Former Redskins receiver Josh Doctson signs with Minnesota Vikings

The Washington Redskins cut Josh Doctson on Saturday afternoon. Now, he’s with the Minnesota Vikings.

The Josh Doctson era came to an end on Saturday. After three disappointing seasons in the nation’s capital, Doctson was waived among the Redskins’ final cuts. The former first-round pick went unclaimed on waivers and it was certainly a quick fall from grace from the team’s former potential No. 1 receiver.

That said, Doctson was always expected to get another chance somewhere else. And on Monday, he got the change of scenery that he well may have needed.

According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, Doctson did find a new home on Monday. It will be with the Minnesota Vikings.

This is a sensible landing spot. The Vikings can afford to take a chance on a former first-round bust at receiver. The team has only four receivers on their roster at the moment, but two of them are Stefon Diggs and Adam Thielen. They are one of the best receiving tandems in the NFL, so Doctson will only be expected to become a No. 3 option for the team at the very most. And in that role, he could find a home.

Ironically, the receiver that the Vikings had hoped would become a weapon in their offense was Laquon Treadwell. He was selected one pick after Doctson in the 2016 NFL Draft but was waived this offseason after failing to find a role in their offense. The Vikings will hope that Doctson can find more success than Treadwell.

Of course, the other more notable storyline here is that Doctson will be reuniting with former Redskins quarterback Kirk Cousins. Cousins is in the second year of a three year, fully-guaranteed contract. It’s unclear if he vouched for Doctson or wanted him with the team, but it’s worth noting that Doctson did catch 35 passes for 502 yards and a career-high six touchdowns from Cousins in 2016. So, perhaps Cousins wanted to bring him aboard in hopes that he could turn into a quality red-zone threat for Minnesota.

Whatever Doctson’s role is, this signing is a low-risk, high-reward signing for the Vikings. They give Cousins a receiver he is familiar with as they attempt to return to the postseason after a disappointing 2018 campaign.

It’s also worth noting that Doctson will get a chance to play against the Redskins in Week 8 when they come to Minnesota to take on the Vikings. That could be a fun one to watch as a result.

For the Redskins, this signing is inconsequential. They had moved on from Doctson and are hoping that Terry McLaurin can find more success than he would in the starting lineup. Keeping Doctson made little sense, but it will be interesting to see if he can carve out a role for himself elsewhere.