The Washington Commanders should just say no to several big-name quarterbacks soon to be available on the free-agent market. Forget Kirk Cousins, Russell Wilson and Baker Mayfield or trading for Justin Fields. Short-term fixes won’t lead to long-term results.
Instead, Washington needs to grow its own passer with the No. 2 overall draft selection. Hopefully, one of the big three – Caleb Williams, Drake Maye or Jayden Daniels – will be a hit and the Commanders guess right. It’s a boom-or-bust situation, but Washington needs to take the risk.
Yes, I’ve made a 180-degree turn on this. Mostly, because the rest of the roster isn’t ready to contend. Signing a veteran for a couple of years is putting lipstick on a pig. By the time the team is really ready to contend, the passer won’t. Once again, the team would be out of sync.
Over recent months, Washington has regrouped in the right way – new owner, who picked the general manager, who picked the coach. Now, finish it off with the coach picking the quarterback and growing together.
GM Adam Peters wants to rebuild through the draft with free agency as a gap filler. Other recent NFL Combine comments suggest Peters wants to draft a passer rather than trade down for more picks and keep Sam Howell as the starting passer. That means Howell serves as the veteran backup so no need to go free agent shopping.
Free agents are as big of a risk as the draft, even more so fiscally. Cousins is an empty calories passer with great stats, but poor marks in big games. Mayfield is a wandering minstrel who should stay in Tampa Bay after finding success last season. Wilson is a complete mystery. Maybe Denver was just a bad fit that will haunt the franchise for years. Wilson isn’t signing anywhere for a veteran minimum despite Denver owing him a mountain of money because doing so doesn’t really commit the new team to making Wilson its starter. Wilson will want a competitive offer, but who knows if he’s worth it?
Fields is enticing. He’s only 25 years old and improved over his first three NFL seasons. In the right situation, Fields could blossom. Supposedly, Chicago wants a second-rounder. That’s reasonable. However, Fields at best is a very good quarterback and Washington wants to gamble on getting a great passer.
The draft is always a risk. Chase Young was Washington’s No. 2 overall pick four years ago, but his lackadaisical effort forced Washington to trade him last fall. That Young played the same half-speed way with San Francisco proved Young was a poor overall pick. Robert Griffin III was the second overall selection in 2012, but his rookie-year injury effectively ended his career. Griffin would only win seven games in six more seasons with three teams.
Washington gets a free swing on this pick, though. A new coaching staff has time to develop him. A coach several years into a contract wouldn’t, but Dan Quinn has the luxury of time.
Washington started 35 quarterbacks over 32 seasons since its last Super Bowl. It desperately needs to grow one to regain the fan base as the team starts eying a new stadium. It absolutely needs a cornerstone to rebuild.
Its best chance – start over and pray.