Washington Redskins head coach calls Trey Quinn a “silent assassin”

Just when we thought the Trey Quinn hype was dying down, Trey Quinn decided it wasn’t.

It shouldn’t be a surprise that Trey Quinn is willing the dwindling offseason hype to yet another crest. After all, he’s the one who forced Waldo into hiding all these years, the fabled teacher who trained Jerry Rice, whom you may have heard of at some point. Quinn’s also rumored to be able to hear sign language.

As impressive as these feats are, it’s not Quinn’s fantastical off-the-field escapades that make him enticing to Jay Gruden. Gruden is a man of simpler taste. Gruden finds himself infatuated with the rookie wide receiver’s ability as just that: A receiver. Not the most interesting man in the world.  But even so, Gruden still found a way to blend Quinn’s extraordinary reputation with his on-field skill set, referring to the SMU product as a “silent assassin” and a very “QB friendly target” per J.P. Finlay of NBC Sports Mid-Atlantic.

To call Gruden modest would be an understatement, but he’s not wrong. Throughout the draft process, Quinn was a relatively pro-ready wide receiver flying under the radar. On draft day, this trend continued, and the receiver who was projected by many to be gone early on Day 3, fell to the Washington Redskins at pick No. 256 in the 2018 NFL Draft. Gruden reportedly stood on the table to draft Quinn earlier, but the Washington Redskins were able to get him at an even better price. Then and there, the nickname “Mr. Irrelevant” was bestowed upon Quinn.

He probably likes “Silent Assassin” better.

Quinn drew rave reviews from the start, and it’s easy to see why on his tape. When he’s not power watching an episode of 60 minutes or casually slamming revolving doors, Quinn is beating opposing defensive backs with his sheer quickness and route running savvy. Quinn is a very polished receiver who has mitts for hands, as evidenced by his 114 catches in his senior season of college, a metric that would lead the league.

For now, Quinn is a silent assassin. Flying under the radar, there is a very real chance that Quinn finds his way into the No. 4 receiver slot on the Washington Redskins’ roster. He has the positional versatility to work both on the outside and in the slot, and his reliability should help smoothen Alex Smith’s transition into Jay Gruden’s offense.

Next: Which Alex Smith team is better: 2017 K.C. or 2018 D.C.?

Jay Gruden seems very happy to have Trey Quinn. And he should be. Unless, somewhere within #TreyQuinnSZN, he makes an appearance as a literal silent assassin. Perhaps there’s another reason Waldo disappeared. And Jay Gruden has inside information. Then, perhaps, we should all be fearful.