By: Jeremy Trottier

The Washington Football Team has one of the more interesting quarterback rooms in the league as of right now, and not really for a good reason, at least long term.  They currently have Ryan Fitzpatrick who will be a good bridge quarterback while they find another option.  They also re-signed Taylor Heinicke to a two-year deal this offseason, who flashed in the WFT’s one playoff game in the 2020-2021 season.  Neither of these options is seemingly long term though, as Fitz is higher up on the NFL age scale now and Heinicke is relatively unproven so far.

One of the QBs who has been on and off the trade block seemingly as of late is Las Vegas Raiders quarterback Marcus Mariota.  A former Heisman Trophy winner in 2014, and the starter for the Tennessee Titans for a period of time.  Currently he is locked behind Derek Carr as a backup QB to fill in if Carr misses time, as we saw for a game last season.  However, in this article I will be going over three reasons as to why the Washington Football Team should target Mariota in a trade, and why he could be a good QB option for them.

Development Behind Veteran QB & Premier Coach

One of the most promising aspects of Marcus Mariota becoming a potential starter again is he now has a year under his belt learning from Derek Carr and Jon Gruden.  Starting with Carr, Derek has experienced quite a bit in the NFL and is a pretty exceptional quarterback for what he has had to work with in Las Vegas and previously Oakland.  Getting experience from an accurate and bigger armed QB like Carr will let him learn more about the NFL and about passing effectively, while being more safe with the ball.

He has also had time under Jon Gruden, who seems to follow the belief that quarterbacks do not need to do everything on the field.  I agree with this point to an extent, but Jon takes it to the level where rushing is extremely important for his teams and defensive aggressiveness and competitive toughness of his players is most important.  Mariota could stand to learn this mentality to an extent, as he was just thrown into a starting role with Tennessee and never given a chance to learn that he does not have to do all the work like he did with the Oregon Ducks in college.  Getting a year to sit behind Carr and learn about what his strengths and weaknesses are and learning how to cater to them in his own way is huge.  

Potential Scheme Fit in Washington

An interesting point to be made is how he would fit into the WFT quarterback room, as well as into their offensive scheme.  The two teams Mariota has played for so far are relatively high rush/smash mouth offenses, which makes sense as Tennessee has Derrick Henry and Las Vegas has Josh Jacobs.  However he seemingly would benefit from a team with a more high-flying intermediate to deep passing game offense.  Even though he does not have to do everything as a QB, his improvising abilities would allow for him to create yards where there are none if the pocket collapses.

Another thing to note is Washington has some fantastic weapons around the QB position right now which fit perfectly with this type of offense.  Terry McLaurin is a YAC machine and has really turned out to be a great WR1 in the league.  Curtis Samuel is another great fit, and should be a good WR2 to work with, Antonio Gibson had a great rookie season and was great at receiving out of the backfield, catching 81.8% of his targets during last season.  Logan Thomas is a great vertical threat for a more redzone and goalline style passing, and can really rip off some yards at times.  Finally Dyami Brown who Washington drafted this year is seemingly the slot receiver for the WFT offense, and his raw speed should make QBs jobs easy as he will separate from DBs quickly.

Relatively Low Trade Price

As I mentioned previously, Marcus Mariota is a backup to Derek Carr right now, and the Raiders also signed back another backup QB of theirs Nathan Peterman, who may not be great but should do the job for now.  With this info in hand, there is a good chance Mariota would only cost Washington at most a 2^nd round pick, and realistically a mid-round pick, whether it be 2022 or 2023.  Getting a 27-year-old quarterback who’s biggest need development wise is to just settle down in the pocket and think before throwing is a no brainer for that cheap, especially with their need for the position. 

The worst that happens is they have a bridge quarterback for next season, and they can draft one in 2022 to take over after a few weeks.  The best-case scenario is having a potential starter for the foreseeable future who fits into your scheme pretty well, and really can improvise situations to keep your offense alive.  The other reason he may be cheap is who knows when Derek Carr is going to either retire or leave the Raiders, so holding on to a quarterback in the prime years of his career would be a pretty bad idea, considering you can get something more useful in a trade for him like picks.  

Mariota does not hold much value right now presumably to the Raiders front office because he has not performed exceptionally well to this point in his career.  He underperformed his early first round price tag in the beginning of his career and is pretty much just a decent backup at this point in time as he likely will not jump Carr for the starting role anytime soon.  However, this would be a great fit for the WFT as their other options for the next season or two are minimal at this position, and a cheap option is worth trying out.  

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By: Reese Nasser

The football team in Washington is creating something worth cheering for and it’s being led by a defensive unit that is quickly becoming one of the best in the NFL. Washington’s defense is regarded as a top-five group entering this season and all signs point to them becoming even better. Second year player and defensive rookie of the year, Chase Young, is at the forefront of the defense and has become the leader of the group. Here are three reasons why Washinton will lead the NFL in sacks this season. 

Best Defensive Line in Football

Washibgton has crafted a defense line full of stars. Chase Young, Jonathan Allen, Daron Payne, and Montez Sweat lead the front four. Each has quickly become one of the best at their position and the group as a whole is held in high regard. The other component that they have is youth. The oldest of the four is Allen, who is just 26 years old. Between this group, 21.5 of the teams 50 sacks were recorded. With an extra year of working together, the unit will only work better together. The four of these players alone could account for potentially 30 sacks if they are able to take yet another leap next season. 

Bringing the Defense Back

The fact that a majority of this defense is returning, with the addition of high-profile rookies, this unit will become even better. Nine of Washington’s eleven starts from last season will be returning. This should be room for excitement. As much of the team relies on the front four, the rest of the group should be able to build off of that. While the linebacker core only accounted for a few sacks, that should be expected to change as well.

The expectations will be high for the first round pick. His athleticism and all around ability to play the position will bring an extra dynamic to this defense. While Davis accounted for only 1.5 sacks in his final season at Kentucky, he still racked up 102 tackles. In Washington’s defense, it can be expected that Davis’ speed will be utilized in a way that it wasn’t in college. His 4.37 40-yard dash shows that he is fast and has top end speed. Bringing that type of speed off of the edge or on blitz will result in either Davis getting a decent amount of sacks in his rookie season or one of the star defensive lineman getting the reward.

Chase Young.

Chase Young’s stock continues to go up and up. In his rookie season, he was one of the best defensive players in football. The Ohio State standout is just another great in a long line of star defensive ends coming out of the school. Young’s impact was nearly instant in Washington. He led all rookies in pressure. 

His 7.5 sacks were hard earned as Young was often double teamed. Teams quickly realized how much of a threat he was. He is expected to take yet another leap in his sophomore season and will remain the focal point of this Washington team. Young will be expected to rack up double digit sacks and nobody will be surprised when he does. 

This unit will look to expand on the 50 sacks that they had last season. With the defense that has been assembled, that goal is possible. There is a chance that they could add at least an extra ten to their total from last season. 60 is manageable and will be well within reach for the players out in Washington. 

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In every endeavor, there is a winner and a loser.  The repercussions from the 2021 NFL Draft are no different.  Of course, who won and who lost is all subjective until the playing actually starts.  But some teams did do better than others, and here they are.

AFC EAST

WINNERS: MIAMI DOLPHINS

It remains to be seen whether letting Ryan Fitzpatrick go handing the team completely over to Tua Tagovailoa was the right move.  However, the Dolphins did little wrong elsewhere. 

Drafting Alabama wide receiver Jaylen Waddle should help settle Tagovailoa and the offense.  But having the sixth-ranked scoring defense return in a division that has to deal with quarterback Josh Allen and newly arrived gunslinger Zach Wilson just seems good business.

LOSERS: NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS

Yes, the Patriots are loaded up from their spending spree in free agency, including returning quarterback Cam Newton. 

Drafting their presumptive franchise quarterback, Mac Jones feels right.  But now the Patriots have two quarterbacks with diametrically opposite skill sets. 

So what do you do? It could work, and of course, you never count the Patriots out, but”¦.

AFC WEST

WINNERS: LOS ANGELES CHARGERS

The Chargers solidified and added depth to their offensive line.  They added Larry Roundtree in the sixth round, who may prove what the Chargers offense needs behind Austin Ekeler to round out what was already a very good offense.

LOSERS: DENVER BRONCOS

If the Broncos passed up their chance to draft a franchise quarterback because they know something we don’t, my apologies.  But under current conditions, it appears to be an omission that will come to bite them in the ass.

AFC NORTH

WINNERS: BALTIMORE RAVENS

In two of the past three drafts, the Ravens have taken a wide receiver.  It has not helped.  The third time is the charm?  Rashod Bateman has the skill set to be WR1 in the Ravens offense (albeit a low bar), but if he can help the Ravens pass/run ratio become more equitable, it is a win.

In a division historically known for its defense, adding edge Odafe Oweh to their top-ranked defense is a bonus.

LOSERS: PITTSBURGH STEELERS

It could all work out; after all, tight end Pat Freiermuth is known for his blocking skill set.  But the offense, which finished last season 32^nd in rushing yards per game (84.4) and yards per attempt (3.6) per teamrankings.com, needed to improve the 31^st ranked run-blocking offensive line.

Fun fact Tennessee Titans running back Derrick Henry ran for 676 more rushing yards than the entire Steelers team in 2020.

AFC SOUTH

WINNERS: JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS

With the number one pick and nine total picks, the Jaguars got their franchise quarterback and seemingly faster on offense. 

There was really nowhere to go but up.

LOSERS: HOUSTON TEXANS

They could not have won this.  The Texans needed a lot.  Their first pick was not until round three, and they managed only five total picks.  Thanks to Bill O’Brien, the Texans did good with what they were given, but winning wasn’t an option.

NFC WEST

LOSERS: SEATTLE SEAHAWKS

The Seahawks had the 30^th ranked defense in passing yards last season.  They lost Shaquill Griffin and Quinton Dunbar in free agency.  And they only had three picks in this year’s draft. 

Their first pick was a wide receiver, D’Wayne Eskridge.

WINNERS: SAN FRANCISCO 49ERS

It may be more accurate to say winner Trey Lance.  Going to a team that, but for injuries, is a playoff contender is a win. 

Now Kyle Shanahan has the quarterback of his dreams, and the 49ers are back in playoff contention.

Can we just acknowledge that this might be the most competitive division in the NFL?

NFC EAST

This was the hardest division to project a loser because basically, they all got what they needed.  However, it must be done.

LOSERS: WASHINGTON FOOTBALL TEAM

Depending on Ryan Fitzpatrick this season, okay, I get it.  But not getting a quarterback for the future may prove costly.

WINNERS: NEW YORK GIANTS

It remains to be seen if stockpiling 2022 NFL Draft picks will win the day.  Not getting offensive line help for quarterback Daniel Jones may hurt this season.

NFC SOUTH

LOSERS: NEW ORLEANS SAINTS

The Saints needed a cornerback.  Their first two picks were defensive end and linebacker.  There is also the questionable acquisition of quarterback Ian Book in the fourth round. 

It all seems so muddled. 

WINNERS: ATLANTA FALCONS

Taking arguably the best player on the board seems like a smart choice.  Adding him to an already prolific offense is a no-brainer.  Picking up much-needed help in a secondary that allowed 293.6 passing yards per game, check.

NFC NORTH

LOSERS: GREEN BAY PACKERS

I don’t know if further pissing off your reigning MVP quarterback counts as a loss, but it should.

WINNERS: CHICAGO BEARS Jumping up to #11 to pick up the second-best quarterback in the draft is a w

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