… So Let It Be Done.
Last night the Washington Redskins put out a second mortgage on their house, and with the proceeds, they are going to go out and buy a shiny new toy on April 26th at the NFL Draft. It is reported that Washington have traded their next THREE first round picks and a second round pick, to the St. Louis Rams for the number two overall pick. Did they pay too much?
That’s a question that will be asked ad nauseum over the coming days, weeks, and let’s face it – even years. It might take the latter to figure out if they made the right decision; but what choice did the Redskins really have?
It’s been two decades of futility and a fan base that has an entire generation that has no inkling of NFL success – the bold stroke was necessary. Sure the Redskins could have stood around with their hands in their pockets and hoped that they could get the deal done for less, but what next if they didn’t? Could they really afford to lose out on the Manning Sweepstakes, and the Matt Flynn booby prize, and end up having to take Ryan Tannehill at number 6? That would leave the Redskins even less sure of their quarterback future than they are now. Now the Redskins are poised to draft their quarterback of choice for arguably the next decade and beyond. It’s a lot of eggs to put in one basket, but when you’re trying to make an omelette, you need a lot of eggs.
In Griffin, the Redskins will not only land themselves an athlete extraordinaire and a pretty darn good quarterback, they now have a face of the organization to build around. Sure it will take some time to see if he’s really all that he’s made out to be, but the same can be said of every draft pick ever made. Griffin is as sure a thing as you can get – but there are still no guarantees.
When Griffin lit up the NFL Combine a couple of weeks ago, he put the NFL world on it’s ear. Not only did he run a 40-yard dash as fast as any quarterback has since they started tracking it, he stood in front of a full media room and charmed their pants off. He sat down at a chalkboard with Steve Mariucci and showd off his intellect. In short, he did everything he needed to, to prove to Mike Shanhan and Bruce Allen that he was worthy of mortgaging their future for.
Make no bones about it Redskins Nation – that’s what the Redskins have done – mortgaged their future. Three first round picks is a lot to pay and a lot of potential talent to give up.
When you consider that you could actually make an argument that the Redskins haven’t drafted this high a caliber of quarterback since their very FIRST draft, and Sammy Baugh, it’s not hard to make the leap of faith. Some fans will have mouths agape this morning, thinking about the prospect of not having another first round pick until the year 2015, but I ask you…
Did the Redskins really have any choice?
Not really.
“A good sacrifice is one that is not necessarily sound but leaves your opponent dazed and confused.” – Nigel Short
Just ask the Cleveland Browns, who according to Adam Schefter, made a last minute pitch to try and steal the deal away from the Redskins.
But they couldn’t.
It’s just time.
It’s RGIII time.
This picture is now a prophesy:
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