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  3. article_body => "<p>The Washington Football Team finalized an important component of its quarterback room&nbsp;when it re-signed Taylor Heinicke on Wednesday to a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nbcsports.com\/washington\/football-team\/washington-football-team-agrees-two-year-extension-qb-taylor-heinicke\">two-year deal<\/a> reportedly worth $8.75 million.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<p>Heinicke, 27, impressed Washington enough with his two-touchdown performance against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the Wild Card round to earn a new contract after being out of football for a year and a half. While unlikely he will be handed the starting job, the former undrafted QB out of ODU finally has some job security for the first time in his NFL career.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<p>Now, Washington must decide how it will&nbsp;fill&nbsp;the rest of the quarterback depth chart. The team has Comeback Player of the Year Alex Smith under contract for two more seasons, but the leg injury that cost Smith two years of his career hampered his mobility and overall effectiveness in 2020. Kyle Allen, who started four games for Washington before an ankle injury ended his season, is a free agent.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<p>Speaking with <a href=\"https:\/\/www.radio.com\/podcasts\/the-sports-junkies-811\">106.7 The Fan\u2019s Sports Junkies<\/a> on Thursday morning, Heinicke was asked how he felt about the possibility of playing with Smith and Allen again in 2021.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<p>\u201cI don\u2019t really try and look too far into it,\u201d Heinicke said. \u201cI\u2019m one of those that kind of just, you know, control what you can control and everything else will happen. But I\u2019d love that. I love Kyle, I have a good relationship with him and, again, same with Alex. I think he\u2019s a great tool for the team, a great asset to the team and obviously he came in [for] five, six games and he can still play. So I think a lot of people would be comfortable with that.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n<p>Washington has reportedly been engaged with the quarterback market, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nbcsports.com\/washington\/football-team\/report-washingtons-offer-matthew-stafford-was-better-rams\">making an offer<\/a> for Matt Stafford before the Detroit Lions traded him to the Los Angeles Rams. This offseason has the potential to see some serious quarterback movement around the league, as names such as Deshaun Watson, Jimmy Garoppolo, Matt Ryan, Derek Carr, Marcus Mariota, Sam Darnold and Carson Wentz have all been mentioned in the rumor mill.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/art19.com\/shows\/washington-football\"><strong>Download and subscribe to the Washington Football Talk podcast<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\r\n\r\n<p><iframe height=\"230px\" src=\"https:\/\/art19.com\/shows\/washington-football\/episodes\/c4799386-2953-41a8-be35-2cde029a5330\/embed\" width=\"100%\"><\/iframe><\/p>\r\n\r\n<p>Yet head coach Ron Rivera <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nbcsports.com\/washington\/football-team\/its-great-taylor-heinicke-back-work-isnt-over-washington\">didn\u2019t rule out<\/a> the possibility of bringing Allen back earlier this month and there\u2019s been no public indication from the team so far that Smith either retire or be released. If Washington does decide to run it back with&nbsp;Smith, Heinicke and Allen next season, the one player who\u2019s been assured a spot on the roster would be all in.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<p><em>For more interviews, tune into the Sports Junkies on NBC Sports Washington weekdays from 6-10 a.m.<\/em><\/p>\r\n"
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Commanders

/ by Matt Weyrich
Commanders

The Washington Football Team finalized an important component of its quarterback room when it re-signed Taylor Heinicke on Wednesday to a two-year deal reportedly worth $8.75 million.

Heinicke, 27, impressed Washington enough with his two-touchdown performance against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the Wild Card round to earn a new contract after being out of football for a year and a half. While unlikely he will be handed the starting job, the former undrafted QB out of ODU finally has some job security for the first time in his NFL career.

Now, Washington must decide how it will fill the rest of the quarterback depth chart. The team has Comeback Player of the Year Alex Smith under contract for two more seasons, but the leg injury that cost Smith two years of his career hampered his mobility and overall effectiveness in 2020. Kyle Allen, who started four games for Washington before an ankle injury ended his season, is a free agent.

Speaking with 106.7 The Fan’s Sports Junkies on Thursday morning, Heinicke was asked how he felt about the possibility of playing with Smith and Allen again in 2021.

“I don’t really try and look too far into it,” Heinicke said. “I’m one of those that kind of just, you know, control what you can control and everything else will happen. But I’d love that. I love Kyle, I have a good relationship with him and, again, same with Alex. I think he’s a great tool for the team, a great asset to the team and obviously he came in [for] five, six games and he can still play. So I think a lot of people would be comfortable with that.”

 

Washington has reportedly been engaged with the quarterback market, making an offer for Matt Stafford before the Detroit Lions traded him to the Los Angeles Rams. This offseason has the potential to see some serious quarterback movement around the league, as names such as Deshaun Watson, Jimmy Garoppolo, Matt Ryan, Derek Carr, Marcus Mariota, Sam Darnold and Carson Wentz have all been mentioned in the rumor mill.

Download and subscribe to the Washington Football Talk podcast

Yet head coach Ron Rivera didn’t rule out the possibility of bringing Allen back earlier this month and there’s been no public indication from the team so far that Smith either retire or be released. If Washington does decide to run it back with Smith, Heinicke and Allen next season, the one player who’s been assured a spot on the roster would be all in.

For more interviews, tune into the Sports Junkies on NBC Sports Washington weekdays from 6-10 a.m.