Jay Gruden reiterates that the Redskins won’t trade Trent Williams

Trent Williams still isn’t with the Washington Redskins but according to head coach Jay Gruden, the team isn’t going to trade him.

The Redskins and Trent Williams are continuing their stalemate. With the Redskins season opener now less than two weeks away, Williams still hasn’t reported to the team amid his holdout. He has demanded a trade and has reportedly claimed that he never wants to play in Washington again.

Though Williams could opt to sit out the season if the Redskins don’t trade him, the ‘Skins haven’t shown any signs of wanting to get rid of him. They seem content to wait it out, and on Monday afternoon, Jay Gruden reiterated that point.

According to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, Gruden still “very strongly” believes that Williams won’t be traded. Rapoport also offered a health update on Williams which he wrote about on Twitter.

Of course, the last two words there are important. Williams will play “for someone.” It remains to be seen if that’s the Redskins.

The Redskins are weak at left tackle, so keeping Williams around could make sense. However, with no assurance that he will return to the team and the fact that the Redskins aren’t true playoff contenders, they may be better served to offload him to another tackle-needy team in exchange for future assets.

In a recent article, I noted the Houston Texans as a team that may be willing to give up a first-round pick for Williams’ services. Here’s what I said in that piece.

"In any case, Williams would be a massive upgrade for the Texans. He would solidify the left side of the line for two years while affording Howard the time to develop. And even though he’s already 31 and has missed time recently with nagging injuries, he would be a boost to the team immediately. And that would be huge for the squad, as they have a big window to contend with the Colts weakened by Luck’s departure and the excellent talent they have surrounding Watson and on defense."

This specific deal might not happen, but this type of deal would be sensible. Unfortunately, with Jay Gruden and the Redskins coaching staff stuck in “win now” mode, they may not be willing to sacrifice a potential key piece like Williams to prepare for a future that they may not be a part of. That could have an impact on the situation, but Williams’ holdout will need to be monitored either way.

As long as Williams is out, Donald Penn and Geron Christian will continue to be the key players at tackle. Penn won the starting job during the preseason and while Christian still needs to develop, he could find himself starting the year as the swing tackle. Should Williams return, Penn would be the swing while Christian gets more time to develop further down the depth chart.

For the time being, it appears that we will remain locked in a stalemate. But in the next two weeks, one of three outcomes will occur. Williams will be back with the Redskins, he’ll be playing for another team, or he won’t be playing at all.