The Washington Football Team played a competitive Wild Card game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers with Taylor Heinicke as their quarterback. That fact alone should tell you that with merely competent quarterback play, Washington can be a dangerous team as early as 2021. But as history shows over and over again, finding a competent quarterback is no simple matter.
However, there is one out there, and acquiring him would not require mortgaging the future.
If he is healthy and up to speed by opening day, Kyle Allen should be Washington’s starting quarterback. If he is not, it should be Tyrod Taylor.
Why Tyrod Taylor could make sense for the Washington Football Team
Taylor is not a sexy pick. As I was going over all the free agents, trade candidates, and potential draftees who could be on Washington’s radar, his name was overshadowed by at least a dozen others. But the more I thought about the likelihood of acquiring any new QB, and the cost associated with doing so, the more it became apparent that Taylor is the ideal choice.
Among the draft candidates, there is not a QB who Washington will be in position to select at 19 who will be ready to take over in week one of 2021. Trevor Lawrence, Justin Fields, and Zach Wilson will all be long gone by then. Even if it were possible to move up, Washington would have to give away far too much in the way of draft capital to move up high enough for one of the big three.
It is possible that one of the second-tier prospects – Trey Lance, Kyle Trask, Mac Jones – may fall to them at 19. But even if the team’s brain trust is sold on one of them, none will be ready to start in Week 1.
Trade front: Rumors abound, but few cost-effective answers
On the trade front, there are constant rumors, and if we have learned anything from following the rumor mill over the years, it is that most of the presumed candidates will not be moved. That doesn’t stop speculation.
For the record, I would not trade for a quality quarterback past the age of 30. I’m not saying that Matt Ryan or Matthew Stafford wouldn’t be a major upgrade for the Washington Football Team in 2021. But the cost would be very high and those types of players are trending down. You do not want to tie an up & coming team to an aging QB while giving away major assets, to boot.
Scarcely a month ago, it appeared that the Jets would have the No. 1 draft pick and that they would be looking to move on from Sam Darnold. I would have been very interested in acquiring Darnold, who has suffered from a serious dearth of offensive talent and an incompetent coaching situation throughout his short career. I do not believe Darnold will be available now, and if he is, his price tag is probably too high.
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There’s always a chance that Jon Gruden could blow up things in Las Vegas, and I am one of the people who actually thinks Derek Carr is a quality quarterback. But I think that is unlikely as well.
There is one, and only one, quarterback whose name is currently wending through the rumor mill that I would move heaven and earth to acquire. That is Deshaun Watson. If he is really able to force a trade out of Houston, then you have to play every card in your deck to get him.
Trouble is, Washington doesn’t have enough cards. Houston would be insane to deal Watson, but if they feel they have no other choice, then they have to get a very good young quarterback in return.
That means trading him to Miami for a package including Tua Tagavailoa. Or perhaps Denver could sell Houston on Drew Lock and a lot of other assets. Or maybe Houston likes Daniel Jones. The point is, Washington does not have that young quarterback to offer, and so Watson is a pipe dream.
So, with these quarterbacks looking tough to acquire, Taylor could end up being a good free-agent option that won’t cost too much.
Best free-agent options
I think it is highly likely that Washington will sign a veteran free agent QB this off-season, and I think it is highly likely that this QB will be starting come week one. The biggest names – Prescott, Newton, etc. – come with major question marks, and I think it would be a mistake to spend what you will have to spend to sign them.
I don’t see the value in inking one of the old guys – Rivers, Fitzpatrick – whose best days are well behind them. I’ve never been much of an Andy Dalton or Mitch Trubisky fan.
That leaves several possibilities still on the table, and none are all that exciting. Of them, my first choice, were he available, would be Jameis Winston. I realize there’s a pretty big percentage of fandom that thinks Winston is downright bad. The 30 interceptions in 2019 are strong evidence of that.
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I may be in a minority of one here, but I don’t think interception totals by themselves are all that telling. Unless your name is Aaron Rodgers, chances are you are going to throw some interceptions as an NFL quarterback. What matters is how many touchdowns you generate to offset those interceptions.
Winston is a talented, reckless quarterback. He has more raw ability than almost every other quarterback who may be available this off-season, and you have to at least think about him. The problem is, I don’t think he’s leaving New Orleans. I suspect he has been sitting on the bench this season fairly confident that he will take over a very good team when Drew Brees retires.
The classic stopgap place holder, as far as I’m concerned, would be Jacoby Brissett. Brissett would be cheap. He has been durable throughout his career and he has been the textbook definition of serviceable. I could certainly see Washington bringing him on to be a caretaker for several years as they work out their next move.
But after watching what Heinicke was able to do against Tampa, it became clear to me that Tyrod Taylor is the man for the job.
Why Tyrod Taylor is the best fit
Taylor is the same size as Heinicke. Neither Taylor nor Heinicke is Lamar Jackson, but both can run. If anything, Taylor is probably a somewhat better runner than Heinicke. And he has a better arm.
Most significantly, when comparing him to Heinicke, he has an actual track record. He has been in the league, as both a starter and a backup, for 10 years. He has made the Pro Bowl. And his career passer rating of 89.5 is just fractions behind that of Stafford, and better than the likes of Baker Mayfield, Carson Wentz, and almost all the others not named Watson that are mentioned above.
Taylor’s career has been a journey. He isn’t very big and he doesn’t have a huge arm. He has been seen as a classic place holder – along with Fitzpatrick, the modern equivalent of Steve Deberg. He gave way to Baker Mayfield in Cleveland and to Justin Herbert in Los Angeles. He was even benched for Nathan Peterman in Buffalo. No one sees him as a long-term solution.
But he will come cheap, and he can do everything that Scott Turner wants a quarterback to do. He can make enough throws and he can run when necessary. He brings experience and maturity. And when he throws to Logan Thomas, you will be making Hokie fans very happy.
The Washington Football Team has too many roster holes to trade away high-value draft picks or blow a big chunk of their salary cap on anyone right now. (Anyone not named Watson, that is.)
This is shaping up to be a good year to draft a quarterback, but Washington will not be in position to take a Day 1 starter. If they fall in love with Lance or Jones and take him in Round 1, so be it. Personally, I don’t see any of them as sure things so I would prefer and take a chance later in the draft on someone like Feleipe Franks or Jamie Newman.
But no matter who they pick, they will need a quarterback to start week one, and quite possibly the entire 2021 season. I assume Kyle Allen will be in that mix, depending on his recovery. The other guy competing for the job should be Tyrod Taylor.