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You get a magic wand that comes with a Limited Power of Authority. It’s good for only one wish, and it only works for one thing — you can “steal” one NY Giants player and put that guy on the Washington Football Team (established in 1932) roster.
Who would it be?
Well, I’m gonna nominate a few guys to prime the pump.
Danny Dimes
The possessor of what is probably the most unfortunate nickname in sports, Daniel Jones is linked to Dwayne Haskins almost as closely as Jameis Winston and Marcus Mariota, or Andrew Luck and RG3. Ahead of the 2019 draft, although the teams were 9 picks apart, the expectation was that the Giants would pick one of these guys and the Redskins would take the other. There was a lot of chatter about Washington trading up to get the guy they wanted. There were tons of rumors about Haskins being preferred by the owner, Dan Snyder, while the “football people” wanted Jones.
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The Dwayne Haskins experiment seems to have gone pear shaped in DC. The coach just benched him in favor of a 3rd year UDFA with a spotty record. Meanwhile, even though Jones has been on the losing end of a lot of games after starting out hot in his first couple of starts, he seems to still have the support of teammates, coaches and fans. Jones seems to have issues with both fumbles and interceptions, but then, so did Kirk Cousins in his first couple of dozen games.
Would you solve Washington’s QB problems by saying “Abracadabra!” and making Daniel Jones the starting signal caller for the Washington franchise?
Evan Engram
Tight end is among the thinnest position groups on the Washington roster. Engram is a former first-round pick (2017) who has been plagued by injury and never really lived up to his draft potential.
Still, he is likely an upgrade to any healthy tight end on the WFT roster. Would you change his jersey from blue, white & red to burgundy & gold?
Will Hernandez
Possibly the biggest roster hole for the Football Team at the moment is Left Guard. I’m not sure if anyone outside of Rivera’s coaching staff knows who will play that position on Sunday. Hell, I’m not sure if anyone ON the coaching staff knows who will start at LG.
Will Hernandez is a 6’2”, 327 pound mauler drafted 34th overall in 2018. He is a very effective pass blocker and competent in the run game. He seems to have gotten better every game this year, and received a 75.1 grade from PFF for his Week 5 effort against Dallas, while Washington’s left guard, Wes Martin, was graded 0.2.
With a genuine NFL lineman at LG, the burgundy & gold might actually be able to execute an offense.
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Andrew Thomas
The Giants’ rookie left tackle, selected 4th overall in the most recent draft, just two picks behind our own Chase Young, was considered an elite tackle prospect coming out of Georgia. Our own Mark Tyler described him frequently as the most complete offensive tackle prospect in the draft.
Thomas has struggled in his first five games against NFL talent (PFF gave him a 31.7 pass blocking grade for Week 5 vs the Cowboys), but then, that’s not so unusual for a 21-year-old rookie.
Thomas is likely to only get better from week to week and season to season. Assuming he lives up to his pre-draft billing, replacing Christian with Thomas would allow the coaching staff to feel secure about the cornerstone LT position for the coming decade or more.
Darius Slayton
Slayton is a wide receiver who was drafted in the 5th round of the 2019 draft. He is far and away the most effective pass catcher on the Giants roster, averaging 4.6 receptions and 72 yards per game. ESPN currently projects him to finish the 2020 season with 1,168 yards and 6 TDs. For comparison, the same website projects Terry McLaurin to finish the year with 1,322 yards and 3 TDs.
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Darius Slayton would give the Football Team what it desperately needs — another receiving threat to complement Terry McLaurin...someone who could draw away some of the defensive attention that Terry currently “enjoys”.
Would you bring Slayton to DC?
James Bradberry
Bradberry was a free agent cornerback this past off-season. He came from Carolina, and, presumably, if Ron Rivera had wanted to target him he could have. But, of course, he signed with the Giants, run by former Carolina GM Dave Gettleman, who drafted him to the Panthers in 2016.
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While Bradberry was a highly touted free agent and is a well-known name around the league, I’m not sure the 27 year old would be a great fit with the Washington team plan, or that he would be a big upgrade over Kendall Fuller and Ronald Darby. I could be wrong, though. PFF has Bradberry rated as the #3 CB in the NFL right now, while Fuller is ranked #5 and Darby #21. Having two CBs in the top 21 doesn’t sound too bad; I’m not sure if Bradberry adds enough to the Washington defense to get me to use my only wish on him.
Would you, though?
Jabrill Peppers
Safety Jabrill Peppers was selected 25th overall by Cleveland in the 2017 draft. He came to the Giants as part of the Odell Beckham trade, and has played well at times, and contributed on special teams from time to time. The 25 year old, however, probably isn’t very distinguishable from Landon Collins. Peppers is 5’11” and 213 pounds (Collins is 6’0”, 222). Peppers played 63% of his defensive snaps in the box last season (56% so far this season). Collins actually plays in a wider variety of positions (a more even spread of snaps at box safety, free safety, slot corner, and on the line of scrimmage).
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With Washington more in need of a free safety than someone to replace Collins, the more natural roster “get” would be Julian Love, but the 2019 4th rounder from Notre Dame has actually earned a 43.3 defensive grade from PFF this season to compare to Troy Apke’s 53.2.
Would you use your wish on Peppers?
Saquon Barkley
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He’s out for the year with a torn ACL, but he’s certainly one of the elite running backs in the NFL. He wouldn’t contribute to the Washington Football Team in 2020, but he would provide a huge roster boost in future years.
Would you wave your magic wand and put Saquon Barkley on the Washington roster?
Poll
What Giants player would you want for the Washington Football Team roster?
This poll is closed
-
3%
QB Daniel Jones
-
8%
TE Evan Engram
-
20%
LG Will Hernandez
-
19%
LT Andrew Thomas
-
10%
WR Darius Slayton
-
3%
CB James Bradberry
-
2%
S Jabrill Peppers
-
28%
RB Saquon Barkley (IR)
-
1%
Someone else
-
2%
There’s nobody on the Giants team that I’d wish onto the WFT roster