by Tommy Gimler
What do you do when you have zero wide receivers, a running back who led the team with 640 yards, and a defense that gave up 23 points a game last season? You guessed it. Trade away your next three 1st round picks and your 2nd round pick this year for RG3.
I get wanting to trade up for your chance at a franchise quarterback. I suppose sitting through a season of Rex Grossman and John Beck at the helm feels a lot like masturbating face down on a bed of nails. It hurts. But the Redskins need more than a quarterback. Much more.
In Denver, Mike Shanahan could’ve had Stephen Hawking rush for 1,000 yards with that offensive line. That’s when the running back by committee works. When you try it with the Redskins’ line, you get shutout by Buffalo, and your leading rusher finishes the game with 14 yards.
The Redskins defense finished in the middle of the pack in yards allowed last season, but they gave up over 30 points in four of their last five games. Even with RG3 at quarterback, is this a group of wide receivers (Jabar Gaffney, Santana Moss, and four rejects) that can help him succeed at this level? Is Kyle Shanahan the worst offensive coordinator in the NFL?
The bottom line is that teams like the Washington Redskins, Dallas Cowboys, and Oakland Raiders consistently find themselves in this situation because instead of building your entire team through the draft with a few free agent signings here and there, these teams and their egotistical owners bet the farm on one big name player. Meanwhile, the New England Patriots and Green Bay Packers use every round of the draft to build talent and depth at every position and consistently find themselves playing in January and February.
But is Redskins owner Dan Snyder really to blame for the Redskins fans’ constant state of misery? Yes. But maybe this time, Skins fans’ biggest beef should be with Carolina Panthers QB Cam Newton. After all, if Newton would have been a bust last year like most people predicted, then RG3 probably is available this year when the Redskins use their sixth overall pick.
Interesting article. With all the parity built into the draft and salary caps in the NFL some franchises still never figure it out to their advantage… Also I do love the Packers and follow some NFL news (great Peyton #1 fan article!) but I don’t know what RG3 is??
Robert Griffin III from Baylor. The Skins basically traded up to get him before Cleveland did.
Note to Shawn Williams: Maybe try using google to find out “what RG3 is” before deciding to post a comment and look like a total dope. Also, great article Tommy. I couldn’t fucking believe the news when I read it scrolling along the bottom of the tv last night. Snyder is completely clueless. How many picks would he have traded for Cutler if he was running the Bears back in ’09? I’d say 5 first rounders and a couple 2nd rounders, at least. Idiot!
I wish Dan Snyder owned the Bears and Jerry Jones owned the Vikings. That would be a utopia.
I don’t feel like a total dope?
Don’t feel like a total dope, brother. Seriously. A good article would have mentioned Robert Griffin III right away and then referred to him as RG3 afterward. I never set it up. Dope = Gimler
I was just messin’! Gimler is definitely the dope. If Dan Snyder owned the Bears maybe it would result in them finally performing poorly enough to get Lovie fired. That’d be nice.