The Washington Football Team’s need for a franchise quarterback has become more pressing with each passing week this season.
Like any team searching for a new gunslinger, Washington will have to choose between the draft, free agency or the trade market. There’s no way to know which side the front office is leaning, but it’ll likely hinge on where they’re positioned in the draft and which QBs (if any) become available via trade.
That leaves PLENTY of room for speculation and the bye week offers a perfect opportunity to highlight potential solutions.
Should Washington pass on drafting a QB in one of the least-hyped classes in recent memory, they could choose to flex their muscles and go all-out in pursuit of an established veteran.
After all, this roster has proven in recent weeks that it’s just an elite signal caller away from being able to compete with any team in the league.
If Washington is serious about shedding their laughingstock label, they must do everything possible to nab one of these three studs.
No Mitchell Trubisky!
3 veteran QBs Washington should consider in the offseason
3. Derek Carr
Derek Carr has somehow gone from being overrated to underrated. For reasons we’ll never understand, he isn’t everyone’s cup of tea, but he very much belongs in the conversation of top-10 quarterbacks in the NFL.
All he’s done is post a passer rating over 100 in every season in 2018. That hasn’t always translated to wins, but have you seen the defenses he’s had to work with? Let’s put it like this: the Raiders’ defense has made serious strides this year and they still rank in the bottom half of the league in points allowed.
Despite never having a go-to receiver (we said receiver, not tight end), Carr has completed 68.8% of his passes for 254.3 yards per game and 67 touchdowns to just 27 interceptions over the last three seasons.
If you don’t think Carr is an upper-echelon quarterback at this point, then you’ll likely never be convinced no matter how many stats we rattle off. At 30 years old, he could hold down the position for at least the next five years.
You might be thinking, wait, Carr is signed through next season and seems happy in Las Vegas, especially now that Jon Gruden is gone. Why would he demand a trade? Well, he might not.
However, if the Raiders make a run at Aaron Rodgers, which is rumored to be a possibility they’ll have no other choice but to unload the three-time Pro Bowler. If that happens, Washington would be nuts not to pursue Carr.
2. Russell Wilson
Does Russ really need an explanation? Probably not, we’re gonna give it to you anyway!
It’s truly disgraceful to think how Pete Carroll and the Seahawks have wasted the prime years of a future Hall of Famer like Wilson.
Ever since the feared “Legion of Boom” era flamed out, Seattle has failed to equip him with a competent offensive line and defense. Sure, DK Metcalf and Tyler Lockett are two elite receivers, but a QB an only do so much when he’s running for his life while also trying to atone for his defense’s ineptitude.
To make matter worse, the Seahawks have been one of the worst drafting teams in the league for nearly a decade. Seriously, go look at their drafting history. To make a long story short, they spent a first-rounder on running back Rashaad Penny in 2018 after they already had a stud in Chris Carson in their backfield.
Penny has played in 30 of a possible 56 games for his career. The problems go much deeper than that one pick, but that gives you a good idea of the kind of front office Wilson has been working with over the years.
Wilson was seemingly on his way out of Seattle this past offseason, but cooler heads prevailed. If the Seahawks suffer another early playoff exit — if they even make the playoffs — all signs would point to him demanding a trade.
At 32 years old, there’s no end in sight for the seven-time Pro Bowler, who’s coming off a four-year stretch across which he compiled over 250 yards per game to go with 140 touchdowns to just 36 interceptions.
Wilson has put the Seahawks on his back for the last six seasons. It’s time he sought greener pastures. Washington might not be the greenest piece of property, but they have more going for them than Seattle.
1. Aaron Rodgers
Aaron Rodgers likely lost a number of fans following his polarizing interview on the Pat McAfee Show, but he’ll still be the most sought-after quarterback in the league on the offseason rolls around.
After all, Rodgers and the Packers mutually agreed this past offseason — after he initially demanded a trade — that this would be his last hurrah in Green Bay, and a controversial take on the COVID-19 vaccine surely isn’t going to deter teams from pursuing arguably the most talented QB to ever grace the NFL.
We know Washington isn’t the most attractive landing spot, but couldn’t you argue that they present better weapons than Green Bay? If you asked us, Terry McLaurin, Curtis Samuel, Logan Thomas, Antonio Gibson and JD McKissic (if he’s re-signed) are a more talented group of playmakers than Davante Adams, Allen Lazard, Marquez Valdes-Scantling, Aaron Jones and AJ Dillon.
It’s not even close.
Further, Washington’s offensive line has been solid in pass protection and we’ve seen over the last three games what kind of potential this defense has. Is it crazy to think that the WFT has more championship pieces than the Packers?
Fans have complained that Washington’s first-round picks haven’t contributed to wins, so they technically shouldn’t have any qualms with unloading a handful of first-rounders to Green Bay in exchange for Rodgers.
It’s not every offseason a top-five QB of all-time becomes available and Rodgers has at least four more years of high-end play left. Enough said.