Sources: DeAngelo Hall likely to open season on PUP list for the Redskins

DeAngelo Hall has been on the PUP list this offseason as he recovers from a torn ACL suffered in Week 3 of the 2016 season. The Redskins expect him to stay there to start the season.

DeAngelo Hall is one of the longest tenured members of the Washington Redskins. Since joining the team in 2008, he has functioned in a variety of roles with the team. He started his Redskins career as the top cornerback, but has endured numerous changes during his tenure in Washington. Last season, he played safety for the first time in his career. This year will bring another new challenge.

Hall, now 33, tore his ACL early in the 2016 campaign. He suffered the injury in the team’s Week 3 victory against the New York Giants. Since that time, Hall has been trying to recover from the injury, but progress has been slow. This is not a major surprise, given Hall’s age. ACL tears are hard enough to recover from, but when a player is over 30, it gets exponentially harder.

With that said, it makes sense that the Redskins are managing Hall’s return to the team with caution. According to CSN Mid-Atlantic’s J.P. Finlay, the Redskins are planning to have Hall open the season on the PUP list. Finlay said the following on Twitter:

Listening to Dr. James Andrews, one of the best orthopedic surgeons in the country, is definitely a smart idea. It also helps that there is an incentive for the Redskins to keep Hall on the PUP list.

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As it stands right now, the Redskins have some pretty solid depth at the safety position. They have two new starters in free agent acquisition D.J. Swearinger and converted linebacker Su’a Cravens. Behind the duo, they have the venerable veteran Will Blackmon and special teams ace Deshazor Everett. The Redskins could afford to carry five safeties, but the competition gets a little more difficult at the No. 5 spot.

Hall would have been fighting for the fifth spot, and he would be facing a couple of rookies. One is fourth round rookie Montae Nicholson. The Michigan State product is a raw athlete with potential play making ability. He needs time to develop, but it would have been a risk to put him on the practice squad. Meanwhile, undrafted free agent Fish Smithson had a solid camp and was recently listed ahead of Nicholson on the team’s depth chart. Smithson is a quality player, and his value on special teams would have made him an intriguing pick.

Because of this, it makes sense to keep Hall on the PUP list. The Redskins can give a spot to one of the rookies early in the season and give him more time to develop. In all likelihood, this would be Nicholson. Having Hall would also allow the Redskins to have extra depth, so in the event of an injury, Hall could be activated, after the team’s sixth game, and help the defense.

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Most importantly, the Redskins are going to make this decision to ensure that Hall is healthy and can stay on the field. He has only played in 17 games in the past three years, so keeping him healthy will be paramount. If they’re without Hall to start the season, it wouldn’t be too big a deal for them.