National Football League

Should The Washington Redskins Consider Drafting A Quarterback?

Updated Mar. 4, 2020 10:42 p.m. ET

Fansided, Jacob Camenker/FanSided via Riggo's Rag

The Washington Redskins are facing a difficult situation with Kirk Cousins. If the quarterback were to depart in free agency, would they consider drafting another one?

The single most important position on any NFL roster is the quarterback position. Teams often search for years for the right fit at quarterback, and it seemed like the Washington Redskins had finally found their guy. Over the past couple of seasons, Kirk Cousins has played very well for the Redskins and it looked like he was going to be the long term solution for the team.

However, after the Redskins missed the playoffs, the organization seemed to sour on the possibility of re-signing Cousins to a big time deal. After all, he has never won a playoff game and he did blow some opportunities near the end of the 2016 season. Granted, it was not entirely his fault, but he only looked like an above average quarterback at the end of the season. Not like a franchise guy.

Still, Cousins is likely to get paid in full. It seems like the Redskins are going to be the team that ponies up the money to sign a deal with him, but if they do not, they have little other options. In the event that they cannot re-sign Cousins, they may look to the 2017 NFL Draft to try and land another developmental quarterback for their roster.

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On the surface, this may seem like an odd statement. Colt McCoy is a solid backup, but the team also has fifth round rookie Nate Sudfeld and they could give him a chance to start. However, I have little faith in Sudfeld’s ability to be an NFL starter. I like his potential as a backup, but he seems to lack the arm strength to be a top quarterback. Given the strength of the Redskins offense, they need to try to capitalize immediately and adding another quarterback could do that.

In the 2017 draft, there are a few Day 2 options who could end up being strong options. First, there is Davis Webb, a former Texas Tech and California quarterback. Webb had a terrific showing in the Senior Bowl, and he looks to be like a potential starter. He has to learn to work under center after operating a spread offense in college, but he has the arm talent to be a potentially strong player.

Elsewhere, Ole Miss’ Chad Kelly looks like a hyper accurate quarterback. He could be available late due to an injury he suffered at the end of his college career. Kelly is the nephew of Jim Kelly, and he has the developmental potential to be a decent NFL starter. Nate Peterman of Pittsburgh could also get consideration, as he has been compared to Cousins by some evaluators.

The most likely scenario is that Cousins will return. However, if he does leave, it would not be unfathomable for the team to try and find his successor in the 2017 draft. It may seem like a waste of resources, but if they build their defense in free agency, then this type of move could be entirely possible.