The Redskins have placed linebacker Will Compton on injured reserve, the club announced. Washington has since replaced Compton on its 53-man roster by signing fellow linebacker Zach Vigil.
Compton is now the second Redskins inside ‘backer to land on IR in the past month (joining Mason Foster), meaning Zach Brown will once again need another partner on the second level of Washington’s defense. In addition to Brown and Vigil, the Redskins have two other inside linebackers on their roster: seventh-round rookie Josh Harvey-Clemons and third-year pro Martrell Spaight, the latter of whom appears poised to take over starting duties. Spaight, 24, has played 159 defensive snaps this season while Harvey-Clemons has only seen time on special teams.
The 28-year-old Compton wasn’t a star, but he had compiled 32 starts with the Redskins since 2014, so he clearly was familiar with the club’s defensive system. In 2017, Compton had started three contests and played on roughly a quarter of Washington’s defensive snaps, managing 17 tackles, one interception, and three passes defensed in the process. However, Pro Football Focus had assigned Compton below-average marks against both the run and pass.
Compton, a Nebraska product, signed a one-year restricted free agent tender this spring, meaning he’s earning $1.797MM for the 2017 campaign. He’ll become a free agent in 2018, meaning he’ll hit the open market coming off an injury-affected season.
Zac Brown had replaced Compton at the beginning of this season, so Compton really was not a starter for several games and only became a factor when Foster got hurt, but truth be told Compton was rated very poor last year