Rivera says Redskins intend to bring back both Brandon Scherff and Ereck Flowers

It has become common knowledge that the Redskins will franchise tag Scherff, but Rivera says they will look to bring Flowers back as well.

Much of the conversation with the Washington Redskins so far this offseason has been surrounding Trent Williams and Chase Young. While both players will hold a significant place in the Redskins future, should they be on the roster by the time the 2020 season rolls around, but they aren’t the only two players who have major ramifications on the future in Washington.

Arguably just as important as Williams on the front line is right guard Brandon Scherff, and mirroring him at the left guard position, Ereck Flowers.

According to head coach Ron Rivera, who spoke in detail about the Redskins roster this week, the team plans to bring both of those players back this year in free agency.

Coach Ron Rivera breaks down the roster and talks about his core group of players. pic.twitter.com/7me1NqgMmD

— Washington Redskins (@Redskins) March 4, 2020

“We know that we’re going to try to bring both guards back,” Rivera said, matter of factly. “Once we get that situation figured out, we will have four of the five [starters] that we know what’s going to happen. Then again, the looming question will always be Trent.”

It was reported earlier this week that the Redskins plan to place the franchise tag on Scherff, who was expected to garner a massive contract in free agency this year. The Redskins reportedly will work to come to a contract agreement with him later this year. What is encouraging about this statement from Rivera, though, is his vote of confidence in Flowers. After coming to the Redskins on a one-year deal in 2019, Flowers earned his starting spot at the LG position and had a great year shoring up the left side of the line alongside Donald Penn. It was often debated whether or not the Redskins would look to keep Flowers around in free agency, but this comment from Rivera makes it seem likely.

If Washington can lock down four of their five starting spots, things will look quite a bit better for them heading into 2020, regardless of what Williams decides to do.

[vertical-gallery id=31001]

Is G Ereck Flowers the top option for the Steelers?

ESPN thinks the Steelers need to sign a free-agent guard.

There’s a real possibility the Pittsburgh Steelers will be forced to release guard Ramon Foster among others to free up salary-cap space. If the Steelers do cut Foster loose, they might be better off going after a veteran to replace him as opposed to counting on a rookie. ESPN hypothesized the perfect free agent for every team and for the Steelers they went with guard Ereck Flowers to replace Foster.

Here’s part of what ESPN had to say about the signing.

In his first year at the position, Flowers ranked 19th out of 39 qualifying left guards in PFF overall grade. For a Pittsburgh team that is strapped for cap space and possibly moving on from 34-year-old Ramon Foster at left guard, getting a 25-year-old, league-average starter for well under the price of top options such as Joe Thuney and Brandon Scherff would be a win. The Steelers would just have to hope that guard is, in fact, Flowers’ best position and that he can at least maintain the level of play he showed in 2019.

I will be the first to admit I didn’t watch Flower play guard last season. But he was awful as a tackle. But if the Steelers could get a guy at a bargain who has proven he can start and not be terrible, it might not be a terrible move.

[vertical-gallery id=459773]

[lawrence-related id=459825]

4 left guards the Jets should avoid in free agency

Jets Wire takes a look at four left guards Joe Douglas and company should steer clear of in free agency.

This offseason, the New York Jets are going to rebuild their offensive line.

Following a 2019 season that featured awful play in the trenches throughout the year, first-year general manager Joe Douglas is out to fill holes across New York’s line.

This year’s left guard market features some big-time names, which is good news for Douglas. There are also some players not worth touching with a 10-foot pole.

Who are they? Let’s take a look.

Mike Iupati

Iupati looked like he was done with how poorly he performed with the Cardinals in 2018. However, he bounced back with the Seahawks last season, earning himself Pro Bowl alternate consideration following his most productive season in a long time.

Iupati might seem like a nice short-term plug and play guard the Jets could use, but he is 33 and decline could be imminent. He has also dealt with back and knee injuries the last couple of years — arguably two of the most concerning injuries for any offensive lineman.

It wouldn’t hurt to give Iupati a look, but the Jets should make an effort to get a younger left guard with a cleaner bill of health as their next starter at the position.

Pages: 1234

Why 2020 is the Redskins most important offseason in recent memory

With the No. 2 draft pick and major roster decisions to be made, the 2020 offseason will go a long way in determining the Redskins’ future.

For any NFL team that is currently closer to No. 32 in the power rankings than they are to the top spot, the offseason is a pivotal time for the franchise as a whole. It offers a chance to regroup, figure out what went wrong, and map out what you can do to fix it.

Sometimes that means getting a new coach, sometimes that means trying to remake your team through free agency, and sometimes that means putting all of your chips into the NFL Draft looking to build a young and solid core. For the Washington Redskins, it will likely be all three of those things.

It may be hard to see the forest through the trees at times, but what happens over the next two or three months for the Redskins is likely to shape the franchise for many years to come. With a new regime in place throughout the front office and coaching staff, a new tone will hopefully be set at the very core as a once-historic team looks to get back to their winning ways.

On top of just cultural changes, the Redskins have a litany of personnel decisions to make in the imminent future. In the wake of cornerback Quinton Dunbar’s request to be traded or released, the team is now responsible for trying to repair relationships with both him and left tackle Trent Williams, hopefully convincing them to return to the team ahead of 2020. The Redskins also needs to make decisions on free agent lineman Brandon Scherff and Ereck Flowers, as well as coming up with a solution for EDGE Ryan Kerrigan’s contract — there’s no way they’re content to pay him $11.7 million this year.

On top of all of those roster decisions that could potentially shape the starting lineup, you have the NFL Draft. The Redskins have the No. 2 overall pick, and a stark majority of the fanbase and sports media has been clamoring for them to select Ohio State defensive end Chase Young with that pick. While that is still the most likely outcome, the Redskins could still choose to trade away the top pick — and potentially the next pick as well — in order to increase their draft capital and help to fill out their roster with young players who have a lot of upsides. We’ve seen Kyle Smith, the VP of Player Personnel and orchestrator of the Redskins’ draft, come away with two highly-successful drafts in the past two years, and it’s not crazy to think he could do it again in 2020.

This isn’t an article that is predicting what the Redskins will do, or even trying to sway them to lean one way or the other. Rather, it is a piece that wants to underline the magnitude of the decisions that will be made over the next couple of months inside the organization. These are potentially franchise-changing decisions that will go a long way in determining what the future looks like in Washington. It could be a return to greatness for a win-deprived fanbase, or it could be continued mediocrity in the Nation’s Capital.

No pressure.

[vertical-gallery id=30192]

Mapping out a perfect Washington Redskins offseason in 2020

There are a number of roster decisions for the Redskins to make this offseason, but these are at the top of our list for a perfect 2020.

The pieces are starting to be put into place for the Washington Redskins to actually find some success in 2020 and the years beyond. With a core of young and dynamic players on both offense and defense, plus a new coaching staff that will offer a fresh set of eyes to what can improve around the building, there is a reality in which the Redskins find themselves competing for a playoff spot in the near future.

The Redskins are set to start out the year with just under $40 million in salary-cap space, according to Over The Cap, but that number could rise a heck of a lot higher with some tweaking. All they have to do is make the right roster decisions, and that starts this offseason. In order to help provide a path forward, we decided to map out what would be a perfect offseason, in our eyes, hoping it leads to eventual Redskins’ success.

CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA – DECEMBER 01: Josh Norman #24 of the Washington Redskins embraces head coach Ron Rivera of the Carolina Panthers before their game at Bank of America Stadium on December 01, 2019 in Charlotte, North Carolina. (Photo by Jacob Kupferman/Getty Images)

Cutting Players:

There are a handful of players that the Redskins will likely let go ahead of free agency this year, but two big-name players come to mind for us. Josh Norman and Paul Richardson Jr.

The writing has been on the wall for Norman, as he was benched at the end of the season in order to let practice squad players get a chance in front of him. At age 32, with a significant drop in production since becoming the highest-paid CB in the NFL with the Redskins, it’s time for Washington to rid of Norman’s contract and look to the younger players. According to OTC, the Redskins would save $12.5 million by cutting him this offseason, giving them over $50 million in available space.

Likewise, Richardson has spent two seasons now trying to stay healthy enough to live up to his $40 million contract that the Redskins gave him in 2018, but failing. In 2019, Richardson was passed up by three rookie wide receivers on the depth chart, which was the icing on the cake. If the Redskins were to part ways with Richardson this offseason, they would save $6.5 million in 2020, but with some of that becoming dead money, the cap space would only rise to $52 million.

Pages: 123456789

Ranking the Redskins 7 biggest decisions to make in the 2020 offseason

With a new coaching staff and some money to spend, the 2020 offseason could be the most important for the Redskins in years.

The Washington Redskins are in a solid position as they look to enter the offseason, which is set to really get underway after Sunday’s Super Bowl LIV. With a new coaching staff, an encouraging core of young players, and several pieces who are set to enter the prime of their careers, there is a good chance that the Redskins could find themselves competing for a spot in the playoffs in the near future.

Something that will only further help this quest is making the right calls during the 2020 free agency period, which is set to begin on March 18th, at 4 p.m. ET. As it stands now, the NFL Salary cap is expected to increase this season to somewhere between the range of $196 million $201 million, which gives Washington approximately $48 million in cap space to work with. However, a few roster decisions concerning veteran players can be made to nearly double that available cap space, and make the Redskins real players at the negotiating table. Here’s our ranking of the most pertinent moves that Washington should choose to make this season.

No. 7 — Cut CB Josh Norman (Saves $12.5 Million)

This seems like the easiest decision that the Redskins can make this offseason, and it should be the first thing on their to-do list. Norman’s time in Washington probably didn’t go exactly how he envisioned it, but that doesn’t mean that he wasn’t a valuable and loyal member of the team for several years.

After signing a $75 million contract with the team in 2016, making him the highest-paid CB in the NFL, Norman started to show his age a bit down the stretch, and it culminated in him getting benched for a number of rookies, practice players, and guys signed off of the street at the end of the 2019 season. The writing has been on the wall for Norman this past year, and it seems that he will likely be searching for a new team ahead of the 2020 season.

However, there is a slight chance that he stays in Washington, no matter how much the fans may disagree with the decision. The only argument to be made for keeping Norman is that his former coach in Carolina, Ron Rivera, is now in Washington, and he has shown the ability to put Norman into areas of high success in his career. Still, it seems like the best place for the 32-year-old defensive back is somewhere other than the nation’s capital.

Pages: 1234567

What the Redskins scouting tells us about Brandon Scherff, Ereck Flowers 2020 future

The Redskins may have revealed a plan to keep Brandon Scherff and Ereck Flowers in 2020 by not scouting OL position hard at the Senior Bowl.

As the 2020 offseason starts to ramp up over the next weeks, and teams further delve into their free agency and NFL Draft preparation going ahead, it’s important to parse through the shrouded information we get from teams and try to figure out what they might do when it comes to big personnel decisions.

For the Washington Redskins, there are a number of areas that they need to address over the coming months. We’ve identified those needs as some of the following: Tight End, Wide Receiver, Offensive Line, Backup Quarterback, Cornerback, Linebacker, and Free Safety. Our first chance to see their preparation came last weekend at the 2020 Reese’s Senior Bowl. Ron Rivera, Jack Del Rio, and Scott Turner met with Redskins scouts in Mobile, Ala. to evaluate some talent that they might focus on drafting.

While in Mobile, the Redskins seemingly scoped out players at the TE and WR position, while putting less of a focus on quarterbacks and players on the offensive line. Can we glean anything from this information? Does it tell us anything about a potential draft strategy in Washington?

It just might. Let’s start with the O-line. The fact is, the Redskins are almost at a fork in the road when it comes to putting together their front-five for 2020. They have two guards — Brandon Scherff and Ereck Flowers — who are set to hit free agency this year, both of whom found success in 2019 and have expressed interest in coming back to Washington. Should the Redskins retain them, the continuity and experience in the middle will go a long way towards building a solid front. Likewise, there is the Trent Williams situation to monitor going forward. Williams said that he would “never be a Redskin again” late last year, but the litany of changes Washington has made over the past couple of months might make him reconsider. Should Williams return, the offensive line would become a strength of the team going forward. Of course, there is also a scenario where the Redskins miss out on all three of those players, putting them in a dire situation going forward.

As for the backup QB position, we have Alex Smith to consider. There is not yet a date that he is eyeing for a return to the field, but many people believe that it could be as early as this season, should his recovery continue on the right track. It’s nearly impossible to predict how Smith will look once he returns to the game, due to the severity of his gruesome leg injury, but he could likely be thrown into a quarterback competition with Dwayne Haskins this summer. Should Haskins beat him out for the starting job, Smith would be a great QB2 for the Redskins.

It’s nothing concrete, but during a time where meetings with the media are infrequent, and all you have to go off of is the teams’ actions in public, it’s something. The Redskins have a few major free agency decisions to make going forward, and based on their scouting at the Senior Bowl, it could tell us that some veteran players are around to stay in 2020.

[vertical-gallery id=29489]

Redskins’ front finishes No. 13 in PFF’s offensive line rankings

Even without Trent Williams, the Redskins offensive line finished in the top half of the league with some make-shift pieces filling holes.

The biggest concern for the Washington Redskins heading into the 2019 season centered around the offensive line.

With a new QB set to be under center, and long-time All-Pro Trent Williams holding out from the team, the Redskins were forced to piece together a make-shift front and hope that it could hold up.

That group did a pretty solid job, considering the circumstances, and they finished in the top half of the NFL’s offensive line rankings, according to Pro Football Focus, coming in at No. 13 out of 32 teams in the league.

The Redskins’ offensive line was operating without its best player all season, as Trent Williams sat out, but the group still managed to finish among the top half of the league in our rankings, led by Brandon Scherff before his season-ending injury. Scherff was a force to be reckoned with in the run game this season. His 76.3 run-blocking grade ranked fifth among all qualifying guards.

Left tackle Donald Penn was signed right before the season, and though he was probably the weakest member of the front-five, he wasn’t a complete liability. Next to him was Ereck Flowers, who did a magnificent job of bucking the ‘bust-narrative’ that has followed him throughout his young NFL career, and he likely earned a spot with the Redskins for several years to come.

The three staples of the line, C Chase Roullier, RG Brandon Scherff, and RT Morgan Moses, were all expectedly solid, and they will remain incumbents at their position for as long as they want the spot. Of course, Scherff is entering free agency with a desire to be paid top dollar this year, so there is a possibility that Washington moves on from the Pro-Bowl guard. However, should Scherff vacate his spot, rookie RG Wes Martin played will in the veteran’s absence this past season, and would step right into the starting spot with ease.

There are few accolades being thrown around the Redskins organization after a 3-13 season, expectedly so. However, we aim to give credit where credit is due, and the offensive line deserves it this year.

[vertical-gallery id=27233]

Behind Enemy Lines: Week 15 Q&A with Redskins Wire

With a Week 16 matchup between the New York Giants and Washington Redskins on tap, we go behind enemy lines for a chat with Redskins Wire.

The New York Giants (3-11) and Washington Redskins (3-11) will square off on Sunday afternoon in Week 16.

The Giants opened the week as 2.5-point road underdogs, and the spread hasn’t changed at all as of Sunday morning.

With this matchup on tap, Giants Wire took the opportunity to hold a Q&A with Redskins Wire managing editor Zachary Neel.

Giants Wire: A lot has changed since the last time the Giants and Redskins met, including the status of rookie QB Dwayne Haskins. Now the starter, what have you seen from Haskins over the past 12 weeks and where should the Giants expect him to be in his development at this point?

Zachary Neel: Haskins is “lightyears” ahead of where he was when facing the Giants in Week 4, but that isn’t to say he’s some masterful playmaker. Rather it points to how atrocious he was early in the season.

However, Haskins has come a long way, and he has shown an increased comfortability in the pocket and understanding of when to get the ball out of his hands. He still struggles with accuracy downfield, but that is something that comes with time.

If the Giants want to rattle him, as with any young quarterback, you blitz him and force him to make quick decisions.

Continue …

Pages: 12345

Ex-Giants bust Ereck Flowers drawing some praise in Washington

Former New York Giants bust Ereck Flowers is drawing some praise in Washington… kind of.

The Washington Redskins are stocked full of former members of the New York Giants who simply couldn’t hack it in The Big Apple, but at least one of them has managed to revitalize his career in Washington.

After completing bombing out as a first-round pick of the Giants, Ereck Flowers was signed by the Redskins this offseason, converted to guard and away he went.

Flowers has a 63.2 Pro Football Focus grade, which may be the highest of his career, but has still allowed two inside sacks while committing five penalties (accepted) and dealing with some of the same technique issues he dealt with in New York.

However, when your stock is as low as it can go, that presents itself as some sort of improvement. Just ask Redskins interim head coach Bill Callahan.

“I love Flowers,” Callahan said on a conference call with the New York media. “I loved him coming out of the draft. I think the world of him. I think he’s one of our better offensive linemen, and to make the switch that he made, coming here from New York and playing tackle and then going inside to play guard—and honestly speaking, with Trent’s (Williams) situation being unresolved in the spring during OTAs, we played him at left tackle and then he really only had the opportunity in a short period of time in training camp to make the transition into guard, but he made it remarkably well, and it’s a really good position for him.

“He’s playing better in live tight-quarter situations. He’s physical, he’s been really good in pass protection, he’s a strong square force in that respect. I just love the kid. I just like the way he works, how he goes about his business. Sometimes, it’s just a breath of fresh air. I’ve had a lot of guys in my career, a couple of different places, that sometimes a different exposure to new techniques, a different system, it kind of revives them. I can point back to a lot of guys in my career that that’s happened to, and I’m just happy for him.

“He’s a great kid and he’s worked hard to get to where he’s at, and he’ll hit the free agency market and I think he’ll do pretty well.”

Boy, that is quite a mouthful, but it’s imperative people carefully absorb what Callahan actually said.

“He’ll hit the free agency market and I think he’ll do pretty well.”

In other words, “Flowers is going great for us and we’ll wish him well when he’s sent out the door this offseason.”

What a backhanded compliment. But hey, when it comes to Flowers, that is certainly better than what he is used to.

[lawrence-related id=635986,636003,635969]