The Washington Redskins made a seemingly low-risk, high-reward move earlier this offseason by trading for backup quarterback Kyle Allen, who the coaching staff has a lot of familiarity with after spending some time with him in Carolina.
It is believed that Allen will come to Washington in order to provide a little bit of competition for second-year QB Dwayne Haskins, but many believe that he will slot in as the QB2 and be ready when called upon. However, one former Redskin thinks that Allen might turn into the guy going forward, as Haskins continues to struggle to find his footing after a frustrating rookie season.
DeAngelo Hall, a player who played in Washington from 2008-17, is still waiting to see something from Haskins that convinces him he can be the franchise QB going forward.
“I don’t think Dwayne Haskins is going to respond,” Hall said, via NBC Sports Washington. “Ron Rivera is an old school mentality type of coach. He wants competition. These young guys they want things given to them.”
Haskins’ drive and mental fortitude was brought into question a lot during his rookie season, especially after he missed the final kneel-down in his first career victory because he was on the sideline taking a selfie with fans. There have also been questions about his work ethic, though all reports from this offseason show that he has been virtually living in the gym, working to get better. A rough start to his rookie season was made a bit better by the end, and his final two games were highly-encouraging, as he threw for four touchdowns and 0 interceptions in that time.
But now, with Allen in the QB room right next to him, Haskins will undoubtedly feel the heat on his neck as the pressure to perform builds larger. The manner in which he reacts to that is going to say a lot about him as a player.
“With Kyle Allen breathing down your throat you are not going to be able to make many mistakes. I love the kid but I don’t know how [Haskins] wins the starting job. I really don’t, with Ron Rivera knowing Kyle Allen. They traded a fifth-round pick for him.”
When taking over the head job, Rivera promised that we would get a highly-competitive quarterback competition. It looks like he’s a man of his word.
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