LONDON, ENGLAND - OCTOBER 30: Jordan Reed (86) of the Washington Redskins celebrates after scoring a touchdown during the NFL International Series Game between Washington Redskins and Cincinnati Bengals at Wembley Stadium on October 30, 2016 in London, England. (Photo by Dan Mullan/Getty Images)
Jordan Reed still in concussion protocol, likely to part with Redskins
Jordan Reed’s career as a member of the Washington Redskins is likely over. The veteran tight end is still in concussion protocol and the team is likely to part with him.
Jordan Reed was once one of the most promising young tight ends in the NFL. But over the course of the years, injuries have taken a toll on him.
And now, it seems that the Washington Redskins are preparing to part ways with him.
As was first reported by Rhiannon Walker of The Athletic, Reed is still in concussion protocol and has been since August when he took a brutal hit from Atlanta Falcons safety Keanu Neal in the preseason. And per Walker, the Redskins are set to part ways with Reed this offseason.
This isn’t much of a surprise. Reed hasn’t been able to stay healthy during his career. And at this point, it appears that this concussion could end his career. There was speculation during last season that Reed may be forced into retirement because of the injury. And even if he’s not, it doesn’t make much sense for the Redskins to keep him.
Reed is entering the second-to-last year of the five-year, $46.75 million deal he signed with the Redskins in 2016. He is set to have a cap hit of over $10 million while releasing him would open up about $8.4 million in space with a dead-cap hit of $1.6 million. Considering that Reed may not be able to play again, the Redskins would certainly be willing to eat that money to open up more space.
And given that Reed is an injury-prone player who will turn 30 in July, he doesn’t fit the team’s timeline anyway. So even if he wasn’t injured, he’d be a candidate for release.
Releasing Reed would be possible, even despite his injury issue. As NBC Sports Washington’s JP Finlay notes, Reed could have injury guarantees in his contract but if he doesn’t, he still may be eligible for the CBA’s injury protection benefit.
Essentially, that confirms that the team will be able to part with Reed one way or another. He may opt to retire but as ESPN’s John Keim notes, Reed could wait to collect that benefit before making the decision. But that won’t impact the Redskins decision about whether or not to release him.
It seems that Washington has made its mind up. Reed’s career as a Redskin is over. And it is the right time to move on. The team has little talent at the tight end position, so they couldn’t afford to roster a big-money player with injury concerns anymore. They have to find an upgrade in free agency, via the 2020 NFL Draft, or both.
Releasing Reed will give them more capital with which to chase free-agent guys like Austin Hooper, Hunter Henry, or Greg Olsen. So, at this time, it makes sense for the squad to do that.
Moving forward, it’ll be interesting to see when the Redskins decide to part with Reed. They already did some housecleaning by releasing Josh Norman and Paul Richardson, and it seems likely that Reed would be the next player to go. It’s only a matter of time before the ‘Skins have a new No. 1 option at the tight end position.
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