Tag: paul richardson

Redskins can double their cap-space and attract coaches with a few simple moves

There’s a way that the Redskins can become a contender in the NFC East as soon as 2020, and all it takes is ridding the roster of some aging and expensive talent.

After it was announced this month that the NFL’s 2020 Salary Cap was likely to increase to somewhere between $196 and $201 million next season, it probably caused many fans of the Washington Redskins to do some research and find that the team will have approximately $48 million of cap space this coming offseason.

However, there are several moves that could make that number grow even higher for the Redskins, and that increased flexibility might behoove them in other areas this offseason, as they look to find an elite coaching candidate to fill their vacancy at the top stop.

According to NBC Sports JP Finlay, if Washington were to make these five roster moves this offseason, it could potentially clear up $50 million in extra cap-space, giving the Redskins more than $90 million to work with. As it stands now, that would be the third-most in the NFL. Here’s what Washington would need to do:

  • Cut CB Josh Norman | Saves $12.5 million in 2020
  • Cut WR Paul Richardson | Saves $6.5 million in 2020
  • Cut or reach an injury settlement with TE Jordan Reed | Saves $8.5 million in 2020
  • Trade LB Ryan Kerrigan | Saves $11.7 million in 2020
  • Trade LT Trent Williams | Saves $12.75 million in 2020

All of those roster decisions seem highly possible, and any logical franchise would likely pull the trigger instantly. However….well, I don’t need to say it.

Not only would this freed-up cap-space allow the Redskins to be highly active in free agency, but the added flexibility could be a huge selling point for any coaching candidate who may be wary of stepping into a difficult position in Washington. As it stands now, the Redskins have a stubborn owner, an incompetent general manager, and a whole host of players who are either injured or refusing to play taking up more than half of their cap space. You’d have to be a fool to willingly take on that job.

However, with a few of the moves we mentioned earlier, the Redskins could rid their roster of aging and expensive talent, spend on committed players who are in their prime and surround their talented young core with playmakers who are coming into their own. You pair that with the right coach, and suddenly you have a contender in the NFC East on your hands.

All of this can be done with a few roster decisions and a commitment to the future. Any logical franchise would do it…

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Colts attempting to poach Timon Parris is why Paul Richardson went to IR

Other teams had an eye on Timon Parris.

The Washington Redskins sent veteran wideout Paul Richardson to injured reserve recently, ending a disappointing season.

There wasn’t much to think about from an outsider’s standpoint — Year 2 for Richardson in Washington felt much like the first and this was a typical move to help add depth at a position.

But there’s more to the story, as Redskins interim coach Bill Callahan revealed recently.

Les Carpenter of the Washington Post summed it up: “Callahan said the Colts wanted to poach Timon Parris from the practice squad which led to the Redskins placing Paul Richardson on IR. He said the Redskins believe in Parris’s potential and did not want to lose him.”

It’s a bit of a stunning admission from the Redskins, who tossed Timon Parris onto the 53 in order to prevent a team like the Colts from poaching him.

Parris, a 2018 rookie, had big upside from a small school (Stony Brook), so it’s clear the Redskins like what they’ve seen so far and will do what it takes to make sure they see the returns on his development.

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Paul Richardson’s season ends on injured reserve

Paul Richardson heads to injured reserve.

The Washington Redskins placed wideout Paul Richardson on injured reserve Saturday, ending his second season with the team.

Richardson made it through just 10 games this year, catching 28 passes for 245 yards and two touchdowns.

So ends a disappointing second campaign with the Redskins before coming over in free agency. Last year, Richardson suited up for just seven games and caught 20 passes for 262 yards and two scores.

Richardson had never missed more than a single game in three of his first four seasons in the league in Seattle. During his contract year, he appeared in all 16 and caught six touchdowns while averaging a stellar 16 yards per catch.

Washington had hoped for something similar from Richardson as a deep threat. But the combination of learning a new system and locale, injuries and the ever-changing quarterback situation has dashed the idea.

The Redskins built an out into Richardson’s contract after this season, otherwise, he’s under contract for three more years.

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NFC East News: Redskins to start 3 rookie WR’s vs. the Eagles

Redskins to start 3 rookie WR’s against the Eagles

The Washington Redskins are dealing with just as many injuries as the Philadelphia Eagles and both teams will look drastically different at wide receiver on Sunday.

Washington just finished their final practice in advance of Sunday’s huge matchup and according to Kyle Stackpole of the Redskins’ official website, the team will start three rookies at wide receiver against the Eagles secondary.

Terry McLaurin has been a starter from the beginning and the former Ohio State star has made a big splash with the Redskins.

McLaurin was selected with pick No. 76 out of Ohio State, and he’s racked up 46 catches for 703 yards and 6 touchdowns through Week 15.

In the season opener, McLaurin torched the Birds for 5 catches on 125 yards and a TD, including a 70-yard bomb. With Trey Quinn and Paul Richardson Jr. both out as well, Kelvin Harmon, a rookie wideout from North Carolina State will get the start.

Steven Sims Jr., a rookie wideout from Kansas will also get the start.

Last week, in a loss to the Green Bay Packers, rookie signal-caller, Dwayne Haskins, passed for 170 yards on 16-of-27 passing with a touchdown. McLaurin posted 57 yards on four catches with a touchdown.

Sims Jr. had four receptions for 40 yards, which is his career-high in yards, while the speedy Harmon hauled in a 30-yard reception and is averaging 14.8 yards per catch over the last four games (177 yards on 12 catches).

It should be a matchup that favors the Eagles veteran defense and secondary, but this season has been anything but easy or predictable.

Adrian Peterson and Paul Richardson say Eric Bieniemy will be a great head coach

Both Peterson and Richardson have had Bieniemy as a head coach before, and they know that he has the traits to lead a team to success.

While the Washington Redskins look to begin their coaching search as the season winds to a close, with just three games left on the schedule, a name that keeps coming up is Eric Bieniemy, the offensive coordinator for the Kansas City Chiefs.

Not only has Bieniemy surged to the top of the list of candidates for any open head coaching job in the NFL, but he also has a number of ties to the Redskins and their current personnel. Once upon a time, he acted as the OC for wide receiver Paul Richardson Jr. at the University of Colorado, but he was also the running backs coach for Adrian Peterson with the Minnesota Vikings, and he held the position of OC for Alex Smith with the Kansas City Chiefs. It’s safe to say that if he has questions about the Washington organization, there are a few people he can ask.

On the flip side, these players in Washington can also reach out to him and potentially sway him in the direction of taking over the Redskins job. Both Richardson and Peterson were asked about Bieniemy earlier this week, and while they didn’t publically lobby for him to come to Washington, they did make sure to point out how deserving he is of a top job in the NFL.

“I think he’s a great coach,” said Richardson, via The Athletic. “I think he’s a great leader. He’s really intense. He prides himself on details and execution. He’s old-school, man. He played running back, back in the day. So, of course, he’s one of those guys that is all for the run-first mentality, but he definitely one of those people that wants to get the most out of his players. I felt that a lot when I was in Colorado.”

For Peterson, he recalls the times in Minnesota where Bieniemy would constantly require the RBs to take diligent notes during film sessions, and he often wouldn’t let a detail slip by.

“He was big on taking notes,” Peterson said, via The Athletic. “You have your pen out and writing notes down, and we didn’t have an excuse. He had everything we need for that week written on the board, on both sides, and we used to go over it, and you were able to see it in intensive detail. It’s like, man; he is really like making sure that we are dialed in, and we know exactly what’s going on. So the running back group, and the fullback group we are in sync. We have no excuse to eff up.”

So while they may not have publically endorsed him for the Redskins job, both Richardson and Peterson will be the first people to tell you that Bieniemy is a sure-fire head coach that deserves a chance somewhere in the league. If it happens to be in Washington, you’d surely hear no complaints from them.

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Redskins won’t have Ryan Kerrigan, Paul Richardson vs. Panthers

This is news because until now Kerrigan has never missed a game in his career.

The Panthers have had as much bad luck with injuries as any NFL team this year. Now that rookie running back Jordan Scarlett has been placed on injured reserve, 12 players have been on that list this season.

At this time of year every team is banged up though. That includes today’s opponent, who will be missing two key players.

According to a report by Adam Schefter at ESPN, the Redskins won’t have outside linebacker Ryan Kerrigan or wide receiver Paul Richardson available for Sunday’s matchup.

This is news because until now Kerrigan has never missed a game in his career. He suffered a concussion in last week’s win over the Lions.

It’s a significant loss as Kerrigan is Washington’s best edge rusher and one of the most underrated in the league. He has 4.5 sacks this season, bringing his career total to 89. The guy who will benefit most from Kerrigan’s absence is right tackle Taylor Moton, who has become Carolina’s most consistent offensive lineman.

As for Richardson (who is dealing with a hamstring injury), his speed makes him the Redskins’ best deep threat receiver – not that Dwayne Haskins is really capable of taking advantage of that as of yet.

Donte Jackson would have been tasked with slowing him down. With James Bradberry taking on Terry McLaurin, Jackson will matchup with the likes of rookie Kelvin Harmon, who played college ball at NC State. Harmon can’t compete with Jackson for pure game speed, but his size (6-foot-2, 215 pounds) could present a challenge.

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The Paul Richardson gamble takes another misstep

Paul Richardson is set to miss another game.

The Washington Redskins will miss wideout Paul Richardson again over the weekend as the veteran will sit out with a hamstring injury.

It resembles the latest stumble for Richardson’s tenure with the team since coming over at the start of 2018 in free agency. Coming out of this weekend he’ll have missed two games this year after missing nine games in his debut season with the team.

This after Richardson missed more than one game just once over four years in Seattle. There, his lone best season produced 700-plus yards and six scores.

In Washington on a $40 million deal, Richardson has yet to surpass the 300-yard mark on a season or score more than twice, This year, he’s gone over the 50-yard mark once.

Admittedly, Richardson had to leap the hurdle of getting acclimated to a new team and the quarterback situation has been anything but stable. But the longer this concerning trend continues, the more the signing looks like a bust.

Just a few games remain to change the narrative here before the Redskins approach another offseason sure to feature plenty of change.

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Redskins promote Cam Sims from practice squad, hoping he can fill in for Paul Richardson

Sims will have his best opportunity yet to make a mark in the Washington offense with Paul Richardson out for Sunday’s game.

If you were keeping track of how many times an injury has forced the Washington Redskins to make a last-minute roster adjustment in order to be fully prepared for a Sunday game, you might have lost count by now.

The Redskins made another minor roster move on Saturday morning, but it has a chance to play big dividends going forward. Wide receiver Cam Sims was signed off of the practice squad once again and released linebacker Tanner Vallejo, who was one of their better special teams players.

The move was made in order to bolster the WR depth, as starter Paul Richardson will miss Sunday’s game against the New York Jets. Earlier this week, coach Bill Callahan spoke on his desire to get all of the receivers more active in the Redskins’ offense, and he specifically mentioned Sims as a major piece in that.

Since the start of the 2018 season, Simas has made a few trips between the 53-man roster and the practice squad, but with Richardson out this time, he might have his best shot yet at making an impression and sticking on the team.

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Kelvin Harmon could see big playing time with Paul Richardson out

The Redskins WR could be in line for a big role.

It might be Kelvin Harmon time for the Washington Redskins.

Dwayne Haskins will get the start under center for the Redskins against the New York Jets but he might end up going without deep threat Paul Richardson.

That could mean big things for Harmon, a sixth-round pick who has only caught eight passes this year. He’s been a point of anticipation for Redskins fans since getting selected 206th, largely because he put up more than 2,600 yards and 16 touchdowns at NC State with an ability to consistently move the chains.

With Richardson out, Harmon might get the nod for a big snap count, as ESPN’s John Keim noted:

It couldn’t hurt for Haskins to develop a good rapport with a reliable underneath target like Harmon. The Redskins already struck gold with Terry McLaurin, but it would be nice to see someone else emerge for the rookie passer.

With the Jets likely sending pressure early and often, Harmon could end up having a big day.

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