Why Redskins shouldn’t target OT Desmond Harrison after Cardinals release

The Arizona Cardinals have parted ways with Desmond Harrison. The Redskins tried to claim him on waivers in early June, but taking a chance on him now seems highly unlikely.

Earlier this offseason, the Cleveland Browns elected to part ways with offensive tackle Desmond Harrison. The high-upside undrafted player out of West Georgia had seen action as a starter during his rookie season and entering his second year, there was some hope that he could emerge in Cleveland and become a quality contributor.

However, after repeatedly showing up late to practices and team events, the Browns waived Harrison and elected to go in a different direction. He simply hadn’t shown enough growth to continue on without taking his job seriously.

Shortly after the Browns waived Harrison, two teams put in claims for Harrison on the waiver wire. One was the Arizona Cardinals and one was the Washington Redskins. The Cardinals had the higher waiver priority, so they ended up getting the tackle. But his stay in the desert was a short one.

On Wednesday, ESPN’s Field Yates confirmed that the Cardinals had parted ways with Harrison. While the Redskins still lack depth at tackle and Harrison’s upside surely could give them that, it seems highly unlikely that they will try to take a chance on him this time.

According to Brent Sobleski of Bleacher Report, the Greensboro, North Carolina Police Department issued an arrest warrant for Harrison. Here are the details, per Sobleski’s Twitter account.

These allegations are severe and surely shouldn’t be taken lightly. At this point in time, Harrison shouldn’t be on an NFL roster considering this charge, the fact that he hasn’t put in the work at the NFL level, and his checkered past that included multiple suspensions and his ultimate dismissal from the Texas football program. There are too many red flags with Harrison at this point in time to warrant another chance.

It will be interesting to see if the Redskins do show even a modicum of interest in Harrison. After all, they were one of the only two teams that wanted to claim him on waivers. But six weeks ago, it made a lot more sense to do that as this assault charge hadn’t reared its head. With this charge now in tow, it will be hard to justify putting in a claim for Harrison, even with the team’s dearth of options at the tackle position in the wake of Trent Williams‘ holdout.

We’ll keep an eye on this in the coming days just in case the team does try to make a move. But at this point in time, targeting Harrison seems like an unnecessary risk for the team to take.