The Washington Redskins have given a whole new meaning to the term March Madness this year. Here is how they can survive the madness.
March. It’s a time of year where most of the sports faithful take to the brackets. The peak of the college basketball season, where fans gather around to watch every single minute of the NCAA tournament, in hopes of filling out the elusive and borderline impossible perfect bracket.
However, there will be no time for basketball in Ashburn. The Washington Redskins will have to stick to the draft boards. The offseason has not gone as planned for the organization. Player departures and front office dysfunction rumors have plagued the organization, and the draft will be one key to restoring both personnel and reputation.
With all of the chaos surrounding the organization, it is important to take a moment to reflect on how they got here, and how they are planning on getting out. Here is how the Redskins can emerge victorious after this March Madness.
Redskins Offseason Recap
Perhaps the most impactful event of the offseason, the Redskins let go general manager Scot McCloughan on the first day of free agency. It wasn’t so much the move itself rather than the way it happened that garnered so much negative attention. However, regardless of the alleged grounds for the firing, Scot McCloughan was an effective talent evaluator. The Redskins received immediate dividends from many players drafted under McCloughan, such as Brandon Scherff and Jamison Crowder. McCloughan was well-liked by the players, and his presence will be missed.
FanSided
The team gave Kirk Cousins the franchise tag for a second straight year. Although there were reports of friction between Cousins and the front office, the waters have calmed, and the two sides seem to be getting along. The team’s quarterback is locked up for now, but it did not come cheap.
While the Redskins were able to keep Cousins, they also lost multiple key contributors from the roster. DeSean Jackson and Pierre Garcon both left for new teams, causing the Redskins to be the first team in NFL history to simultaneously lose two 1000+ yard receivers from the previous year. Defensive end Chris Baker also left for greener pastures. He was a key cog in the Redskins’ defensive system, and his exit leaves a void on the defensive line.
Washington has already begun the daunting task of replacing these players and the production they yielded. Nevertheless, there is much more work to do before this year’s March Madness is over.
So, how can the team win this period of March Madness? There will always be speculation about the dysfunction in the Washington’s front office. It’s been a recurring theme for almost two decades. Fans and pundits alike are all too familiar with the topic to ignore it. Only one thing can help a team rebound from this kind of negative reception: Positive results. Chaos, disorder, and “Washington Redskins” are words that are often associated with dysfunction. However, now that the harmful free agency episodes listed above appear to be behind us, the Redskins have actually begun to slowly distance themselves from this term.
How Have They Done This?
They responded to the loss of Pierre Garcon and Desean Jackson by signing Terrelle Pryor, a younger, taller receiver with more athletic potential. The signing was relatively cheap, and it gives the Redskins a versatile weapon.
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The team has also started restocking the defense. The signings of Terrell McClain, Stacy McGee, and project player Phil Taylor have helped with this. While none of these players have truly proven themselves, they provide a blend of youth, potential, and depth to the defensive front. That is something the Redskins have not had in some time. They also provided what should be a boost to the leaky secondary by signing safety D.J. Swearinger. Swearinger brings tenacity, toughness, and coverage skills to the back end. With both Swearinger and Su’a Cravens serving as young, talented additions to the secondary, improvement from last year is almost guaranteed.
There’s something about these signings that is too methodical to suggest a franchise in disarray. One can only hope that the Redskins will remain steady through the remainder of free agency. Cap space is running low, but there are numerous candidates on the roster who could be released to free up cap space, including the recently released Ricky Jean-Francois. After releasing the players who are eating up too much space, the Redskins could scavenge the market for defensive depth.
But the free agency market can only give you so much. For the lucky few, such as the New York Giants, it provides players that legitimize the team and contribute immediately. For the majority, it provides merely a chance at simple fixes for franchises that need some patchwork. The NFL Draft is the place where franchises are truly built. After last year’s underwhelming draft class, the Redskins will need to do much better this year.
How Can They Improve In The Draft?
Last year, the Redskins chose future needs over immediate needs by selecting Josh Doctson in the first round. While it’s unfair to judge the worth of Josh Doctson thus far, it’s hard to argue with the fact that a better defense in 2016 may have boosted the Redskins into the playoffs.
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This year, the philosophy changes. Immediate needs come first. Washington must further improve the defensive line and the secondary by adding an influx of young talent through the draft. There are other needs, such as wide receiver, inside linebacker, offensive guard, and center, but solutions to these needs could very well be on the roster.
With good scouting, you can find game-changing talent in any round. But the success rate is highest in the first and second rounds. The Redskins must cater to the most immediate needs there. After that, they should focus on depth and development in other areas that might pose a risk to performance in the future. They have nine draft picks in this year’s draft. That provides the Redskins with many opportunities to supplement the roster with youth and depth, two things that were lacking this past season.
Will The Redskins Survive March Madness?
The offseason started with uncertainty, but it appears as though the Washington Redskins have righted the ship for now. There is still much more work to be done, however.
March Madness is a tricky thing; it’s spelled failure for this team far too often. It seemed as though better times were on the horizon, but recent events have changed that perception. Doubt is still palpable in the air. Only time will tell if the Redskins make the right choices in free agency and in the Draft. However, with the right philosophy, and the right mentality, the Redskins can survive March Madness, and produce positive results in the end.