Grading the Redskins trade for safety Ha Ha Clinton-Dix
The Washington Redskins were active on trade deadline day in 2018, and they picked up some safety help in the form of Ha Ha Clinton-Dix. Here’s what we think of the move.
Redskins fans often lament the fact that the team doesn’t get aggressive enough. They don’t make the right moves to create a contender. Much was made about them letting so many players walk early in free agency, but that has turned out to be the right decision. Sitting at 5-2 this year, the trade deadline was approaching. Few expected the Redskins to make any major moves, but they ended up surprising.
Just before 4:00 p.m. hit on Tuesday, Washington made a trade with the Green Bay Packers. To the Packers went a fourth-round pick. And in exchange, the ‘Skins received safety Ha Ha Clinton-Dix. The move is one that should help to bolster the team’s secondary and improve on what was already a strong defense.
Clinton-Dix was a former first-round pick out of, you guessed it, Alabama and has spent the first five years of his career in Green Bay. He was a Pro Bowler in 2016 and has generally been viewed as one of the more solid all-around safeties in the league.
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This year, Clinton-Dix has three picks and has continued to be a solid tackler. That said, there was some reporting out of Green Bay that his effort was inconsistent, and that’s what led the Packers to part with him.
It’s also possible that they could have just wanted guaranteed draft compensation in case Clinton-Dix left in free agency at the end of the year. Sure, they could have waited for a compensatory pick, but if the Packers believe the 2019 draft class is stronger than the 2020 class, then this could have been the right move for them as an organization.
On the surface, this trade feels like a win for the Redskins. They’re just giving up a fourth-round pick for a very good player. Clinton-Dix will start next to D.J. Swearinger and will move Montae Nicholson into more of a centerfield role in nickel and dime sets. That will create a really strong middle-of-the-field unit and they now have good depth at safety. That previously had been a weakness and with Nicholson reportedly banged up, adding some help there was smart.
It’s also notable that by giving up a fourth-round pick, the Redskins will have spent their last three fourth rounders on safeties (Nicholson, Troy Apke, and Clinton-Dix). And of that group, Clinton-Dix is definitely the most talented as of right now.
Washington deserves a positive mark for bringing in Clinton-Dix. Sure, there is some risk, and he could leave the team as a free agent following the season. But for now, he’s a quality defender acquired at a low price to help the team make a playoff push and potentially win the NFC East. Getting him at the price they did is definitely worthy of an A-level grade.
Next. Redskins X-factors for the second half of 2018. dark