My Redskins Wish List

Now it's all about giving up the deep ball again. :(

I don't think so, the latest reports I have heard said he was a projected top 10 pick.

no problem.. we will definitely be choosing in the top 10
.. could be another 5-11 season... more likely 6-10, but this team is a bunch of zombies.. if they couldnt sustain 4 quarters against buffalo this week, there is not another team on our schedule we could beat as it now stands..

Calais is 6-8? I knew he was a beast but...I've only seen him play a few times, and I didn't realize he was so tall. That height would be great for swatting down passes.

I love the idea of moving Reche Caldwell up to #2. I think he can be great for us. I also think this will give Randle El a little more a rest (even though I personally love ARE). Randle El can be such a huge factor on punt returns but it doesen't help when after the return he has to go out and run a route.

I think we should keep Brunell and Collins because they give us veteran depth. Don't let them go until their contracts are up.

If you as me our d-line is looking fine depth-wise. I really think we could use a pass-rusher out of the draft, a game changing pass rusher.

Our LBers are fine.

We could use another corner from somewhere, I don't care from where though.

Since Matty has officially declared us out of the playoffs, I have lost all hope and am ready to look ahead to 2008 (no seriously, I still have a glimmer of hope. But that's just how I roll)

Anyhow, 2007 aside, let's assume for a minute that it actually matters who is on the roster, here is my wish list for each position in 2008

QB: Keep Campbell as the starter. He's on the verge of greatness. Say thank you to Brunell and Collins and send them on their way. Draft a QB later (6th, 7th round), and pick up some veteran free agent to be a #2. For a minimum salary

RB: It's fine, leave it alone

TE: It's fine, leave it alone

WR: Love Randle El, but I bump him back down to #3 receiver. I'm really liking what I'm seeing from Caldwell when he's out there and I think he should be at least the #2 WR on the team. If not for the public relations nightmare that it would be, I'd say put Moss on the market and see what you can get for him. But that would be a pr disaster so he stays. I like KM as the #4 for a veterans minimum. Might be time to say thanks and see ya to James Thrash

OL: Major changes needed here. Firt off, I have no problem with the opening day lineup we had this year (Samuels, Kendall, Rabach, Thomas, Jansen). But we need some young depth, besides Heyer. I use our 2nd and 3rd round picks on an OT and a G (Eric Young maybe?)

K: Bring in competition for Suisham. But I like him

P: Not happy with Frost lately, his line drive punts are killing us. I want a change there

LB: Rocky and Fletch were great this year, and Rocky at least seems to have a long, bright future with us. A little worried about Washington's injuries. I like the depth Blades gives us. But Khary Campbell is a special teamer at best, and Godfrey-while effective-isn't the long term answer here. We need OLB help. Of course Briggs is the popular choice, but I'd like to see us make a run at Karlos Dansby

DE: Two words: Justin Smith. 'Nuff said ;)

CB: Based on the available talent at the free agent and college level, I think we should draft a CB in the first round. Depending on where we draft, either Aqib Talib or Antoine Cason.

S: Laron Landry is a lock to start. Starting next to him I'm still kind of big on moving Springs there. This is all dependent on a.)if we keep him, which I hope we do, and b.)if Rogers is healthy to start the season. If Rogers isn't then I'm not keen on moving Springs out of a CB spot

So, to summarize:

Subtractions:
Brunell
Collins
Thrash
Frost
Daniels
(among others)

Major Additions:
Talib/Cason
Two Offensive Linemen from the draft
Justin Smith
Karlos Dansby
Late round QB

Well, those are the moves I'd lean toward making. How about you?

I think we need to keep James Thrash he is a proven leader on this team. We need his leadership in the locker room.

To be honest I would like us to make a run at Bernard Berrian at reciever or take Early Doucet in the 2nd round if available.

For the draft I would like Glenn Dorsey from LSU to be our DT and in free agency pickup Berrian, Briggs or Dansby, and if we have enough money DeAngelo Hall, or Asante Samuel.

Gee, I wonder if you're an LSU fan. Dorsey will be a top 3 pick, so we'd have to trade up to get him. Doucett is a great talent and at worst a 2nd rounder despite the injuries. Berrian will probably get a nice contract from someone, but in my opinion has only shown flashes. Briggs will draw a huge contract, and throw in either Hall or Samuel, and I have no idea where that money will come from. Dansby could maybe be had. IMO we need to sacrifice quality for quantity. We are aging and injured right now and don't have much quality depth at a lot of key positions. Deeper and younger.

Isn't it fun to play GM?

I agree that we're not going to the playoffs. In fact, the way we're playing, it looks like our draft pick is getting higher and higher. So, my decisions will be based on having at the highest the number 15 pick, and I'll try not to forget our cap situation and sign Randy Moss, Justin Smith, Asante Samuel, and all the other big $$$ FAs

QB: It's pretty clear to me that we should build around Campbell. I wish we had gotten rid of Brunell when he had some value and perhaps gotten a late round pick, but we didn't. It would cost $3.1 mil to cut him now, so I'd wait another year when it will only cost $1 mil, and hopefully, he'd retire before then. I want to save the cap hit for unloading BLoyd and possibly a blockbuster trade. Todd Collins' contract is up, so let him go. Draft a QB late in the draft. USC's John David Booty could drop a lot and be a steal late. 4th or 5th round?

RB: Last year, I didn't want to trade Ladell Betts, but given his performance this year, that's a regret. With as few carries he's had, he still manages to aggravate me by running right into his blockers or fumbling. Seeing as we just gave him an extension and no other team would take CP off our hands. We may as well just stay put. Our depth at RB is pretty good except at FB. We've felt it since Big Mike went down, so I'd draft Jacob Hester from LSU in the 5th or 6th round. He's a hoss. The Gators lost to the Tigers this year because they couldn't stop Hester from converting 1st downs or getting into the end zone. Lord knows we need a back like that.

TE: Cooley has continued to play at pro bowl level. Todd Yoder has been a nice acquisition. He's made a few big time catches and is tough to bring down. Hopefully, Tyler Ecker can improve, but I'd keep him since he's young. Kozlowski can hit the road again, and we can snag a nice blocking TE in FA, so Cooley can split out more. Chicago's John Gilmore would be a nice fit. He's 6-5 and solid in pass protection.

WR: Here's where I think we need to make moves and allow the front office to roll the dice on more time. This year's draft is pretty weak at WR, and I think we need to revamp the corp. First thing's first, Brandon Lloyd's out the door, and I think Daniel Snyder should literally throw him out a la Uncle Phil & Jazz from the Fresh Prince.

Now that that's done and we have to pay the excruciating $7.167 mil, we don't have a lot of wiggle room, but I think we could create some if we trade/restructure with Santana Moss. He's hurt too often, drops too many balls, isn't the big play receiver we had hoped for, and basically regressed to all the negatives the Jets had against him when they traded him. So who do we trade him to? The Cards. Rumor is Larry Fitzgerald wants out. Hopefully, they don't make the playoffs, and that remains the case. Maybe, I'm dreaming, but I think Arizona might take Santana and say a 3rd or 4th. Fitzgerald's worth it. He's young, a playmaker, and a taller target than any of our receivers besides Mix.

Speaking of, I keep Mix and try to make him a red zone target. ARE stays because he's stepped up his game and early in the year proved he can be a decent #2. Even if that's not the case, I think Reche Caldwell can be. I'd also like to find a way to keep James Thrash. Sadly, I think Keenan will retire. If not, I'd want to re-sign him.

OL: Depending on who is left when we pick in the first round, it might be smart to draft an OT. That wouldn't be my target, but I think you should always pick the best player on the board according to need. I'm think we'll probably be around the 10th pick, and that leaves some great players. Jake Long will be gone by the time we pick, but should some of my other 1st round targets that haven't been mentioned yet not be available, Ryan Clady should still be around, and I'd draft him. He's 6-6, athletic, stones pass rushers, and is an aggressive run blocker. Given where I think we'll be in the draft, there's only two other guys I have ahead of him. Michael Oher from Ole Miss could be a nice snag if he drops to the second. He can play tackle and guard. I think he'd be good insurance should Jansen go down again or continue to regress. I definitely think the OL should be addressed during the draft. I'd keep Pete Kendall, but I think he wants a bigger contract. So, if Seattle's Floyd Womack could be had for less, I'd sign him instead to hold us over until the draft picks come around. Between Todd Wade and Jason Fabini, I'd rather get rid of Wade. Stephon Heyer has been a better backup than him. I wouldn't be against sending Fabini packing either and testing the FA market or the draft. I do think we need to get younger at the OL.

K: I'm fine with Suisham, but we should bring someone in again during pre-season to push him.

P: Maybe, Frost will get out of this slump, but I'm tempted to go after Todd Sauerbrun in free agency, maybe even Jeff Feagles.

LB: I'm really glad we didn't trade away Rocky McIntosh and picked up London Fletcher in free agency. I think H.B. Blades will move into the ILB role as London ages, but nobody is being groomed to be strong side LB. I hope Marcus Washington can return 100%, but he's definitely getting up there in age and his body hasn't been holding up like it used to. It'd be nice to go after Danzby, but I spent all the Skins' money on his teammate: Larry Fitzgerald with my blockbuster trade.

I think there's a slew of good young guys that can be had in the middle rounds of the draft. Whichever pick we don't trade the 3rd or 4th, it'd be nice if FSU's Geno Hayes is still around. He fast and a sure tackler. Or Nebraska's Bo Ruud, who is the brother of Tampa Bay's Barrett Ruud and supposedly a better prospect. Louisville's Malik Jackson has been impressive this year and could still be around. Bryan Smith from McNeese state is also intriguing. He runs a 4.59 40 and recorded a school record 13.5 sacks. I'd like to give any of these guys a shot at replacing Marcus Washington.

So, Khary Campbell can go, and Randall Godfrey will probably retire.

DE: Andre Carter has continued to improve at his role in the defense. Chris Wilson has surprised and proven himself as a nice pass rush guy. Philip Daniels has played pretty well for us too. It'd be relatively cheap to let him go this year. Maybe, he'll restructure for less. I think Philip would be better in a supporting role at this point though. It'd be interesting to see how much Jax's Paul Spicer could be had for. He's a hard worker who plays with a mean streak. I know he gets after the QB. I'm not sure about his run support though. He's 32. I just think he'd be a good vet to have in the mix. DE should be addressed in the draft. I'd like Calais Campbell in the first round, but not as much as I'd like another guy. If Calais was still on the board when we pick, it might even be wise to trade down and pick up some more picks and still get my guy with our first round pick. There's some pretty good DEs who could be had later in the first or second round.

CB: I know we trying to trade Shawn Springs last offseason, but I say we keep him at this point. He's cleary our best CB. Let him finish out his career here. Maybe, we could even bring in his former teammate Marcus Trufant to solidify our secondary a bit. I don't think Carlos Rogers will be firing on all cylinders for a while, and Smoot keeps getting dinged up. I cringe whenever Eubanks or Torrence is back there. Trying another FA vet would be the solution here, as the draft doesn't have that many good CBs again.

S: Laron Landry stays at SS, and with the Washington Redskins' first pick in the 2008 NFL draft, they have selected Kenny Philips from the U. As much as it's eerie and sad, it's the smart pick. Our defense was built around Sean Taylor's ball-hawking, hard hitting ability. Kenny Phillips will hopefully come close to that. He's definitely way closer than Reed Doughty or Pierson Prielou, who I'd keep for depth. I think Philips should be our main priority. Obviously, I don't think the defense should be built around him right away. Some adjustments should be made while he matures as a player, but to get to where as good as our defense was looking early in the season, I think Kenny's a bigger help than Calais Campbell would be.

So, my summary:

Subtractions
Santana Moss
Pete Kendall (maybe)
Kennan McCardell
Todd Collins
Brian Kozlowksi
Derrick Frost
Todd Wade
Jason Fabini
Khary Campbell
Randall Godfrey
Philip Daniels (maybe)
Mike Espy
Jimmy Farris
David Macklin

Major Additions
Larry Fitzgerald
Marcus Trufant
Todd Sauerbrun
Paul Spicer
Kenny Philips (dependent upon what we do in the first)
Calais Campbell (dependent upon what we do in the first)
Ryan Clady (If Calais & Kenny are gone)
Michael Oher (dependent upon what we do in the first)
John David Booty
Jacob Hester
John Gilmore
Floyd Womack (maybe)
3rd or 4th round OLB Draft Prospect

Sign me up, Danny! Let's see what happens.

Nice post JB. Michael Oher incidentally is the subject of Michael Lewis' book "The Blind Side" about the evolution of the LT position.

Also, isn't Kendall signed through next year?

Yeah Kendall signed for 2 years

I haven't followed the Cards much, but why would Fitzgerald be so anxious to get out of Arizona? I'd love to have him, but if the Cards traded him for Moss and a 3rd or 4th they'd be out of their minds. I guess he'd be looking to get into Dan's checkbook and that would be the motivation for forcing his hand in AZ? I just can't see it happening, is this a legitimate possibility?