4 Veterans the Washington Redskins Could Part with Before 2014 Season

Whether by way of financial planning, observed poor performance, age, injury or a combination of it all, the Washington Redskins may find themselves getting rid of a few veteran players before the start of 2014. 

With free agency still in swing and the Redskins looking to move the heavy pieces in what's sure to be a timely rebuild, here's a look at a few names that we may not see return in burgundy and gold next season.

All cap numbers courtesy of Spotrac. 

Stephen Bowen

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Seeing as how he'll turn 30 later this month and count more than $7 million against the cap next season, according to Spotrac, defensive end Stephen Bowen makes the list. 

Bowen's age in combination with his recovery from microfracture surgery don't add up to the simplest of equations. Although the Redskins need help along the defensive front, $7 million is a lot for an aging veteran with declining production, coming off major knee surgery. 

However, the blip in Bowen's case is that nearly 72 percent ($5.04 million) of his cap hit is dead money. That means the Redskins wouldn't necessarily be saving $7 million, but instead somewhere in the neighborhood of $2 million. 

The Redskins front office must decide whether it serves them best to keep Bowen on board and see what he can contribute next season. If not, they must cut their losses by releasing the defensive end to save themselves $2 million.

Will Montgomery

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In an effort to improve the interior of the offensive line, Redskins center Will Montgomery could find himself on the chopping block given last year's performance. 

Additionally, Montgomery is set to count just over $3.4 million against the cap in 2014, with about $1.5 million in dead money. 

If the coaches like the idea of moving left guard Kory Lichtensteiger to his more natural center position, that would also make Montgomery more expendable.

Meanwhile, although there doesn't appear to be any reported interest, top free-agent centers Brian De La Puente and Evan Dietrich-Smith are still on the market. 

Chris Chester

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Arguably the largest possible cap casualty victim at Redskins Park is right guard Chris Chester.

Coming off a poor 2013 season, having just turned 31 in January and set to count $4.3 million against the cap next season, Chester had the chance of being let go whether the Redskins landed a guard in free agency or not.

As it is, the Redskins signed former Browns guard Shawn Lauvao to a four-year deal earlier this week.

Simply put, Chester's retaining cost far outweighs his value. 

Tyler Polumbus

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It appears that Tyler Polumbus would be safe in Washington despite a couple of years of bad play at right tackle. Even if the Redskins wanted to upgrade the position, Polumbus would serve as a decent backup. 

However, set to count $2.6 million against the cap next season and with a couple of right tackle names still left in free agency, perhaps the Redskins will upgrade the position and decide Polumbus' cap hit is too large for a backup.