Assessing Washington Redskins first-round options: TE T.J. Hockenson
By Ian Cummings
How T.J. Hockenson fits with the Redskins
It’s no secret that the Redskins tight end situation is tenuous, to say the least. Jordan Reed is a devaluing receiving threat who offers little as a blocker and has looming injury issues. Vernon Davis, meanwhile, is 35 years old, and could be a cap casualty with his disproportionate cap figure. Jeremy Sprinkle has his moments, but he’s still nothing more than a No. 3 tight end. Based on position alone, there is, subtly, a pressing need for a change.
But the most important factor, when considering Hockenson, is not the uncertainty at tight end. It’s the uncertainty on offense, period. The Redskins offense was very inefficient in 2018, both running and passing the football. The passing game could never gain steam, and every two runs for modest gains were met by a negative three-yard run to stymy momentum.
To put it simply, the Redskins have a blocking problem. And they have a passing game problem. Many of those blocking issues correlate to the team’s lack of a left guard, and their lack of offensive line depth. And many of the passing game issues can be attributed to the lack of a playmaker at wide receiver.
Some might prefer to address one of those positions individually, in the first round. But what if you wanted to supplement both those areas with one player? What if you wanted to add a player who can make the offensive line better with his blocking, and can function as a playmaker on offense with his own receiving ability? Hockenson is a classic case of “don’t scout the position, scout the player”. The impact he would provide vastly transcends the modest reputation of the NFL tight end.