Should the Redskins try to re-sign Rashad Ross?

Football fans around the country that don’t follow the Washington Redskins have been asking questions about the hottest receiver in the Alliance of American Football (the AAF).

In case you don’t know, the former Redskin has been tearing up the new league playing for the 3-3 Arizona Hotshots.

In six games, Ross has 29 catches for 452 yards, 6 touchdowns and a 2-point conversion. He is averaging 15.6 yards per catch.

His production has been consistent, and he hasn’t slowed down at all. He’s had at least 4 catches and 50 yards in every game this season, and has only one game without a touchdown. He’s had at least one catch for 15 yards or more in every game as well.

Extrapolating for the 16-game season that NFL fans are used to thinking about, Ross is on pace to put up these numbers:

• 77 catches
• 1,205 yards
• 16 touchdowns

I realize that he’s playing minor league ball, but these would be pro-bowl numbers in the NFL. If he were able to achieve just one-third of this production on an NFL field, it would make him a useful receiver.

Ross is also a capable return man.

You can see that Ross has hauled in his 29 catches on just 42 targets. That 69% catch rate is pretty impressive when paired with the 15.6 yards per catch number. Heck, he’s averaging 15.4 air yards per target!

Ross as a Redskin

In addition to spending time on the Practice Squad, Ross was on the regular roster for 18 games as a Redskin in ‘15 and ‘16, when the wide receiver depth chart was:

• Pierre Garcon
• Desean Jackson
• Jamison Crowder
• Ryan Grant
• Maurice Harris
• Rashad Ross

Ross didn’t see the field much, grabbing just 9 receptions for 192 yards (21 yards per catch!) in 18 games, spread across the two seasons that he was on the 53-man roster.

Maybe the Redskins gave up on him too soon.

It’s true that Ross never really got any traction in the NFL:

But the 29 year old has certainly made the most of his opportunity with the Hotshots in the AAF. He’s got some traction there.

The story line on the AAF in this inaugural season has been that it is both a developmental league and a ‘second chance’ league.

Americans love underdogs and Cinderella stories.

Most sports fans love a “tryer”.

Could there be any better story of redemption and success than a marginal NFL player like Ross who spent two seasons buried on the Redskins depth chart behind a pair of 1,000-yard receivers taking a shot by going to the new Spring league, making a name for himself and then returning to his former NFL team for another chance?

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Click here to read about the top-ten AAF players who could be in the NFL next year

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Ross is possessed of serious speed. In the AAF, at least, he has demonstrated that he can catch the ball downfield.

The Redskins have, possibly, the worst receiving corps in the National Football League.

Could it hurt to call Ross’s agent?

Hogs Haven readers may recognize one other name from the list of leading receivers in the AAF — De’Mornay Pierson-El, who was in ‘Skins training camp as an undrafted free agent last year.

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Click here to read the Hogs Haven 2018 UDFA profile on De’Mornay Pierson El

Click here to read “A Closer Look At De’Mornay Pierson-El With Corn Nation” (2018)

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