Hall of Fame executive has unpopular viewpoint on Brandon Scherff’s future

The Washington Commanders will have a bellyful of tough decisions to make this offseason. That’s almost putting it lightly.

Between determining which quarterback to add to the roster and which players are worthy of extensions and being re-signed in free agency, we hope Ron Rivera and the front office banked sleep after the season ended.

Those are all stomach-turners, but is it fair to peg Brandon Scherff’s future as the biggest of them all?

As the longest-tenured player on the roster along with punter Tress Way, there’s a prevailing thought among writers and fans alike that the Pro Bowl guard has played his last down for the organization.

It’s nothing personal against Scherff. The Commanders simply can’t afford to keep him around at his desired price tag while also adding a quarterback and addressing other positions of need, like linebacker and receiver.

With all that said, is there a scenario that could se Scherff re-sign with Washington? If you asked Hall of Fame executive Gil Brandt, now an analyst for NFL.com, he’d tell you that the team “must” keep the 30-year-old star.

Hall of Fame exec Gil Brandt believes the Commanders should try to keep free agent Brandon Scherff.

Here’s Brand’s argument for Washington keeping Scherff.

"Scherff missed significant time for the fourth straight season, losing several games to a knee injury in 2021. Having been franchise tagged two seasons in a row, he’ll also surely be aiming to secure a hefty paycheck. But the Commanders are projected to have cap space, and he was still their eighth-best offensive player last season, according to his PFF grade, and would make life easier on whomever ends up playing QB."

With all due respect to Brandt, who earned his spot in the Hall of Fame for the marvelous work he did in the Cowboys’ front office for close to three decades, he didn’t exactly offer a bulletproof argument with his analysis.

One of the main reasons fans are content with letting Scherff test free agency is his durability concerns. Missing “significant time” for four straight seasons is a big deal and one that should be considered when weighing his future.

As good as Scherff is when healthy, playing 43 of a possible 65 games over a four-year stretch is pretty alarming.

That brings us to our next point. Should Washington really pony up top-of-the-market money for an oft-injured guard? If Scherff was a left tackle, this would be a different conversation. Given that isn’t the case, his injury history and price tag suggest that whatever team meets his demands will be inheriting a great risk.

Scherff pocketed $18.04 million playing on the franchise tag for the second year running in 2021, so his agency will likely set a baseline of $18 million during negotiations. Additionally, that all but rules out a third consecutive tag seeing that he’d receive a 44% increase on that $18 million salary from last season.

What would that equate to, you ask? $25.977 million.

On another note, Brandt couldn’t have made a stronger argument than sharing that Scherff was the eighth-highest graded player on the team in 2021? You’d expect better from a player who’ll likely sign a contract worth $18-20 million annually, no?

It just feels lazy. We would’ve at least relayed the fact Scherff conceded 19 pressures, one quarterback hit and zero sacks. That sure sounds a lot better than saying he was Washington’s eighth-best offensive player, but whatever.

In Brandt’s defense, though, there’s a reason so few analysts believe the Commanders should move heaven and earth to keep Scherff. Between his injury history and contract demands, there’s really no argument you can make.