Redskins trade for former Packers safety Ha Ha Clinton-Dix

Winning teams make winning moves. The Redskins made a move today, with the intent of sustaining their winning ways.

Speculation ran rampant in the days leading up to the NFL trade deadline. The Washington Redskins came to this junction at 5-2, coming off a 20-13 win against their division rivals, the New York Giants.

It’s common knowledge that certain moves, such as robust midseason trades, are reserved only for teams that believe they have a shot to make a playoff run in their current state. Otherwise, the move would be pointless; a waste of time that could be better spent rebuilding.

The Redskins may have surprised themselves this season, in the sense that they have a young defense blossoming very early. Even with near-crippling issues on offense, particularly in the passing game, they’ve rocketed out to a 5-2 record, and they have a favorable schedule down the road. Near the halfway point of the 2018 season, Washington looks like a contender. And so they made a contender’s move today.

The acquision of Ha Ha Clinton-Dix is a stunning one; the Redskins were believed to be in the market for a wide receiver, and their secondary has been playing well. One could say that Montae Nicholson was a streaky contributor, as the roles of the safeties changed this year, leaving Nicholson to leave his full-time center-fielding role. With Clinton-Dix in tow, the Redskins now have a deadly combo in the secondary, and they can use Nicholson for what he’s better suited.

D.J. Swearinger was already playing like one of the best safeties in football, and with Clinton-Dix, this duo suddenly nears elite range, as long as Clinton-Dix can quickly learn the scheme and grow chemistry with his team mates. A related fun fact: D.J. Swearinger and Haha Clinton-Dix are Pro Football Focus’ top two safeties in the entire league this year. Now, they play for the same team.

The Redskins traded a 2019 fourth-round pick for Clinton-Dix, per Adam Schefter, achieving impressive value with this transaction. The Redskins appear to be content with turning an already monstrous defensive unit into a juggernaut. Clinton-Dix, at just 25 years old, brings speed, smarts, and all-around playmaking ability to the back end, and although he’ll be a free agent in 2019, he could be what Washington needs to take a leap.