If you were to take a straw poll of 100 people and ask them what they think Washington Redskins tight end Jordan Reed should decide to do this offseason, I assume 99 of them would tell you he should retire.
That one person who says he should keep playing is Jordan Reed himself.
After spending six months in the concussion protocol and missing the entire 2019 season, the Redskins are in a position where they are going to have to release Reed if he decides that another year of football is in his future, which was reportedly made clear on Wednesday. Keeping him on the roster isn’t viable for Washington anymore, as he counts as over $8 million against the cap in 2020, and there’s little to no confidence that he will ever be healthy enough to stay on the field.
Fans think it, media members have predicted it, and now former Washington great, London Fletcher, is encouraging Reed to hang them up as well.
“I know for a young guy like him — especially a talented guy — he wants to continue to play, but I think he may have to come to grips that it’s time to walk away,” Fletcher said, via an interview with Radio.com. “There comes a time and place where… people who are close to him have to say ‘hey Jordan, it’s not worth it man.’”
That realization may be hard to come by for Reed, especially when you consider the peak that he reached early on in his career. In 2015, Reed was arguably the hottest name at the TE position, and he hauled in 11 touchdowns and over 950 yards receiving. Unfortunately, that production didn’t last as he dealt with endless injuries, and it’s not hard to see why he wishes to keep playing and hopefully get back up that mountain.
But head injuries are nothing to mess with; any longtime NFL player will tell you that.
“I was there the year he had his first concussion and I remember how that situation played out,” Fletcher said. “In Jordan’s case, he’s had so many documented concussions. Now, you don’t know how many undocumented concussions he’s had.”
Nobody can fault him for trying to elongate his career. Success is a high that few other things can match. We just hope him the best in his future endeavors and hope whatever he chooses to do works out.
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