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For Redskins, silence is a comforting sound in the offseason of 2018

By Ian Cummings

BALTIMORE, MD - OCTOBER 9: A Washington Redskins helmet sits on the field prior to the game against the Baltimore Ravens at M&T Bank Stadium on October 9, 2016 in Baltimore, Maryland. (Photo by Todd Olszewski/Getty Images)
BALTIMORE, MD - OCTOBER 9: A Washington Redskins helmet sits on the field prior to the game against the Baltimore Ravens at M&T Bank Stadium on October 9, 2016 in Baltimore, Maryland. (Photo by Todd Olszewski/Getty Images) /
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It’s quiet.

Around this time last year, we were in the middle of the maelstrom that was Kirk Cousins’ contract talks. The Washington Redskins were coming off the heels of a near-playoff season marred by minute failings that proved to be costly. And the pre-heating process of Jay Gruden’s seat had begun.

By the end of the Redskins 2017 campaign, the noise had only grown louder. There was talk that the Redskins would give Kirk Cousins a third franchise tag. Next, the rumors of Cousins’ intentions to file a grievance if given a tag. The endless, rampant speculation surrounding the team’s intentions. Day in, and day out. Kirk Cousins. Kirk Cousins. Kirk Cousins. The commotion hit a raging, chaotic climax on a night in January, when the Redskins shipped off a third-round pick and cornerback Kendall Fuller for Alex Smith.

And then… silence.

There was no cure for chaos. The Redskins had to let it run its course. But now, with the pieces settled, and the brunt of the offseason in the rear view mirror, the old hysteria seems far more distant than it truly is. Just months ago, Alex Smith was an MVP candidate in Kansas City, and Kirk Cousins was still waiting for the Redskins to buy in on him.

Now, the Redskins have bought in on Smith.

Uncharacteristic of the Redskins franchise, the silence in 2018 is a comforting sound. Alex Smith is all business. You know he doesn’t need gratitude. He’s locked down for four years, and he’s working to earn the ring he hasn’t gotten yet. Like all quarterbacks, his attitude has already permeated into the locker room. The rest of the team? All business.

Next: Why Alex Smith will be a Top 10 QB in 2018

There are no more theatrics. No more seas of dollar signs and chaotic contract standoffs. The team is Smith’s. And the team is Jay Gruden’s. There’s nothing else left to say, and nothing else left to do, but to watch the team work toward a common goal in 2018. It might be boring. And it might not work. But there’s finally a direction. A light to follow. For the Redskins, it’s a refreshing change.

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