The Washington Redskins have lost a key pass rusher to free agency. They really need to try and retain Junior Galette to keep depth at the position.
Junior Galette was once thought to be a sunk cost for the Washington Redskins. Initially, after his acquisition following his release from the New Orleans Saints, there was a lot to be excited about. After all, he had been a double digit sack artist in New Orleans, so why wouldn’t he be successful across from Ryan Kerrigan?
Well, after two seasons that ended in torn Achilles tendons during the offseason, Redskins fans were skeptical of him. However, Galette finally got back on the field in 2017, and stayed healthy the whole year. He performed well and is getting a chance to land another contract.
That said, the Redskins have to do what they can to retain Galette, especially in wake of what has happened at the start of free agency. Here are the main reasons why keeping Galette has gone from being a potential move to being a necessity.
Junior Galette is coming off a great, comeback season
It may not appear so from looking at raw numbers, but Junior Galette was actually one of the most productive pass rushers in the league last year. Yes, he only registered three sacks, but often, sacks are not the best measure of productivity.
That said, Galette was one of the best edge rushers in the league in terms of getting pressure when on the field. Per Matt Harmon of NFL.com, Galette ranked third in the entire league in pressure rate with a mark of 15.1. He was behind only Preston Smith and the league’s leading sacker, Demarcus Lawrence. The impressive part is that Galette logged three snaps in just 219 plays. Had he gotten closer to the 350-400 snap mark, his production may have better reflected his skill set.
Just from the tape alone, it’s easy to see that Galette still has some of the explosive ability he had during his time with the Saints. Galette was quick off the line of scrimmage and his athleticism and instincts are what allows him to get pressure on opposing quarterbacks.
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While Galette may be looking for a starting job, and starter money at that, the market may not develop much for him. It’s worth noting that while he did play all 16 games in 2017, he had missed the previous two seasons in full due to Achilles tears. A team relying on Galette would need to have a solid insurance policy if they are going to use him as a top option.
That said, the Redskins could bring him back and have him reprise his role as a quality pressure man who often set the table for Kerrigan and other players on the defense. He could improve with another fully healthy offseason under his belt, and that would make his comeback all the more impressive.
So, Galette looked solid last year and his best fit might be with the Redskins. It’s also worth noting that if the Redskins don’t bring back Galette, they will definitely be lacking depth at the position. Here’s why.
Trent Murphy is now a Buffalo Bill
Trent Murphy re-signing with the Washington Redskins wasn’t a foregone conclusion at any point. But, it’s still somewhat surprising that such a strong market developed for the former second round pick. In 2017, Murphy suffered a torn ACL in the preseason and didn’t log a snap. Additionally, he picked up a four game suspension for violating the league’s PED policy in the 2017 offseason. So, he had a couple of issues going into the free agent period.
That didn’t deter the Buffalo Bills for paying him starter money. Despite the one year of plus production, the Bills gave Murphy a three-year deal that is worth about $21 million. That is a great deal of money, and it’s simply not something that the Redskins could have afforded to shell out for Murphy’s services.
As I pointed out in a piece about Murphy’s deal with the Bills from Wednesday, Murphy wouldn’t have fit on the team’s roster as a backup because of his price tag. I also spoke of how Galette would become a priority for the team after that.
FanSided
"As for the Redskins, they simply couldn’t retain Murphy at that price. The $7 million in average annual value is too much to give a backup player. Even if the guarantees aren’t high, the Redskins wouldn’t have been able to convince him to stay for less money and what is likely a lesser role. So while Murphy will be missed, there wasn’t much the team could have done about his departure. With Murphy gone, the Redskins should shift their focus to re-signing Junior Galette. He was a nice No. 3 option for the team last year, and getting him on another deal would set the team up for success at the edge position in 2018. That said, it’s unclear what Galette’s market value will be. He has a longer injury history than Murphy, but he was a quality backup last year. Galette also may want a chance to start, so that will complicate things."
With Murphy gone and Galette on the free agent market, the Redskins don’t have a true No. 3 pass rusher to spell Kerrigan and Smith. Murphy will be missed, as he could have provided that. But as it stands, the team is a bit thin at the edge rush position thanks to his departure, and that will necessitate the team attempting to re-sign Galette if they want to have a potent pass rush.
Ryan Anderson likely isn’t ready for a primary backup role
For those wondering, I didn’t forget about Ryan Anderson. The former Alabama product logged action in 14 games as a rookie, but he didn’t do much to impress. He played more of a role on special teams snaps (30 percent) than he did on defense (17.6 percent).
When Anderson saw action on defense, he wasn’t able to have much of an impact as a pass rusher. Granted, he was behind three other quality players in the rotation, but it was still a bit discouraging to see the former second-round pick do virtually nothing in that area. It’s also a bit worrisome that Anderson’s weaknesses were on display a bit.
Coming into the NFL, Anderson wasn’t considered to be a great athlete. He was considered to be a strong edge rusher with a little burst who would have to rely more on power than on speed to get the job done. That’s exactly how he looked at the next level, as he struggled to beat tackles with his strength alone.
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While some may say that’s exactly how Trent Murphy got the job done in 2016, it’s worth noting that he is a bigger and longer player and it also took him three years to develop into a primary backup. Anderson appears to be further behind in his development than Murphy, solely because Murphy was a better athlete. So, it may take him an extra year to live up to expectations. And given that the Redskins are working in a shorter window with Alex Smith as their quarterback, the team shouldn’t yet rely on Anderson to be a top backup.
This isn’t to knock on the potential of Anderson. It’s quite possible he will become a good, physical edge rusher who is a perfect complement to Kerrigan and Smith. But for now, he’s not the answer as a primary backup. For that reason, keeping Galette is appealing as it will give Anderson another year to continue honing his craft before he’s thrust into a big role.
Preston Smith is set to be a free agent in 2019 and could command a huge salary
This is a bit further off, but it’s not out of the realm of possibility that Preston Smith gets a huge payday in 2019. Smith has been one of the better pass rushers in the NFL in recent years and thanks to his athletic ability, he could end up becoming an elite player soon.
I know what you’re thinking. Smith is prone to bouts of inconsistency on the field. Case and point, he logged 4.5 sacks in the first five contests of the 2017 season before going six games without a sack. Then, in the final five games, he notched another 3.5. While that can be frustrating at times, it’s worth noting that Smith consistently gets pressure and helps to set up other for sacks, even when he isn’t the main beneficiary.
In the event that Smith has another good season, he has two, eight sack season under his belt already, he could become a prime target on the free agent market. If Murphy can get $7 million annually for one season of nine sack production, imagine what Smith will get if he can crack double-digit sacks. Also, Smith’s 6-foot-5 frame and freakish length make him a good fit in most schemes, and coaches will be drooling over his athletic potential.
If the Redskins can’t lock up Smith long term before 2019 free agency, and they probably will have trouble doing that, then they could potentially lose him. Sure, they could slap the franchise tag on him in 2019 if needed, but that only will work for so long. Having a quality insurance plan in place until they figure out his contract would be helpful.
That’s where Galette would come in. He could be that third guy and if Smith walks in 2019, he could start as a placeholder for a year, provided that he can stay healthy. And that might buy just enough time to get Anderson ready for a starting role. So in short, having extra depth is never a bad thing.
Overall
At this point, getting back any player would be ideal. The Redskins have lost a lot of their current free agents and while some departures were expected, others were not. But getting Galette back in the fold would do a lot to help the Redskins do one thing. Build and keep a strength.
The one consistent part of the Redskins teams in the past few years has been their pass rush. A lot of that is thanks to the consistent performance of Kerrigan, but his counterparts deserve credit for what they’ve achieved as well. Galette, Smith, and Murphy all played roles in the defense. Losing two, even though they never played for the team at the same time, could really hurt them moving forward.
Of course, it’s also worth noting that the Redskins shouldn’t overpay for Galette just to keep him. The team needs to make sure they have cap space to eventually sign Smith to an extension and also ink some other key contributors like Brandon Scherff to extensions. So while the team should try to retain Galette, they won’t look to overpay to keep him.
Next: Redskins could be poised for many 2019 compensatory picks
As it stands, there is not much known about Galette’s market. It should develop quickly in the coming week. We will keep you posted on any and all rumors regarding the Redskins pass rusher.