Redskins sign Orlando Franklin, Arie Kouandjio and release Mack Brown

The Washington Redskins are continuing to bolster their offensive line ahead of Sunday’s clash with the Dallas Cowboys. They added Orlando Franklin and Arie Kouandjio to their roster.

It’s no secret that the Washington Redskins are having issues on their offensive line. When healthy, they have one of the most talented blocking units in the league. However, right now they are about as unhealthy as they could possibly be.

Heading into Sunday’s matchup with the Cowboys, the team has numerous linemen injured. Spencer Long is already out for the game with injuries to both his knees. Brandon Scherff is questionable with an MCL injury, but he hasn’t practiced all week. Trent Williams and Morgan Moses are banged up as well. To help remedy the situation, the Redskins brought in a couple of linemen to give them depth.

On Saturday, it was announced that the Redskins had signed Orlando Franklin and Arie Kouandjio to the active roster. To make room for the duo, the team placed Mason Foster on Injured Reserve, a move that was waiting to happen, and also they waived Mack Brown. Waiving Brown will not sit well with most fans, but this was a necessity for the team.

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Adding two offensive linemen seems to suggest that both Scherff and Long are going to be out on Sunday. With Tyler Catalina still recovering from a concussion, the team couldn’t risk going into the contest with just seven healthy, or partially healthy, offensive linemen. So, they elected to add insurance.

Bringing Franklin into the fold was a smart move. The veteran has played with the Denver Broncos and the San Diego Chargers in the past. He was once considered one of the better guards in football but he suffered some injuries that caused him to regress a bit. Still, he can play guard and tackle and will still be a solid blocker for the team. If he’s pressed into starting duty, there’s a chance that he could have success, so that’s good news for the team.

The addition of Kouandjio is a bit less inspiring. Kouandjio was a former fourth round pick of the team, so he is familiar with the system. However, he had a very bad preseason and never was able to grow into the quality blocker that the team expected him to become. At best, he can provide a body up front who knows Bill Callahan’s blocking scheme. But the team shouldn’t expect to get a good performance out of him if he’s pressed into action.

Meanwhile, the decision to release Brown is actually a sensible one. The Redskins needed the extra offensive line depth this week, and they had too many injuries on defense to cut one of their depth players. Running back is one of the few positions that the Redskins had extra depth at, so they were forced to part ways with Brown.

There’s a strong chance that Brown could be back after this week. He does have talent, and the Redskins will almost certainly reduce the number of offensive linemen, currently 12, in the near future. Brown may have just been a casualty for the week, so it will be interesting to see if the Redskins elect to keep him on the practice squad or try to re-sign him before Week 9.

Next: 5 Bold predictions for Redskins vs. Cowboys in NFL Week 8

Overall, these moves were necessary for the Redskins to field a competitive team against the Cowboys on Sunday. We’ll keep an eye on their offensive line as the contest approaches, and it will be interesting to see which guys they end up having in action.

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