ESPN names this Commanders player as potential offseason trade candidate

Now that the rebrand is over, the Washington Commanders‘ offseason will center on the quarterback search. For some fans, the hunt for a franchise QB always took precedence. Now, though, it’s everyone’s main course, if you will.

While fans are consumed by all the quarterback discourse — the bulk of which thus far has revolved around Jimmy Garoppolo or a potential draft pick — the freshly-minted Commanders have plenty of other business to attend to.

It feels like Washington’s season ended weeks ago, but the official start of the legal tampering period, which marks when team’s can officially start negotiating with free agents, is just a little over one month away.

Just days after that, teams can engage in trades.

While the Commanders are unlikely to take part in any player (or draft pick) swaps, if they were presented with a grandfather offer for one of Daron Payne or Montez Sweat, they might feel compelled to bite.

However, ESPN insider Jeremy Fowler doesn’t see it that way. In his latest article (subscription required), Fowler named Landon Collins as an “under-the-radar” trade candidate for Washington this offseason.

Could the Commanders trade Landon Collins this offseason?

Here’s why Fowler thinks Collins makes sense as a trade chip.

"“When a big-money player changes positions, that’s usually not a good sign, though Collins’ switch from safety to linebacker actually maximizes his skill set. He’s best around the ball and is still a productive player. But Washington can save $11.5 million in salary and $6.6 million on the cap by releasing him, so if that’s a consideration, working on a trade is the sensible first move. Another factor is that the Ron Rivera regime didn’t sign Collins. That makes it easier to walk away.”"

In theory, that all sounds lovely. However, we’re hard-pressed to think a team will willingly absorb Collins’ contract. Over the next three seasons, he’ll account for cap hits of $16.082 million, $17.2 million and $15.2 million, respectively.

Throw his injury history into the mix (he’s started 35 of a possible 49 games for Washington) and it’s tough to envision him generating much interest.

Like anything, there’s two sides to every story. What could make Collins a sneaky-smart trade candidate is that the unmovable portion of his six-year, $84 million contract, which was clearly a gross overpay, is over.

As Fowler notes, Washington can recoup $6.6 million in cap space by unloading Collins this offseason. That number grows to $11.8 million and $14 million in cap seasons in 2023 and 2024, respectively. In other words, the front office finally has some flexibility when it comes to the seven-year pro’s contract.

Now that we know that teams would potentially consider taking on his deal, would it make sense from the Commanders’ perspective? After all, Collins was a game-wrecker starting in Week 8 after the coaching staff — albeit two months after they should have — moved him closer to the line of scrimmage.

Before a foot injury cost him the final two games, Landon Collins had emerged as a top five most important player on Washington’s defense, right alongside Jonathan Allen, Kendall Fuller, Daron Payne and Cole Holcomb. That’s crazy to think given he was one of the worst defensive players in the NFL to start the year.

Would it really be good business to trade someone like that? That’s for the front office to decide and fans to debate. If we had a say in the matter, though, we’d keep him on board for 2022 and revisit this conversation next offseason.