Washington Football Team should have an interest in OL Brian Winters

On Sunday, the New York Jets released long-time starting guard Brian Winters. The Washington Football Team should have an interest in adding him at the right price.

Over the course of the 2020 NFL offseason, Ron Rivera has had one goal for the Washington Football Team. The coach has focused on adding veteran competition at every position on the team to find the right combination of 53 players to make Washington competitive again.

One area that Rivera’s regime has focused on quite a bit is the offensive line. The team drafted two rookies, Saahdiq Charles and Keith Ismael, to be future starters at tackle and center respectfully.

Elsewhere, the squad loaded up on veteran talent to compete with incumbents for playing time. This has included the likes of Wes Schweitzer, Michael Liedtke, and most recently, Kevin Pamphile. All three players have multiple seasons of NFL experience and will challenge for starting jobs and top depth roles this season.

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Still, there is uncertainty on the offensive line both presently and in the future, as Brandon Scherff and Chase Roullier are free agents in 2021 while Morgan Moses will be a potential roster cut barring a bounce-back year. As such, they will be interested in adding any quality linemen to the fold if they have a chance.

That’s why Brian Winters should be of interest to them. The seven-year member of the New York Jets was released on Sunday and will be a free agent. The 29-year-old has quite a bit of experience and could be a quality depth piece at the minimum for Washington.

Winters was a third-round pick out of Kent State during the 2013 NFL Draft. He emerged as a starter in his rookie season and held down a starting role for a majority of his seven years in New York. He made 79 starts in 89 games while playing both left and right guard during his career.

For the most part, Winters has been a solid starter. He allowed just one sack last season and only committed two penalties in nine games. Generally, his blocking has been good and that’s why he has been a starter for so long.

There are some concerns with Winters. He has had some injury issues and has only played a 16-game slate in three of his seven NFL seasons. That said, he has only played fewer than 13 games twice, so that’s a good sign. And at just 29 and with versatility along the interior offensive line, he shouldn’t decline yet and can still be a serviceable starter or solid backup.

Currently, Washington doesn’t have a set starter at left guard. Right now, Schweitzer and Wes Martin are the top competitors at that position. If the team isn’t confident in either protecting Dwayne Haskins enough this season, they could add more competition to the fold. Winters is among the better guard options on the market and would be an upgrade to the team’s depth at the very least.

And if Washington has trouble trying to negotiate Scherff during the offseason, Winters could be a fine stopgap option. So, inking him to a two-year deal with little guaranteed money would make a lot of sense.

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As the team exhibited when adding Pamphile less than a week ago, they aren’t afraid to make moves to bring experienced players into the fold. At the right price, Winters would be a solid add for Washington. We’ll soon see if they have any interest in the ex-New York Jet.

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