The Washington Redskins have made a massive move in free agency. They have signed former New York Giants’ starting safety Landon Collins to a big-money deal.
The move that many Redskins fans were anticipating and hoping for has come to fruition. Landon Collins is a member of the Washington Redskins.
After the New York Giants chose not to hit Collins with the franchise tag, the 25-year-old instantly became the top safety on the free agent market. A strong tackler, Collins has been a great NFL starter over the course of the past four years and has totaled a whopping 428 tackles over that span. He’s a downhill playmaker and will give Washington something that they have lacked for a long time: a quality box safety.
Collins’ deal is a monster one, and one that few expected Collins would get. According to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, the deal will be worth $84 million over six years with $45 million guaranteed.
Sources: Former #Giants star S Landon Collins is signing a 6-year deal for a whopping $84M with the rival #Redskins. Hard to imagine a box safety with this kind of deal after last year’s slow safety market. This moves the market dramatically.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) March 11, 2019
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That definitely constitutes an overpay, as Collins will make $14 million per year. That makes him the highest-paid safety in the NFL. While Collins has talent, his average-at-best coverage makes this deal carry some extra risk.
In the past couple of seasons, Collins has occasionally gotten lost in coverage on tight ends or struggled to contain plays in the back end. He’s clearly more comfortable in the box, but he has demonstrated an ability to make plays. In 2016, he had five interceptions and 13 pass deflections.
That said, Collins won’t be asked to do as much in that area with the ‘Skins. They know what they’re signing him to do. He’ll focus more on making plays in the box while the Redskins find a rangy free safety to pair with him. They could opt to give Montae Nicholson a chance to redeem himself and win the role, or they could target another safety in free agency or the draft. But either way, the team has taken care of one of the needs they have at safety long-term.
The deal the Redskins gave Collins isn’t ideal. Giving up most of their cap space for a safety in a loaded market at the position may not seem like the best decision. At the same time, Collins perfectly fits what the Redskins needed. They needed a strong, playmaking safety who wanted to be here. Collins fits the bill. He adds talent to the secondary, the weakest part of the Redskins’ defense, and it will be interesting to see how he fares in his first season with Washington.