How the Washington Football Team can capitalize on its free agency

The Washington Football Team came away from the first wave of free agency as one of the winners.

They upgraded at quarterback, quickly replaced Ronald Darby with an upgrade, and finally got Terry McLaurin some help at wideout. And best of all each signing was not an overpay for a flashy name. That was the case often under the previous regime, but this was a calculated move to fill key holes on the team.

With that said, how can the Washington Football Team capitalize on a great first week of the new league year? They can strike when the iron is hot; trade up for your future quarterback.

They have now formed a roster that is capable of winning football games, even with trading some of their draft capital. They aren’t contenders by any stretch but they certainly have a roster that can contend for the division title again.

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They filled multiple roster holes. If they trade up for a quarterback, they don’t have to worry about replacing Ronald Darby on Day 2 of the draft, they have William Jackson. The Curtis Samuel acquisition will allow the team to wait on a receiver in a deep class.

And most importantly, they have a veteran quarterback that a rookie quarterback can sit behind now. The rookie will not be forced to play early if he is not ready.

Some of you reading this may be saying, but they have other holes still like a linebacker, left tackle, free safety and they still need more offensive weapons! That’s true, but this is one of the deepest tackle and wide receiver classes ever and there are quality safety and linebacker options on Day 2.

However, as far as quarterbacks go it is a very top-heavy class. There is Trevor Lawrence who you can pencil in at No. 1, the group of three (Zach Wilson, Justin Fields, and Trey Lance) behind him with very high ceilings, and then the low ceiling, high floor prospect in Mac Jones.

Each of these five could be gone well before Washington picks at 19. After that, you are throwing darts at a quarterback with potentially high upside.

And despite the holes that Washington has filled this offseason, the biggest barrier to becoming a true contender is finding the long-term answer at quarterback.

Ryan Fitzpatrick certainly will be more fun than any quarterback Washington has had over the last handful of years. But Washington still has a bottom third of the league quarterback situation. And the 38-year-old Fitzpatrick definitely is not the long-term answer.

That is why the Washington Football Team should swing for the quarterback now. They are beginning to form a more complete team that can win now even while the quarterback of the future sits and marinates for a year.

Trading up for one of the three high ceiling quarterbacks gives Washington five cheap years of roster control for their (hopefully) franchise quarterback. And Washington solves the problem before the defensive stars become expensive, making it much harder to find the answer.

There is a chance that the quarterback could be another bust. But it’s worth the shot with the roster Washington is building. It goes without saying that it should be at the right price and for the right guy. In other words, don’t just trade up for a quarterback just to do it.

If the opportunity presents itself, however, Washington has to strike. There are not many drafts with four quarterbacks as talented as the four quarterbacks in this draft are. To truly compete, you need the franchise quarterback.

Next. 7-Round WFT mock with team trading for QB. dark

With a successful free agency, filling key holes, Washington has presented a window where it makes sense to trade up for their guy.

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