Junior Galette Injury: Updates on Redskins LB's Recovery from Achilles Surgery

Washington Redskins edge-rusher Junior Galette is recovering from a torn Achilles suffered last August, and it is unknown whether he has played his last down for the franchise as he prepares to enter free agency.

Continue for updates.

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Gruden Comments on Galette's Recovery

Thursday, Feb. 24

“[Galette’s] rehab is coming along great,” head coach Jay Gruden said, per Tarik El-Bashir of CSN Mid Atlantic. “I see him in [the training room] every morning. He’s excited to get back on the field.”

Gruden continued:

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I feel good about getting Junior back. I really do. We didn’t have him very long on the field, unfortunately. But he showed enough on the field that he can be a force for us when he’s right. He’s doing everything he can to get his body right, and now it’s a matter of getting him signed to our football team. I feel good about our chances in doing that, but you never know.

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Galette Moving Well in Recovery

Wednesday, Feb. 24

Galette posted a video to Twitter showing his progress as he recovers from his injury:

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Gallette's Contract Demands Could End Redskins Tenure

Galette, 27, last played in the NFL in 2014, registering 45 tackles, 10 sacks and three forced fumbles for the New Orleans Saints. He spent five seasons with the Saints after he was signed by the team as an undrafted free agent, accumulating 128 tackles, 31.5 sacks and five forced fumbles.

He registered 22 sacks between the 2013 and 2014 seasons and looked like one of the up-and-coming edge-rushers in the league.

But the Saints released him after the 2014 season because of off-field concerns and chemistry issues with his teammates, according to the Associated Press (h/t ESPN), just one season after he signed a four-year, $41.5 million contract with the team. Washington then promptly signed him to a one-year, $745,000 contract.

Galette, who is an unrestricted free agent, has expressed interest in returning to Washington, even getting a tattoo of the team's logo, per Brian McNally of 106.7 The Fan:

Washington general manager Scot McCloughan has also expressed a desire to bring him back, per Mike Jones of the Washington Post. But Galette's contract demands could make that tricky, as Jones detailed:

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People familiar with [Galette's] thinking believe that he would prefer to sign a one-year deal so he could prove himself and set himself up for a big pay day in 2017. Galette wants to be paid like a talented pass-rusher this offseason as well, which could mean a contract in the $7 million-to-$9 million range.

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With quarterback Kirk Cousins set to become a free agent and a potential franchise-tag candidate, however, the team doesn't have the cap space to pay Galette that type of money. That means if Galette and Washington are to reunite, it will likely be on a one-year, prove-it deal somewhere between the league minimum $760,000 and $7 million per year.

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