Redskins ink defensive lineman Montori Hughes to a reserve/future deal

Montori Hughes is a big bodied defensive lineman. The Washington Redskins are giving him a chance by adding him to the active roster.

Through the first three days of 2018, the Washington Redskins have kept very busy. On the first day of the year, they agreed on a three year extension for Quinton Dunbar and also added 11 players on reserve/future contracts. The next day, they signed a young quarterback in Stephen Morris. While he never saw any regular season action, he had looked impressive for the Colts in the 2017 preseason. So, that was thought to be a good move. On Wednesday, the team continued to add to their roster and brought on a big defensive lineman in Montori Hughes.

Hughes is a former fifth round draft pick of the Indianapolis Colts who has been in the NFL since 2012. He has played with two teams in the regular season, the Colts and the New York Giants, and he also spent part of the 2017 offseason on the Kansas City Chiefs roster. Hughes’ biggest strength is his huge size, 6-foot-4, 330 pounds, and that’s what has allowed him to stick around in the league.

During college, Hughes played for two different teams: Tennessee and Tennessee-Martin. He displayed a lot of upside as a big bodied run stuffer in his freshman year at Tennessee, but he ultimately got dismissed from the team. From there, he went to play at Tennessee-Martin and did well enough to become a draft pick.

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At the NFL level, Hughes has appeared in 25 career games over four seasons. His best season was 2013, his second season with the Colts, when he recorded 15 tackles, a pass defensed, and two fumble recoveries in a career high 12 games. He also made the only start of his career that year. Basically, Hughes is a 3-4 end/4-3 nose tackle protoype who has some athletic ability. But his adjustment to the NFL game made him merely a backup caliber player, as he never developed the pass rushing skills scouts had hoped to see him form.

For the Redskins, adding Hughes makes sense. The team has a need for depth on the defensive line, as their heralded free agent signings from last year, Stacy McGee and Terrell McClain, haven’t panned out yet. Hughes projects best as an end in the 3-4 scheme, but he probably has the size and versatility needed to play nose tackle. If the team tries to use him as a backup at that position, he could become the top reserve behind Phil Taylor, provided that the team elects to bring him back. That said, his fit as a nose tackle is a bit more unknown. He’s only played end in a 3-4 defense, but he did see action as a de facto nose tackle in the Giants’ 4-3 scheme. Since it’s such a low risk deal, there’s no harm in seeing if he can man the nose in the Redskins defense.

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Hughes could end up winning a backup job if he carves out a role. To do this, he would have to showcase versatility, as it’s unlikely that he’ll outplay the other quality options on the Redskins defense. Should he not make the squad, he could end up being one of the top players the team could sign off the street, provided that he isn’t eligible to be on the team’s practice squad. Either way, bringing in Hughes is a decent move as it has upside. At this point in the offseason, that’s all that you can ask for.

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