The 2021 NFL trade deadline has passed and Washington Football Team chose to remain dormant instead of making any splash moves.
As we noted in a recent article, you could’ve made the case for Washington buying, selling or standing pat and using the rest of the campaign to evaluate the roster and see who deserves to come back next year.
If Washington chose to buy, we would’ve endorsed upgrading positions like wide receiver and linebacker. The good news is that Ron Rivera and Co. didn’t show any form of desperation, because that likely would’ve resulted in them getting fleeced and the last thing this franchise needs is more bad publicity.
With no trades to react to, why don’t we take a stroll down memory lane and highlight some of the worst trades in Washington’s history? There are a plethora of worthy candidates, but which deals made the cut?
3 worst trades in Washington Football Team history
3. Why did they trade for TJ Duckett?
Almost every team in the NFL has made a head-scratching trade. It’s part of the business. No GM has a perfect batting average.
With that being said, Washington’s decision to part ways with a third-round draft pick in 2007 in a three-team deal with Atlanta and Denver that saw them net TJ Duckett was beyond head-scratching. It was mind-numbing.
The cardinal rule of trade-making is to not act out of desperation … or at least not show your desperation during negotiations.
After Clinton Portis landed on injured reserve before the season, Washington reeked of desperation and what did they get in return? 10 games and 132 yards on 3.5 yards per carry worth of Duckett.
The former first-round pick didn’t start any games for Washington. That’s part of what made the trade so difficult to comprehend. They already had Ladell Betts and Mike Sellers waiting in the wings behind Portis.
In failing to trust Betts and Sellers, Washington landed an RB who quickly found himself buried on the depth chart for regularly blowing blocking assignments, missing team meetings and failing to impress as a runner.
What a laugher of a trade.
2. Donovan McNabb disaster
Back in 2010, the Washington Football franchise was facing a crossroads at the quarterback position. The Jason Campbell era had just ended and they were looking for another established veteran as opposed to a rookie.
After all, the 2010 draft class was very thin at QB. That year, Washington drafted Trent Williams with the No. 4 overall pick. That decision proved to be a home run. Despite the unceremonious end to his tenure in Ashburn, Williams was arguably the best left tackle in the league from 2012 to 2018.
What paved the way for that selection? That would be the trade for longtime division rival Donovan McNabb weeks before the draft. In exchange for McNabb, Washington unloaded a second- and fourth-round pick.
It’s easy to see the logic behind the move. McNabb led Philly to five division titles and eight playoff berths over his 11-year reign, and Washington believed the former Syracuse star would piggyback off that success after he was supplanted by one Michael Vick as the Eagles’ starting QB.
Long story short, McNabb tossed more interceptions (15) than touchdowns (14) and compiled a 77.4 passer rating that year. Washington finished 6-10 and traded McNabb to Minnesota in the offseason.
The silver lining of that move? The sixth-round pick Washington acquired was used on Alfred Morris, the team’s fifth all-time leading rusher. Unfortunately, that wasn’t part of the original McNabb trade.
1. Failed Robert Griffin III blockbuster
This is a touchy subject for fans in Ashburn, and rightly so.
On the prowl for a franchise quarterback in the 2012 draft, Washington zeroed in on Heisman Trophy winner Robert Griffin III. As a result, the franchise sent THREE first-round picks and a second-rounder to the Rams, holders of the No. 2 overall pick who were already content at QB with Sam Bradford.
Anytime you unload that much draft capital for a quarterback, he simply has to become a superstar for it to be worth it. A Super Bowl isn’t a must, but you need top-tier QB play for at least seven or eight seasons.
As a rookie, Griffin looked the part. He completed over 65% of his passes for 3,200 yards and 20 touchdowns to five interceptions. The Baylor product led the league in both INT percentage (1.3%) and yards per attempt (8.1), adding an additional 815 yards and seven scores on 6.8 YPC on the ground.
After that, though, it was all downhill for Griffin. He suffered a leg injury in the season finale and did more damage to it after he pushed to play in the playoffs vs Seattle. He underwent reconstructive surgery that offseason and was a shell of the stud he was as a rookie from that point on.
Griffin was eventually benched for Kirk Cousins, who, for all his criticism, turned in a nice career for Washington. Care to guess how much Cousins cost the franchise? A fourth-round pick … in the same year RGIII was drafted.
What a disaster.