JP Finlay and Rich Tandler talk through all the Redskins options with Kirk Cousins and touch on the Scot McCloughan/Bruce Allen dynamic.
<<<LOOKING AT REDSKINS DRAFT PROSPECTS>>>
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For two decades the Redskins bounced back and forth between neglect and negligence along their defensive line.
Prior to the 2017 NFL Draft, Washington hadn't selected a defensive lineman in the first round since the 1990s. The team just did not invest in the draft in the interior of their defensive line. During that time, there were some big-name free agent acquisitions up front, but those didn't work out either. In fact, the Albert Haynesworth contract might be the worst in the history of the sport.
The result, largely, was bad play along the defensive front and an inability to stop the run, and that largely coincided with losing football teams. There is a direct correlation.
In the last two seasons, however, the Redskins dramatically changed their approach.
In 2017, Washington selected defensive tackle Jonathan Allen out of Alabama in the first round. In 2018, Washington again took an Alabama defensive linemen in the first round in Daron Payne. The team also added fifth-rounder Tim Settle out of Virginia Tech.
This week news emerged from Ashburn that the 'Skins took care of another defensive linemen, 2016 fifth-rounder Matt Ioannidis, with a three-year contract extension with $14 million guaranteed.
Of all the moves to bolster the defensive line, the new deal for Ioannidis should make 'Skins fans the most excited.
When Allen slipped to middle of the first round in 2017, it was a no-brainer to pick him. When the Redskins added Payne last season, he was the highest player on their draft board at a position of need.
Those moves were good, but obvious.
Inking Ioannidis to a contract extension was anything but obvious, and that's why this move looks so good.
This is a late-round pick out of Temple, hardly a football factory like Alabama. Ioannidis was cut as a rookie after his first training camp, and the team signed him back to their practice squad. Eventually, he made the active roster in 2016 and played sparingly in parts of 10 games. He finished that year with seven tackles.
Then, something happened.
The Redskins developed a late-round pick, and while Ioannidis deserves a ton of credit for turning his body into 300 lbs. of bull-rushing muscle, the organization deserves credit too, particularly defensive line coach Jim Tomsula.
In his second NFL season, Ioannidis logged 4.5 sacks an 27 tackles in 14 games. Last year, he got 7.5 sacks and 31 tackles in 14 games. 2018 marked the real turning point for Ioannidis. Early on, he ws a beast, and his sack-per-snap numbers ranked among the best in the league.
Injuries have been an issue for the 25-year-old, but beyond that, Washington was wise to lock Ioannidis up now.
2019 would be the final season on his rookie deal, and if he performs similarly this year as he did last year, his potential free agent market would have been hot. If he improves this fall, Ioannidis would have commanded a significantly higher deal next offseason than the one he just signed to stay in Washington.
There's also the precedent that the Redskins front office can identify their valuable young talent and take care of those players. The last two offseasons, Washington has let a number of draft picks walk in free agency. Players like Jamison Crowder, Preston Smith, Ryan Grant, Trent Murphy and Spencer Long are just some of the names. Getting an extension done with Ioannidis reinforces for other players in the 'Skins locker room that the money will come if they work hard and play well.
Don't forget either that it was head coach Jay Gruden that pushed hard for the team to draft Matt Ioannidis back in 2016. While the head coach faces significant pressure this fall to find a playoff bid, this is a good example of the coach's personnel acumen.
There's also some long-term roster construction in play.
The Redskins have three more years of contractual control for 24-year-old Allen, and four more years for the 21-year-old Payne. Now, Ioannidis is under contract for four more seasons.
That's three high impact players on the defensive line, all under 25 years old, that will be in Burgundy and Gold through at least the 2021-22 season.
It wasn't long ago that the defensive line was by far the Redskins worst position group on the team. In 2016, they had the worst run defense in the league.
Credit to the team for fixing that, finally.
And credit to the team for recognizing young talent, and proactively getting a deal done before Ioannidis hits free agency.
Redskins fans often say they want their team to do what the good teams do. Here's the formula: find hidden talent late in the draft, develop that talent, sign them long-term.
With the Matt Ioannidis contract extension, that's exactly what Washington just did.
Even during this relatively quiet period of the NFL calendar, there's still plenty of controversy around the league.
Take Jacksonville for example, where Jaguars cornerback Jalen Ramsey has been firing back at executive vice president Tom Coughlin for saying he wants every player to attend the team's voluntary offseason workouts. Ramsey, as you may have already guessed, has elected to skip these workouts.
Seeing an opportunity, new Redskins safety Landon Collins invited Ramsey to Washington via Twitter, going into full Suge Knight "Come to Death Row" mode to make his pitch.
@jalenramsey if you don’t want to be on a team where your VP.... is all in the media, all in your mentions, talking about voluntary workouts and questioning your work ethic...then come to the Redskins (Suge Knight voice) #HTTR (24 + 23 + 45 + 20 = 🔒🔒🔒🔒)
— LANDON COLLINS (@TheHumble_21) April 19, 2019
Ramsey seemed quite amused by the prospect, but also didn't seem totally opposed to the idea of teaming up with Collins in D.C.
😂😂😭😭 love big brudda ✊🏾 https://t.co/4OmHlS1K6M
— Jalen Ramsey (@jalenramsey) April 19, 2019
While it's unlikely Washington trades for Ramsey, nothing's stopping you from firing up the NFL Roster Builder and putting the two-time Pro Bowler in burgundy and gold, Redskins fans!
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