Where Washington Football Team ranks in Matthew Stafford sweepstakes
3. Washington Football Team
The Washington Football Team certainly qualifies as a top-three landing spot for Stafford, but they do have some concerns that move them just a hair behind the other top options on this list.
The concerns are, mainly, that the Washington Football Team still has to add some talent at various positions in order to be a true contender. They are seriously lacking talent at the receiver spot outside of Terry McLaurin and they could stand to add another good tight end, a left tackle of the future, a couple of linebackers, a starter at free safety, and some cornerback depth to the team to reach the next level.
Obviously, quarterback ranks No. 1 among the positions that Washington has to upgrade. Ron Rivera has stated as much. But if teams across the league get into a bidding war over Stafford’s services, Washington may be reluctant to give up too much to get him simply because they need to add to other areas of the roster to stay on an upward trajectory.
Washington Commanders
That said, the positives for Washington certainly outweigh the negatives. As is, Stafford would make them the favorites to repeat as NFC East Champions. And if they can either add a solid No. 2 receiver via free agency or the draft, that will fill their two top offensive needs of the offseason.
Additionally, the team is set to have at least $35 million in cap space this offseason, so they’ll have no problem fitting Stafford’s contract in on their team, especially if Alex Smith retires or if Washington decides to cut him to open up more salary-cap space. Few other squads can say that.
Also, the team’s new general manager, Martin Mayhew, was the GM of the Lions when they drafted Stafford No. 1 overall back in 2009. So, this front office probably believes in him and if the coaching staff sees him as enough of an upgrade, he could end up being the short-term franchise quarterback for the team.
If Stafford is available for Washington, they shouldn’t be afraid to get him. They will be able to build a solid package around him for the 19th pick or for multiple Day 2 picks, depending on what negotiations end up being for his services.
The only concerns are about whether or not they can do enough to surround Stafford with enough weapons to make the offense click, or more importantly, to convince Stafford that they can be a true contender on offense. But if they draft as they have been in recent seasons, that shouldn’t be a problem.