What Will the Washington Redskins Look Like in 3 Years?
What will the Washington Redskins look like in three years? It's a telling and timely question, because the sentiment behind it sums up the state of the franchise in 2017.
Specifically, the Redskins should be looking to the future after slipping to 4-5 following a 38-30 loss to the Minnesota Vikings at FedExField in Week 10. A defense significantly restocked this offseason somehow let a Vikings offense without quarterback Sam Bradford and running back Dalvin Cook put up five touchdowns.
Even so, the defense Washington invested heavily in to change this offseason will have come good three years from now, and the Burgundy and Gold will be a franchise defined by the unit's excellence.
Things will be different on offense, even though Kirk Cousins will still be the face of the franchise at quarterback. Cousins will still be in town, unlike head coach Jay Gruden and his staff.
A third year in four without the playoffs now looks increasingly likely for Gruden after Sunday's setback. He's going to pay the price for those failures sooner rather than later.
Gruden's tenure won't deliver the championship fans crave, but it will cause a necessary change in how the Redskins identify their next head coach.
Find out how much the Redskins will have changed three years from now.
Kirk Cousins Will Still Be Under Center
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Keeping Cousins in the fold is the obvious move for Washington, despite the team's struggles in 2017. Cousins has his faults, but improving the supporting cast around him is the cheaper and smarter move than starting again under center.
Near the top of the list of Cousins' problems this season is an injury-hit offensive line that pass-rushers are walking through before planting No. 8 in the turf. Cousins has already taken 23 sacks in 2017, the same number he took in the whole of last season.
On those rare occasions he has been able to stay upright long enough to actually throw a pass, Cousins hasn't found many true playmakers to aim for. There's no Pierre Garcon or DeSean Jackson in the fold.
Instead, the Redskins have asked Cousins to connect with Terrelle Pryor Sr., who has flopped since arriving from the Cleveland Browns as a free agent. Josh Doctson remains frustratingly inconsistent, despite his status as a first-round pick in 2016.
Jamison Crowder and Jordan Reed have battle injuries, leaving Cousins to lean on third-down back Chris Thompson and 33-year-old tight end Vernon Davis.
A quarterback with so few options could use a running game to take the pressure off. Yet these Redskins remain apparently determined to ignore one side of their offense.
For all the things going against Cousins, he remains a quarterback good enough for Washington to build around. He's still thrown 14 touchdowns compared with five interceptions this season.
The modern NFL landscape isn't exactly overflowing with competent quarterbacks. The Redskins have one, so they will will have no need to delve into a murky free-agent market or chance their future in the draft anytime in the next three years.
Instead, Cousins will get the long-term deal he deserves ahead of 2018 and still be leading Washington's offense in three seasons' time.
Washington's Offensive Line Will Be the Best in the NFL
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At the moment, the Redskins can't get all of their offensive linemen on the field. However, when the group is healthy, Washington boasts an O-line set to become the NFL's best in the next few years.
It's no flippant claim, not when the Burgundy and Gold boast at least three building blocks set to remain in place for the foreseeable future. Left tackle Trent Williams, right guard Brandon Scherff and Morgan Moses aren't just premier players at their respective positions, they are core players who are primed to dominate for a long time.
Williams is the elder statesman of the group at 29, but the fourth overall pick in the 2010 NFL draft still has years left as one of the standout linemen of his generation.
Scherff is younger still at 25, but he has wasted no time rapidly developing into one of the league's most formidable guards. Such development was expected from the fifth overall pick in 2015, but Moses' progress has been a little more under the radar.
Nevertheless, the 26-year-old is now a peerless right tackle, one the Redskins felt compelled to make the second-highest paid at his position in pro football this offseason.
Moses' immediate future with the Redskins is secure, as is Scherff's and Williams', with the latter tied to the team until at least 2021, according to Spotrac.com.
A trio of players this talented up front means the Redskins can rely on their offensive line getting better and better during the next three years. Sure, the team needs upgrades for center Spencer Long and left guard Shawn Lauvao, but considering Williams, Moses and Scherff were all drafted in the last seven years, there's ample reason to believe the Redskins will find more gems up front between now and 2020.
Redskins Will Be a Defense-Led Team
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Just as they've done along the offensive line, the Redskins have steadily stockpiled some exciting young talent on defense. The pace of recruitment on this side of the ball has been sporadic, but there is still enough evidence to believe Washington will be a defense-led team in three years' time.
Admittedly, it does feel odd to be heralding an era of defensive dominance on the heels of seeing Case Keenum burn Washington for a quartet of touchdown passes in Week 10.
Keenum's best Joe Montana impression aside, the Redskins have taken some strides on defense in 2017— baby steps maybe, but it's progress that bodes well for the future.
The progress is only possible thanks to a stronger commitment to getting better defensively, which was proved by Washington using four of their first five draft picks on defensive players this year.
While not all of these players are thriving, there is room for improvement. Top draft pick Jonathan Allen was lost for the season due to injury, but not before he was showing the potential to be a bluechip talent up front for the next decade.
Second-rounder outside linebacker Ryan Anderson has been made to wait while others have thrived on the edges. Yet Anderson need only look at a player such as Preston Smith, who is having a stellar year in his third season after a disappointing second campaign, for hope.
Similar lessons are available for rookie defensive backs Fabian Moreau and Montae Nicholson. They can look at Kendall Fuller, who disappointed as a third-round pick in 2016 but is now a key member of Washington's coverage teams.
Defensive tackle Matt Ioannidis was making similar progress alongside Allen before injury struck. Ioannidis spent parts of last season on the practice squad before emerging as a useful interior pass-rusher in 2017, logging 3.5 sacks through seven games.
The point is the Redskins have a core of good young defensive players who have yet to reach their respective ceilings. Their continued progress during the next few years will ensure this team becomes one set to win or lose on the strength of a sound and solid defense.
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Jonathan Allen Will Be a Pro Bowler
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Lisfranc surgery has cost the Redskins the chance to see how far Allen could have gone as a rookie. Even so, No. 95 still offered enough glimpses of his talent to believe he will be a Pro Bowl player in three years' time.
Allen's numbers weren't gaudy, with 10 combined tackles and just one sack. Yet his raw, dynamic athleticism, evidenced by move skills and versatility, hinted at the exciting future lying ahead for the Redskins' defense with Allen at the heart of it.
Allen lends a level of flexibility to Washington's schemes that is usually only reserved for the elite players at their positions. Allen's ability to operate at end, 3-technique, 0-tech and even be stood up at a variety of spots can and must become the defining feature of the Redskins' defense in the next few years.
Gruden and his staff were working on making Allen the focal point before injury struck. At the time of his injury, Allen's importance was summed up well by his head coach, per Matthew Paras of the Washington Times:
"He has got great fundamentals. He’s got a great idea of run/pass, how to get off blocks. He has got strong hands and he was getting a pretty consistent pass rush push. He doesn’t have a lot of sacks obviously, but he was getting push in the pocket, which was critical for the interior guys so the edge guys can get home."
Those are the core traits of a D-lineman capable of dominating in the trenches as he continues to learn the nuances of the pro game. As long as Allen stays healthy, he'll be a Pro Bowl-worthy talent for years in a Redskins uniform.
Jay Gruden and His Staff Will Be Gone
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Gruden must surely be on borrowed time as Washington's head coach after the way his team folded against the Vikings. It means the Redskins have now lost three games at home this season.
More to the point, the Burgundy and Gold look far removed from being a playoff team anytime soon. It's the opposite of what Washington is supposed to look like in 2017.
The Redskins spent the offseason retooling on defense and adding to a roster coming off consecutive winning seasons. Talent can't always overcome poor coaching, though, something the Redskins have discovered to their cost this season.
Game plans still aren't tailored closely enough to what the opposition can and can't do. Balance isn't being made a priority on offense, and the Burgundy and Gold just aren't playing smart, situational football.
As the man in the hot seat, Gruden has to bear the brunt of responsibility for what is going wrong. Sure, he hasn't been helped by the power struggle above him that ended with Scot McCloughan being jettisoned as general manager before the draft.
Seeing Jackson and Garcon walk in free agency weakened the strength of Gruden's passing attack. Yet he was given what he needed defensively, with money spent to sign Terrell McClain, Stacy McGee, Zach Brown and D.J. Swearinger, while draft picks were used to bring in Allen, Anderson and Co.
More than the personnel at his disposal, Gruden's decisions on gamedays are consistently letting this team down. He has been dealt a rough hand in terms of injuries, but the Redskins aren't the only team who can sing those blues.
Consider the Vikings leaving FedExField with a win despite being without their starters at quarterback and running back. The New England Patriots have practically halved the points they were surrendering per game despite a laundry list of walking wounded on defense.
New England beat the Broncos in Denver in Week 10, despite missing edge-rusher Cassius Marsh, defensive tackle Malcom Brown and cornerback Eric Rowe, per the team's official Twitter account.
Teams can survive injuries and still win, the way the Redskins did against the Seattle Seahawks in Week 9. Yet the deeper problems plaguing this team were obvious before Gruden's starters began dropping like flies.
Those problems were obvious last season and during the two years before. They speak to the growing need for better coaching in Washington.
The Next Coach Will Be Defensive-Minded
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One good thing to come from Gruden's seemingly inevitable departure will be a change of attitude when the Redskins come to identify his replacement. Specifically, the profile for Washington's next head coach will change, with a defensive-minded sideline general prominent on the team's radar.
The picture of Pats defensive coordinator Matt Patricia is no subliminal message, nor a direct endorsement of Bill Belichick's right-hand man as Gruden's replacement. Patricia is just the prominent name among the would-be head coaches within the defensive coordinator ranks.
He interviewed for jobs this past offseason, showing interest in taking over the Los Angeles Chargers and L.A. Rams, per NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport. Patricia's name is sure to be mentioned a few more times when teams are looking for new head coaches next offseason.
If the Redskins are one of those, and they should be, finding the right defensive mind to run the show must be their priority. The reasons are obvious.
First, entrusting head coaches with a background in designing offense hasn't yielded much success recently. Gruden has struggled, like Mike Shanahan before him and Jim Zorn before him.
Bringing back Joe Gibbs transcended background considering his history as one of the greatest, albeit overlooked, coaching geniuses the game has seen. Yet Gibbs' own coaching background was originally informed by offense.
So the last four head coaches appointed by Washington each had philosophical leanings towards offense. All the Redskins have to show for those hires is four playoff appearances and one postseason win since 2004.
It's time for this franchise to trust a coach more at home on the other side of the ball.
Another reason for Washington to go defensive with their head coach search is how the team is gradually, slowly but surely (honest), becoming tilted toward its D.
Strength is on defense, so it makes sense for the Redskins to appoint a coach whose expertise lies in the area. Of course, some will point to the relative lack of success experienced by defensive coordinators who have made the jump in recent seasons.
Vance Joseph is losing in Denver, Sean McDermott is starting to even out with the Buffalo Bills, while Todd Bowles cotinues to struggle with the New York Jets. Yet there are examples working the other way, such as Ron Rivera with the Carolina Panthers and Minnesota Vikings head coach Mike Zimmer.
If the Redskins find the right defensive mind, they will finally have a coach with the right skills to oversee a consistent winner.
Bruce Allen Will No Longer Be in Town
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Gruden won't be the only casualty of another failed era at Redskins Park. Three years from now team president Bruce Allen won't be involved, either.
To some, the thought will be a comforting one, even though Allen has never been quite as bad as many of his critics have maintained. Just like not every move McCloughan made was a stroke of genius, not all of Allen's decisions have harmed this franchise.
Good players were acquired on Allen's watch, players such as Moses, Bashaud Breeland and Trent Murphy. Yet Allen has still overseen his share of public relations and on-field mishaps during his time in Washington.
There was the now infamous "winning off the field" statement made after a 4-12 season in 2014. Allen also can't shirk his role in the Robert Griffin III fiasco, nor in the frankly baffling delay to give Cousins a new contract.
Not all of Allen's moves in free agency have paid off. Jackson was a success, but Jason Hatcher didn't make the grade, while Pryor, McClain and McGee haven't exactly wowed the league this year.
A shakeup of the front office has become a staple of owner Dan Snyder's tenure. He'll need to generate another one if the Redskins are going to be a regular contender three years from now.
A defensive-minded head coach presiding over a team stronger on that side of the ball, but still able to relay on a competent quarterback and backed up by a shrewd general manager, will make Washington a better, more competitive franchise down the line.
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