting on most Tuesdays during the regular season as he volunteered for almost every event the Redskins put on during the year.

Check out the video:

In case you missed it

• Morgan played in pain in 2012
• Which 2011 draft picks are ready to step up?
• Alexander, Redskins start contract talks

Days until: Start of new league year and free agency 12; OTA’s start 78; NFL Kickoff Sunday 192

Need to Know: Alexander rejects initial offer

Here is what you need to know on this Wednesday, February 27, 13 days before the start of the new league year and free agency.

Lorenzo rejects initial offer

It is a situation that Redskins fans need to get used to over the coming weeks.

John Keim of the Examiner talked to Lorenzo Alexander and found out that the Redskins linebacker and special teams captain has rejected the Redskins’ initial contract offer.

“They offered me a deal but obviously at this point I’m not going to jump into it and sign right away,” Alexander said.

Nor should he. Alexander turns 30 at the end of May and this could well be his last NFL contract. He has one last chance to gain some security for himself and his family and the smart, responsible thing to do is to wait and see what other teams have to offer.

This development does not ensure that Alexander will be playing elsewhere in 2013. He is well aware of the Redskins’ precarious salary cap situation and he is willing to give the Redskins a hometown discount.

“I’m willing to take less for the Redskins, but they have to be close,” he said. “They can’t be way off.”

“I want to be here, but if I have to go I have to go. It’s part of the business.”

This situation is likely to be played out over the coming days with players like Fred Davis, Kory Lichtensteiger and perhaps with restricted free agents like Rob Jackson and Darrel Young. They will look at the Redskins’ initial contract offers and then see what else is out there. Some will be back and some won’t.

Shanahan talks RG3

In case you missed it

• NFLPA says it did not approve collusion in advance
• Fred Davis should be ready for OTA’s but where will he be playing?
• Georgia safety Rambo doesn’t lack confidence
• London Fletcher is still evaluating his future

Days until: Start of new league year 13; NFL Draft 57; Start of OTA’s 77

NFLPA says it didn't OK collusion in 2010

The NFLPA says that it was not informed of, and did not agree to, any possible sanctions for spending during the uncapped 2010 season. Did Roger Goddell say something to the contrary last fall? 

Check out the post on CSNwashington.com

Report: Davis will be ready for OTA's

It looks like Redskins tight end Fred Davis will be ready for the start of OTA's in a couple of months. The question is, what uniform will he be wearing?

According to a few reports, the pending unrestricted free agent is recovering very well from his torn Achilles. This report was from Adam Schefter:

Dr. Robert Anderson said Redskins TE Fred Davis is healing well from his torn Achilles and will be 100 percent ready for OTAs.

— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) February 26, 2013

This is certainly good news for Davis. He is an unrestricted free agent and his health was a major concern for him going into the signing period that starts March 12.

It's also good news for the Redskins if they are going to make an attempt to resign Davis. They are pressed up against the salary cap and the can now make Davis an offer with reasonable certainty that they are not going after damaged goods. 

If the Redskins are going to resign Davis they will have to craft a deal that is cap friendly for at least this year. They are about $3.5 million over the salary cap as of now. 

If the Redskins go to court, they'll go it alone

If the Redskins take the NFL to court over salary cap penalties, they’ll go it alone.

The Dallas Cowboys, who were penalized $10 million in cap space at the same time the Redskins were hit with a $36 million penalty, have indicated that they will not become a party to any legal action the Redskins might take to prevent the start of free agency while they challenge the penalties.

"We are not involved and we won't become involved," a source with the Cowboys told Ed Werder of ESPN.

It certainly makes sense for the Cowboys to stay out of it. They have just $5 million left on their penalty and the risk-reward formula would make it a bad move with so little to gain.

The Redskins are letting some around the league know that they are considering going to court to get an injunction to hold the start of free agency until their attempt to recoup the lost cap space has been resolved. 

Need to Know: An important day for the Redskins at the combine?

Here is what you need to know on this Tuesday, February 26, 14 days before the start of free agency.

An important day at the combine?

Today is the last day of the NFL Combine in Indianapolis. Even though they kicked out the media on Sunday afternoon the defensive backs still have to do their on-field drills in front of the NFL Network cameras and under the watchful eye of team coaches and executives.

Since cornerback and safety are expected to be the two positions of prime interest for the Redskins in the April draft, I was asked on Twitter yesterday if Tuesday was the biggest day of the combine for the Redskins.

My answer was that the most important part of the combine will be done for the Redskins by the time the defensive backs start running and jumping on the Lucas Oil Stadium field. Mike Shanahan has said that the aspect of the combine he gets the most out of is talking to the prospects.

“I really enjoy getting a chance to sit down with them for the 15, 20 minutes or whatever the time that’s allotted and getting a chance to know them a little bit better,” Shanahan said at the combine in 2011, the last time he talked to the media there.

It’s not like 40 times or vertical leaps are ignored. The workout information will be added to what they already have on a player. More will be added from pro days, individual workouts, and team visits. But the decision will be based mostly on the player’s film from college, the medical information that the team obtains at the combine, and the interaction with the players.

So, in many ways the most important days for the Redskins at the combine have already taken place, at the X-ray machine and in the interview rooms. A 40 time or shuttle run time might be a tiebreaker between two players but as far as the Redskins are concerned the cake is mostly baked by the time they run and jump.

A.J. Smith joins Redskins as an advisor

Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune is reporting that former Chargers general manager A. J. Smith will be joining the Redskins as an advisor and consultant.

Smith became the GM in San Diego when John Butler died in 2003. The team peaked a few years later as they went 14-2 in 2006 and had 11 players named to the Pro Bowl. But that team lost in the first round of the playoffs and Smith won a power struggle with coach Marty Schottenheimer. Smith changed on ex-Redskins coach for another as Norv Turner was hired and they made the playoffs three straight years. But the talent level deteriorated, and Smith and Turner were fired after missing the playoffs the last three years.

It is not known what Smith’s exact role will be. He was not seriously considered for any GM openings after the Chargers let him go.

In case you missed it

• Are the Redskins going nuclear in the salary cap fight?
• Can NFL teams trust the Honey Badger?
• Pre-Shanahan Redskins are becoming scarce

Days until: Start of new league year 14; Offseason workouts start 48; Training camp 149

Are the Redskins about to go nuclear?

Are the Redskins about to take the drastic step of suing their partners?

According to the Washington Post, the Redskins have let it be known to some around the league that they are considering taking the league to court in order to have all or part of their $18 million salary cap penalty overturned. They may ask a judge for an injunction to block the scheduled May 12 start of free agency until the salary cap matter has been settled.

Mike Shanahan and Bruce Allen have let it be known in recent months that the team still intended to fight the cap penalty but no details were given. Until today, there was no indication that they would take the most drastic measure available, to use amounts to the nuclear option.

There are pitfalls in suing a league of which you are a member. In 1980 Al Davis sued the NFL to move his Raiders from Oakland to Los Angeles. He won the antitrust suit and moved the team to the LA Coliseum in 1982. He spent the rest of his years as an outcast among NFL owners. When he wanted improvements to the LA Coliseum and, after he moved the team back to Oakland in 1995, the Oakland Coliseum, he got precious little support from the league.

The possibility of strained relations with the other owners would be the risk the Redskins would be taking by going to court against the league. Even if they win there could be ramifications that last for decades and end up being more costly than what might be gained by winning the ability to spend an additional $18 million in player salary.

At this stage this appears to be a trial balloon the Redskins are floating around the league to see what the reaction might be. Undoubtedly, their hope is to avoid going to court altogether. The best possible outcome would be for them to convince the league that they have a real shot at winning an injunction and that it would be best to settle and restore all or part of the Redskins’ cap money rather than having free agency delayed indefinitely.

What kind of chance would the Redskins have? It’s hard to say. On the one hand it’s pretty clear that by spending freely during the uncapped 2010 season the Redskins chose not to be bound by a “secret” salary cap that was illegal and amounted to collusion by the other NFL owners. If the judge agrees, an injunction stopping player signings could be issued on the basis that the Redskins would be irreparably harmed by the start of free agency while their case was under adjudication.

On the other hand, the players’ union agreed to the sanctions and the Redskins may not have a legal right to do anything about it.

The truth of the matter is that when you go to court you never really know what is going to happen. If the case does go to trial, the only guaranteed winners are the lawyers for both sides, who will be putting in hundreds, if not thousands, of billable hours into the case.

 It’s expense and fear of the unknown that causes all kinds of cases, both criminal and civil, are settled before going to trial. That is why the league may want to make a settlement offer to the Redskins and why the team might be willing to accept getting, say, half of its cap space back.

The Redskins may not yet have directly threatened to take the league to court just yet. But if they do say they are going to do it, they had better not be bluffing. If they cave quickly they would look weak and their credibility and standing in the league would be seriously and irreparably damaged.

It doesn’t look like they have crossed the point of no return. But if they do, there will be no going back. They will have to be prepared to take the case to its conclusion no matter how unpleasant things might get along the way.

Need to Know: Pre-Shanny Redskins becoming scarce

Here is what you need to know on this Monday, February 25, 15 days before the start of the new league year and free agency.

Expect more turnover

Even though the Redskins won the NFC East title last year, they still have some work to do before they can be considered serious Super Bowl contenders. And in the NFL vernacular, “work to do” often means roster turnover.

Ten players who were on the active roster at the end of the season may not be signed to return:

• Jordan Black
• Chris Cooley
• Kedric Golston
• Cedric Griffin
• Kory Lichtensteiger
• Tyler Polumbus
• Sav Rocca
• Madieu Williams
• Chris Wilson
• Brandon Banks

There is a chance that some in this group, like Lichtensteiger and Polumbus, will be brought back. Others like Williams, Wilson, and Banks will almost certainly be playing elsewhere if they are playing at all.

Pre-Shanny Redskins becoming scarce

If Cooley, Golston, and Wilson are allowed to walk the roster will be down to nine players who were with the organization when Mike Shanahan came to town in January of 2010. That number could shrink if free agents Rob Jackson, Lorenzo Alexander and Fred Davis sign elsewhere and if the Redskins and DeAngelo Hall can’t come to an agreement on a reduced salary.

The futures of some of the other five pre-Shanahan Redskins are less than rock solid. London Fletcher has still not said if he will return for a 16^th NFL season. The Redskins’ salary cap issues could force the Redskins to part ways with Santana Moss and Reed Doughty. So that leaves just two players who were in Washington for the Jim Zorn era, Brian Orakpo and Will Montgomery, who are certain to be on the roster when the season starts.

In case you missed it

• Oregon State CB Jordan Poyer says he understands the game
• Florida safety Matt Elam likes to dish out punishment
• That was the week that was—Combine lacks sizzle

Days until: NFL Draft 59; OTA’s start 79; training camp 150

Need to Know: Combine lacks RG3-generated sizzle

Here is what you need to know on this Sunday, February 24, 16 days before the start of the new league year and free agency.

That was the week that was

—What a difference a year makes. In 2012 the Redskins and Robert Griffin III were the talk of the NFL Combine. Griffin was clearly the apple of Mike Shanahan’s eye and we found out that the feeling was mutual after the future QB and coach combination met as part of the combine interview process.

While discussing Griffins team visits during an appearance on the NFL Network, host Rich Eisen said to Griffin, “At least Shanahan has spoken to you.”

RG3 responded, "I did speak with Mr. Shanahan. It was awesome."

Reports of this one line sent Twitter and the Internet, at least the portion of it belonging to Redskins Nation, into a tizzy.

The Redskins will add some important players in the draft, maybe an offensive tackle like David Bakhtari, Oday Aboushi, Justin Pugh, or Terron Armstead and/or a tight end like Vance McDonald. But it just won’t be the same as the RG3-created electricity of a year ago.

Of course, it helps more to have Griffin creating electricity on the field on Sundays in the fall.

—The Redskins finally around to hiring a wide receivers coach. Mike McDaniel is a Shanahan guy but he’s more of a Kyle Shanahan guy. He was an offensive assistant with Kyle in Houston before coming to the Redskins in 2011.

—We got our first post-op comments from Dr. James Andrews. Not surprisingly, he said that Griffin’s rehab is “way ahead of schedule”. Reacting to concerns that Griffin and the Redskins are too focused on getting him back for the season opener, Andrews said that the rehab is focused on his career in the long term and not on getting him ready for Week 1.

—For $36 million and two years of aggravation, the Redskins will get an extra fifth-round pick in the April NFL draft. The pick came from the Patriots in exchange for Albert Haynesworth. The player picked will be in training camp this summer. Haynesworth, who was awful in New England and then in Tampa Bay after the Patriots cut him, is unlikely to be.

—From 2007-2011, the Redskins scored in the fourth quarter to turn a one-score game into a two-score game four times. They did that four times in 2012 alone, one of the reasons for their turnaround.

—Pierre Garçon desperately wanted to avoid going under the knife to repair his injured toe and it looks like he’ll get his wish.

—There was some talk of the NFL expanding the playoff field by one team per conference. Although I’m not in favor of more playoff teams, one of the proposals discussed would get rid of two preseason games in exchange for adding the extra two playoff games. Sign me up for that right now.

Players get tested mentally, too

Days until: Start of league year 16; OTA’s start 80; training camp 151