Posts Tagged ‘Washington Redskins’

Redskins sign Tanard Jackson

Jackson is looking to get his career back on track in Washington.

It was a surprise earlier in the week when the Tampa Bay Bucs cut once promising safety Tanard Jackson, yet it was not a surprise when Jackson resurfaced only days later, on a new team with a familiar face on the coaching staff, as it was announced today that he signed on with the Washington Redskins, reuniting him with former Bucs head coach Raheem Morris, who is now the secondary coach in the nation’s capital.

Jackson, who has played five season in the National Football League, all of them with the Bucs, has had an up and down career to this point, will look to get back on track with Washington. He has started a total of 56 games in his career and following the 2009 season when he intercepted five passes, the future seemed bright.

However, Jackson has repeatedly run into trouble off the field, as he was suspended on two different occasions for the violating the NFL’s substance abuse policy. On top of that, he has struggled with injuries and failed a physical recently with Tampa Bay, which was cited as the reason for his release.

Last season, Jackson played in 10 games, registering 35 tackles, two interceptions, a fumble recovery and three passes defensed. For his career Jackson has 10 interceptions and 11 forced or recovered fumbles to go along with 27 pass breakups, so at one time he was a productive player.

Analysis: This is a low-risk move for Washington, Jackson is a talented player, who has encountered some off the field problems, yet the potential for him to develop into a regular starter at safety still exists and surely, the Redskins hope that having Morris on staff to oversee Jackson as his position coach, will greatly assist in the regeneration of Jackson’s once promising career.

Browns Interested in Quarterback Brandon Weeden?

Every year around this time, NFL teams are getting their draft boards ready because with the NFL Draft only weeks away,  final boards are being put together, causing many players to rise or fall, as their Draft value  is solidified.

Due to the importance of the position, quarterbacks always seem to be on the rise as the Draft nears, as teams without franchise quarterbacks are desperately seeking to acquire one. Following the Redskins trade with the Rams to secure Robert Griffin III and the no.2 overall pick, Ryan Tannehill was the big mover, as he went from an expected mid-to-late first round pick, to a potential top-five selection, with the number of potential franchise quarterbacks dwindling fast.

Teams such as Cleveland, Miami, Arizona and Seattle could all use upgrades at the position. Yet, the Cardinals seem content to roll with either Kevin Kolb or John Skelton, while similarly, the Seahawks starter will likely emerge from the competition between incumbent starter Tavaris Jackson and free-agent signee Matt Flynn from Green Bay.

Right now, it seems the teams most interested in landing Tannehill are Cleveland and Miami. The Browns hold the no.4 pick, therefore, they want Tannehill at that spot, he should be there for them. He makes sense in Cleveland, cause the Browns utilize the west coast offense, which is what Tannehill ran in college at Texas A&M, where current Dolphins offensive coordinator Mike Sherman was his head coach.

Its hard to say if the Browns interest in Tannehill at no.4 is genuine or a smokescreen, but my take on the situation is the Browns are interested, just maybe not enough to use a top-five pick on him. With that in mind, I also don’t see Miami trading up into the top-five to acquire Tannehill. Essentially, the two teams are playing a game of chicken waiting for someone to blink. If the Browns want him at no.4 they can take him, if not, he should fall to Miami at no.8.

Scouts around the league are in agreement that Tannehill has the potential to be a starting quarterback, yet he has limited experience, starting only 19 games in college. He posted impressive numbers with the Aggies, throwing 42 touchdowns compared to 21 interceptions for his career and completed 61.6% of his passes this season, his only full-year as a starting quarterback.  He has good size and athleticism, above average arm strength and accuracy, plus still has room to develop.

Considering Tannehill’s potential, it would not be at all surprising if Cleveland pulled the trigger at no.4, they need a franchise guy and it’s unclear if Colt McCoy can be it. Drafting Tannehill would allow the Browns to keep McCoy on the field for now, giving them a better idea what kind of player he is, while Tannehill develops.

On the other hand, the Browns are desperately in need of some skill players, such as running back Trent Richardson and wide receiver Justin Blackmon. Fortunately, the Browns have plenty of flexibility because they hold the 22nd and 37th picks in the draft as well, so they could potentially pass on Tannehill, allowing Miami to select him at no.8, then pick Richardson, who would fill an immediate need and instantly add a playmaking threat to the offense. The Browns could then address quarterback with one of their next two selections.

While there is no consensus no.4 quarterback in this draft now, the candidates include Brandon Weeden, Nick Foles, Brock Osweiler and Kirk Cousins. Foles and Cousins are seen solidly in the second, Weeden and Osweiler both merit first-round consideration.

From my perspective, Osweiler is way too risky to pick in the first round, thus Weeden is clearly the fourth quarterback prospect and is comparable to Tannehill in the eyes of some. In two years as a starter at Oklahoma State, he threw 71 touchdowns compared to just 26 interceptions, while completing 69.7% of his passes.

Talent-wise, Weeden is worthy of being selected in the first round, what might hold him back is his age. He will enter the NFL next season as a 28-year old rookie, which is not ideal. However, quarterbacks such as Kurt Warner and Rich Gannon blossomed late and won MVP awards, so whose to say Weeden can’t follow in their footsteps.

When it’s all said and done, we may just see three quarterback taken in the first round, but when it comes down to it, quarterbacks drive success in this league, so one with first-round talent would be hard to pass up on, thus it would not  come as a shock to no one, if a guy like Brandon Weeden comes off the board a little earlier than expected.

Albert Haynes-worth? A lot of cash, but nothing else.

By Bob Metz

So Albert Haynesworth took the check. The $21 million dollars that was offered to him on April 1 to do just one thing: Show up and do his best. That apparently wasn’t what Haynesworth had in mind when he accepted the check instead of the other offer. Freedom.

Haynesworth met with new ‘Skins head coach Mike Shanahan and the latter offered him a way out. A way out of a $100 million contract and the rest of the $40 million guaranteed money that Haynesworth signed on for under then-head coach Jim Zorn.

Why would he want out? Because Shanahan runs a 3-4 defense and Haynesworth is more comfortable in a 4-3. Apparently Haynesworth has a big problem with it. So big in fact, that Haynesworth has made a spectacle of the situation, and is not showing up for offseason workouts.

Haynesworth has even alienated his teammates. His selfishness has turned off everyone within the organization and many outside of it. “He didn’t turn down the money, but he never intended to show up.” sites one source.

The only thing it appears the Redskins can do at this point is trade him. After all, he is worthless to his team now that nobody wants him there and he doesn’t want to be there. But right now they are more concerned with getting some or all of the $21 million back that he accepted only 2 1/2 months ago.