Redskins Hope To Fill Grant's Shoes
- The Redskins won’t necessarily miss wide receiver Terrelle Pryor after his disappointing 2017 season, but they will have to make up for the departure of Ryan Grant. Rich Tandler of NBC Sports Washington believes that newcomer Paul Richardson can easily top Pryor’s 240 receiving yards, but exceeding Grant’s 573 yards receiving may be a challenge. Ultimately, he expects one of the team’s backup wide receivers to step up while Josh Doctson improves across the board. All in all, he anticipates a wide receiver group that is somewhat more productive than last year, even as they catch passes from a new quarterback.
Poll: Which NFC East Team Had The Best Offseason?
Over the past couple weeks, we’ve asked you which teams from the AFC North, AFC East, AFC West, NFC West, and NFC North had the best offseasons. Today we’ll be looking at the offseason each team from the NFC East had, another division with a lot of moving parts.
The Redskins may have had the most tumultuous past couple months of any team in the division. Their years long drama with Kirk Cousins finally culminated in the team trading for Alex Smith and allowing Cousins to walk in free agency. Coach Jay Gruden has been adamant that there will be no downgrade from Cousins to Smith, and that the team is very high on Smith. Washington’s receiving corp will look quite different, with Terrelle Pryor and Ryan Grant gone, and Paul Richardson brought in from Seattle in their place. They added defensive tackle Da’Ron Payne with the 13th overall pick to help shore up their run defense and selected running back Derrius Guice in the second round. Guice was viewed by most as a first round talent who fell into the Redskins’ laps due to off-field concerns. They also signed cornerback Orlando Scandrick and linebacker Pernell McPhee in free agency, and will return several key players from injury, like defensive lineman Jonathan Allen. It was an offseason of change for the Redskins, and the team will have to hope Smith can carry over his play from last season when he was the best of his career.
The Giants’ 2017 season went off the rails fast. After a playoff appearance in 2016, the team started the year 0-4, which quickly led to infighting. Both head coach Ben McAdoo and GM Jerry Reese, replacing them with Pat Shurmur and Dave Gettleman respectively. The team ultimately passed on taking a successor to Eli Manning with the number two overall pick, instead taking running back Saquon Barkley and signing the veteran Jonathan Stewart to be his backup. The team made Nate Solder the highest paid tackle in football, signing him away from the Patriots to help bolster their offensive line, and area of weakness the past few seasons. They also drafted guard Will Hernandez 34th overall to help along the interior. While the team has announced they plan on riding Manning for the foreseeable future, they did take the intriguing small-school quarterback Kyle Lauletta in the draft. They traded Jason Pierre-Paul to the Buccaneers in March, leaving a hole at pass-rusher. Overall, the Giants 2018 season will depend on how much Manning can bounce back from his poor 2017. If Manning and Odell Beckham Jr. can both return to form, the Giants could sneak back into the playoffs.
The Cowboys didn’t add many major pieces this offseason. The biggest storyline surrounding the team was the release of Dez Bryant. The Cowboys were apparently fed up with Bryant’s antics and his on-field production no longer justified keeping him around. They signed Allen Hurns from the Jaguars to replace him and step in as their new number one receiver. Dak Prescott‘s receiving options will look a lot different next year as they also lost Jason Witten to retirement and Brice Butler in free agency. They drafted linebacker Leighton Vander Esch in the first round to strengthen the defense. Other than their pass-catchers, the 2018 Cowboys will look fairly similar to last year’s underachieving squad. They’ll have Ezekiel Elliott for the full season after he was suspended for part of last year, and will look to recapture the magic of their 13-3 2016 season.
The Eagles went into the offseason riding high off their Super Bowl victory. They lost several players, but moved quickly to replace them all. When defensive linemen Vinny Curry and Beau Allen left in free agency, they promptly traded for Michael Bennett and signed Haloti Ngata. They lost offensive coordinator Frank Reich who took the Colts’ head coaching job and quarterbacks coach John DeFilippo who left to become the Vikings’ offensive coordinator. LeGarrette Blount left to sign with the Lions, but the Eagles have a deep running back depth chart still. The team rewarded Super Bowl hero Nick Foles with some extra incentives in his contract, although he still could possibly be dealt at a future point. They re-signed linebacker Nigel Bradham and added Corey Nelson and Paul Worrilow in free agency to further strengthen the linebacking corp. The biggest storyline for the defending champions this summer will continue to be the progress of Carson Wentz as he rehabs from a torn ACL. If Wentz is healthy, with all the pieces added to the defense this spring, the Eagles should be able to compete for another Super Bowl in 2018.
Which NFC East Team Had The Best Offseason?
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New York Giants 34% (510)
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Philadelphia Eagles 30% (451)
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Washington Redskins 20% (298)
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Dallas Cowboys 16% (236)
Total votes: 1,495
Latest On DB Brandon Bryant
Mississippi State defensive back Brandon Bryant is making his case to NFL scouts in advance of the NFL’s supplemental draft. On Monday, 40 scouts from the Rams, Browns, Falcons, Jets, Giants, 49ers, Redskins, Colts, Steelers, Saints, Jaguars, Texans, Raiders, and Ravens watched Bryant audition, Chase Goodbread of NFL.com tweets. 
There may have been even more clubs on hand to watch Bryant work out, according to Tony Pauline of Draft Insider (on Twitter). Pauline hears there were “about 20 teams on hand” and he hears his 40-yard-dash times ranged from the high 4.3’s to the low 4.4’s. He also conducted five separate one-on-one meetings on Sunday.
Bryant established himself as one of the top safeties in the SEC in his time with the Bulldogs. Across three years, Bryant compiled 157 tackles and five interceptions in 37 games. This year, after Mississippi State hired Joe Moorhead as their new head coach, Bryant announced he was going pro.
This year’s supplemental draft will take place on July 11. Other entrants include former Western Michigan cornerback Sam Beal and Virginia Tech cornerback Adonis Alexander.
This Date In Transactions History: Redskins Sign Terry Crews
On this date in 1995, the Redskins signed linebacker Terry Crews. Yes, that Terry Crews. 
Crews, a 6’3″, 245-pound linebacker, was a standout at Western Michigan. The Los Angeles Rams took note and selected Crews with the No. 281 pick and he appeared in six games as a rookie in 1991. He later found his way to the Chargers, appearing in ten games for them in ’93. His next NFL opportunity came with the Redskins, who inked him in the summer of 1995.
Like his previous stints with the Rams and Chargers, Crews’ run with the Redskins was rather unremarkable. He recorded only one solo tackle and one assisted tackle in that ’95 season, though he did stick on the roster for the full season and dressed for all 16 games.
This would not be Crews’ last NFL contract. Later, he signed on with the rival Eagles, but quickly realized that football wasn’t for him.
“For two weeks, I stayed at the Holiday Inn across the street from Veterans Stadium. I just remember it was Christmas Day. It was the saddest thing ever, that Holiday Inn. I was eating old sausage and two little pancakes. It was so sad,” Crews said (via Philly.com). “I was missing my family. We lost the game to the 49ers – it was a playoff game. I just thought, I don’t want to do this anymore. The excitement wasn’t there.”
Crews didn’t find excitement or millions in the NFL, but he found a different path to fulfillment and riches. The 2002 comedy “Friday After Next” launched Crews into a lucrative acting career that included roles in several hit movies, including football comedy “The Longest Yard.” We won’t list his full IMDb here, but you get the point – Crews hit it big, just not on the gridiron.
Crews’ time with the Redskins wasn’t notable move from a football perspective, nor was his short-lived trip through Philadelphia. But Crews’ struggles throughout his NFL career made him appreciate the success that he discovered later in life.
“I was the name at the end of the roster,” said Crews, reflecting on his former life as a professional football player. “It wasn’t until after I became famous that people noticed I played in the NFL. I kind of snuck in!“
This Date In Transactions History: Bengals Cut Terrelle Pryor
On this date in 2015, the Bengals released quarterback Terrelle Pryor. After four unremarkable years in the NFL, the move didn’t mean much at the time. However, the release changed the trajectory of the former Ohio State star’s career. 
The late Al Davis brought Pryor into the league after selecting him in the third round of the 2011 supplemental draft. Pryor didn’t play much in his first two seasons and struggled on the whole in 2013, although there were some impressive moments. Pryor was traded to the Seahawks in 2014, but was cut prior to Week 1 and wound up sitting out of football altogether that year. In January of 2015, the Chiefs signed Pryor, but released him in May. The Bengals scooped him up, but cut him from the roster five weeks later on June 18, 2015.
Clearly, Pryor’s athleticism could not carry him at the quarterback position in the NFL, but he was reluctant to give up on his lifelong dream. Prior to signing with the Bengals, Pryor declared, “If I can’t play quarterback, I can’t play football.” But, after his release from the Bengals, agent Drew Rosenhaus informed teams that Pryor was willing to line up as a wide receiver.
Ohio’s other team – the Browns – moved quickly to claim Pryor off of waivers. Pryor mostly sat on the bench in 2015 as Josh McCown‘s backup, but the Browns shifted him to wide receiver prior to the 2016 offseason. The Browns were optimistic about what the 6’4″, 228-pound athlete could do at his new position, but few expected him to finish the season with 77 catches for 1,007 yards and four touchdowns.
Pryor parlayed his huge season into a one-year, $6MM free agent deal with the Redskins, but he was held back by an ankle injury and did little in D.C. This offseason, the Jets decided to take a moderate gamble on Pryor by signing him to a one-year, $4.5MM contract with $2MM guaranteed.
Pryor is still battling an ankle injury and it’s anyone’s guess as to whether he’ll be able to replicate his ’16 production with Gang Green. But, Pryor has earned far more in the NFL than anyone expected he would back in 2015, which is something to be proud of regardless of how things shake out from here.
Williams Also Had 'Slight' Microfractrue Surgery
Trent Williams is on schedule to participate in Redskins training camp, as expected after a surgery that was slated to erase his offseason. While the official name for the operation the ninth-year left tackle underwent is a tibial tubercle osteotomy, Peter Hailey of NBC Sports Washington notes doctors performed a “slight” microfracture surgery as well. The TTO procedure repaired Williams’ damaged kneecap. However, microfracture surgery is among the most difficult to surmount for athletes and could be worth monitoring as the soon-to-be 30-year-old blocker returns to full-contact work. Nevertheless, Williams has been working toward a camp re-emergence and fully expects to be ready by the time Washington’s roster reconvenes late next month.
Redskins Wrap Up Draft Class
The Redskins now have their entire 2018 draft class is under contract. On Thursday, the team announced the signing of third-round tackle third-round tackle Geron Christian, bringing their last straggler into the fold.
The Louisville product was selected with the No. 74 overall pick. Per the terms of his slot, he’ll earn roughly $3.4MM over the course of his four-year rookie deal.
Christian made a name for himself as one of Lamar Jackson’s most trusted protectors in college. At the pro level, he’ll be utilized as a tackle on both sides.
“We will keep him at the swing tackle,” said Redskins head coach Jay Gruden in April. “You know, what we went through at tackle last year was catastrophic with all the injuries and still a lot of these guys are recovering from their injuries. Trent is recovering still, Morgan [Moses] is still recovering, Ty [Nsekhe] is still recovering, we have T.J. [Clemmings] still recovering. So we need depth at tackle….He’s one of the best pass blocking tackles in this draft in my opinion.”
Here’s the complete rundown of the Redskins’ 2018 draft class:
- 1-13: Da’Ron Payne, DT (Alabama)
- 2-59: Derrius Guice, RB (LSU)
- 3-74: Geron Christian, OL (Louisville)
- 4-109: Troy Apke, S (Penn State)
- 5-163: Tim Settle, DT (Virginia Tech)
- 6-197: Shaun Dion Hamilton, LB (Alabama)
- 7-241: Greg Stroman, CB (Virginia Tech)
- 7-256: Trey Quinn, WR (SMU)
Redskins Coaches "Love" Derrius Guice, "Murky Rumors" Why He Slipped
- The Redskins coaching staff “loves what they’ve seen” from Derrius Guice this offseason, according to Albert Breer of SI.com. Breer says “murky rumors” are the only reason Guice fell to the Redskins in the second round of this year’s draft, and that the Redskins think they got a great value. The Redskins have a crowded running back room, but Breer thinks Guice “should be a factor” in his rookie season.
Redskins Notes: Quick, Quinn, Harris
- The Redskins‘ wide receiver is very fluid behind starters Josh Doctson, Jamison Crowder, and Paul Richardson, as Rich Tandler of NBC Sports Washington writes. Maurice Harris, rookie Trey Quinn, Robert Davis, or Brian Quick could end up as the team’s No. 4 receiver and none of them are assured a place on the final 53-man roster. The Redskins are expected to keep six wide receivers in total, so at least one of those players will miss the cut on Sept. 1.
- There’s a chance the Redskins will employ a fullback this season, coach Jay Gruden says (Twitter link via John Keim of ESPN.com). So far in practice, Elijah Wellman has been operating as the team’s top FB. Niles Paul previously saw reps at fullback, but he is now with the Jaguars.
Minor NFL Transactions: 5/30/18
Today’s minor moves:
Dallas Cowboys
- Signed: DT Antwaun Woods, WR Mekale McKay
- Waived: G Jay Robertson, DT DeQuinton Osborne
Green Bay Packers
- Waived: T/G Jacob Alsadek
Jacksonville Jaguars
- Signed: TE Scott Orndoff
- Waived/injured: TE Zach Conque
Seattle Seahawks
- Waived: FB Marcus Martin
Washington Redskins
- Signed: TE Garrett Hudson
- Waived: WR De’Mornay Pierson-El