Washington Football Team should avoid Earl Thomas after release

On paper, Earl Thomas could upgrade the Washington Football Team’s safety spot next to Landon Collins. In practice, targeting him doesn’t make sense.

After one season with the Baltimore Ravens, Earl Thomas has hit the free-agent market once again. In the wake of a fight at practice with fellow safety Chuck Clark, the Ravens decided to release the talented veteran.

With less than a month before the 2020 NFL season, Thomas will be looking for his next NFL team. That team shouldn’t be the Washington Football Team. While the team doesn’t have a proven starting safety next to Landon Collins, Thomas just wouldn’t fit in with the team at this time.

There are three major reasons why Thomas wouldn’t be right in Washington. First of all, Washington isn’t a win-now team. They are building up their culture under Ron Rivera and their defense should be much better than it was under Greg Manusky. But on offense, they’re too much of a work in progress to be relied on as a contender.

Thomas probably wouldn’t want to play for a rebuilding team. The 31-year-old safety has played mostly for contenders over the course of his time with the Seattle Seahawks and Baltimore Ravens. At this stage in his career, it makes sense for him to target a role with a playoff team and chase another ring before ultimately calling it quits. Washington wouldn’t offer that for 2020 at the very least.

Also, it’s worth noting that Thomas was released partly due to pressure on the coaching staff and front office from his teammates. NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo detailed that development on Twitter.

Clearly, there was some sort of disconnect between Thomas and the Ravens players. That’s a bad sign for Thomas and while some team will probably take a shot on him, it probably won’t be Washington. As mentioned, they’re still trying to build a solid team culture under Rivera.

While Thomas is a great player and excellent competitor, an issue like this one could pop up and create discord in the locker room. And that’s not something that Rivera would want to risk this early in Washington’s rebuild.

Finally, it’s worth noting that Washington does have some younger options at the safety position that could pan out. Troy Apke, 25, has been the biggest surprise of Washington’s camp so far. Sean Davis, 26, was signed to a one-year deal this offseason and 41 games of starting experience at the NFL level. And Jeremy Reaves, 23, played well in limited action last year.

Are any of those players as good as Thomas? No. But all have upside and one could emerge as a solid starter. The team is better off giving them a chance to prove themselves this year and if none step up, they can target a starting option next to Collins during the 2021 offseason. The 2021 NFL Draft has some quality safety options and there will be plenty of free agents available to sign as well.

Thomas is certainly talented. But Washington just isn’t a great fit for him. It seems likely that he’ll try to join a team that might be fighting for a playoff spot. NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport suggested that the San Francisco 49ers, Houston Texans, and Dallas Cowboys could be suitors for him.

Regardless of where Thomas ends up though, don’t expect Washington to show much of an interest in him.