Obviously, some incremental changes are being made in Washington right now. The Redskins made the decision to fire team president Bruce Allen after 10 years of work on Monday morning, and they’re expected to sign former Carolina Panthers head coach Ron Rivera by the day’s end.
While this information is pertinent to answer some questions about what might happen in the franchise’s immediate future, it also poses a couple personnel questions down the road — mainly, what is going to happen with LT Trent Williams and CB Josh Norman?
Let’s start with Williams first. As a seven-time Pro-Bowler, Williams entered 2019 as the un-rivaled star of the Redskins, and his presence on the offensive line was easily the best thing that the team had going for them. Unfortunately, a rift between himself, the team’s medical staff, and Allen had grown to dangerous levels, and it led to Williams holding out from the team for the entire season, where he was eventually placed on the NFI list.
A lot of the tension surrounding Williams had something to do with Allen, who he reportedly did not get along with. It was reported that Allen placed Williams on the NFI, not guaranteeing his 2019 salary, out of spite due to Williams meeting with the media earlier that week and airing his grievances about the team. Now that Allen is gone, where does that leave Williams?
Technically, Trent is still a member of the Redskins, and he is under contract for one more season. The 31-year-old left tackle has been aiming to get a new contract signed before he plays again so that he has some finances secured in case of injury, or the team could choose to trade him. He has a strong relationship with team owner Dan Snyder, who could offer Williams a nice new contract if that’s what it would take to get him to return. There is nothing official yet, but the Redskins may have a path to getting Williams back now that Allen is gone.
As for Josh Norman, it is the hiring of his former coach, Ron Rivera, that is interesting. Norman played under Rivera for several years in Carolina with the Panthers, and he has a solid relationship with both him and defensive coordinator Steve Wilkes, who is rumored to be coming to Washington as well.
Norman has had a tough 2019 season, and he’s seen his time on the field dwindled down to none in order to get young players some experience. It has long been assumed that Norman, who has a $12.5 million cap hit in 2020, will be playing for a new team next season. However, a new coaching staff could change things. That’s not to say that Norman is suddenly going to rewind the clock and turn into the lock-down corner of old, but his veteran presence could be beneficial to the Washington locker room.
Things are changing at the top of the Redskins’ organization, and it is likely to have ripple effects long down the line. We can’t wait to see how this all plays out.
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