Penalties Another Reason Why Washington Redskins Will Be Worst Team for a Decade

This is exactly how teams plan for their downfall not just a season, but for perhaps even a decade.

What the Washington Redskins have done in the last couple of weeks by mortgaging their entire future for Robert Griffin III has raised eyebrows all over the NFL. The latest saga regarding overspending and circumventing the salary cap is the final straw.

The Skins, along with the Dallas Cowboys, had millions of dollars in cap space taken away from them as punishment. Washington now has $36 million less to work with. Dallas, on the other hand, only lost $10 million.

Since the salary cap is set at $120 million, this means Washington can only spend up to around $84 million this season. However, they can split the lost cap space between either this season or next season to mitigate the damage.

That being said, with no first-round draft picks in the next two years, this can really harm a team who is going to rely on free agency to get other players.

And what if Robert Griffin III doesn't pan out the way they expected him to? Or what if he does become a great quarterback, but he gets hurt as a result of his "run-first" style?

Griffin may have an strong and accurate arm, but the Big 12 is nowhere near NFL-level. 

Who knows if he's going to be the Redskins' savior?

His job actually becomes increasingly difficult now because of the fact that the team has less cap space to work with. They're not going to be able to outbid other teams for free agents and they're going to have to spend wisely.

And wise spending decisions haven't been a theme in the Redskins offseason activities. Other than Santana Moss, it's fair to say that the team has overspent for talentless teams that have failed to make the playoffs.

Now with the restrictions, they can't compensate for the lack of free agents they'll be able to sign through the draft. They're not going to have any high-round draft picks to create a core around Griffin because they gave them all away to St. Louis. 

It may take years for the Redskins to recover from this especially because of the division they're in.

The Philadelphia Eagles have Michael Vick and a smart coach in Andy Reid. The Dallas Cowboys have a solid quarterback in Tony Romo and many talented players who are already under contract like Miles Austin and Dez Bryant. Finally, the New York Giants need no introduction as they're the Super Bowl champions.

Griffin's not the guy that's going to step into the league and immediately elevate a franchise past those three teams. He's going to need help, but because of the reckless and irresponsible Redskins front office, he's now left without any assistance. 

It's not just the NFC East, though. The NFC as a whole has become the best conference in the NFL. All the great quarterbacks play there from Aaron Rodgers, Drew Brees, Matt Ryan, Cam Newton, Alex Smith, Tony Romo, Eli Manning, Mike Vick, Matt Stafford, and maybe Peyton Manning. 

Because of the tough division they're in, no high-round draft picks in the next few years, and now the salary cap restrictions which make it unbelievably harder for the Redskins to build a strong team around Griffin, expect this team to be the doormat of the NFC for many years to come.

Follow Andre Khatchaturian on Twitter.