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Where do we go from here? Laying out options for Washington's quarterback position

Scott Galvin-USA TODAY Sports

New team name, same problems: Washington is - once again - in the midst of a lackluster season led by a disappointing quarterback.

Dwayne Haskins delivered his career-worst performance against the Cleveland Browns on Sunday. Haskins ended the game with a passer rating of 58.8, nearly a 30 point drop from the previous week’s beat down at the hands of the Arizona Cardinals. Per Sports Info Solutions, the WFT quarterback is dead last in the league for on-target throw rate - posting a putrid 63% - a full three percentage points lower than the next closest quarterback (Chicago Bears now-second-string QB, Mitch Trubisky).

Horrible statistics aside, it’s clear to anyone with two eyes and a brain that Haskins is struggling. His showing against the Browns just made the already-obvious fact even more apparent, seemingly even to head coach Ron Rivera, whose tone took a 180 after he reviewed Sunday’s game film. So, where do they go from here?

Option 1: Let him play

The first option is the simplest: let him ride out the remaining 13 games of the season. He was a first round pick after all, and Washington has thrown away too many of those in recent years. Haskins only started one season at Ohio State, and although he was a Heisman finalist in his storybook year at OSU, just one season of starting experience leaves a lot to be learned for a young quarterback. Since he arrived in Ashburn, he’s already played under three head coaches (if you count Bill Callahan), and two offensive coordinators while only starting 10 games (thus far). Not exactly ideal for a young quarterback trying to learn a new system. To top it off, the coronavirus situation impacted the NFL preseason tremendously and left young players with much fewer reps than they would have expected under normal circumstances.

Haskins showed some flashes in his last two games of the 2019 season. Although neither game resulted in a win, he did post quarterback ratings of 121.3 and 143.2, and earned Rookie of the Week in week 15. So maybe with the rest of the season to settle into the new system Haskins would show this promise again, and maybe even become more consistent. If he doesn't, at least Rivera and his staff would know they gave him a full season to see what he can do before making any premature decisions.


Option 2: Bench him

While Haskins is only three games into his second season, it’s hard to ignore the major issues with his mechanics. The most glaring issues he presents are overthrowing wide-open receivers and staring down his receivers, the latter of which resulted in a crushing interception in the Browns game. Some fans may be quick to excuse these as rookie mistakes, but as Ron Rivera noted in a recent presser, Dwayne Haskins isn’t a rookie anymore. Even if he was, these are mistakes that NFL quarterbacks simply shouldn’t be making so often. Rookie Justin Herbert came off the bench for the LA Chargers and took the reigning Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs to overtime. Joe Burrow - who sat on the bench behind Haskins at Ohio State - posted 316 passing yards, three touchdowns, and a 90.6 total passer rating against the very same Browns team Washington faced just over a week later. With the NFC East wide open for the taking, there is a strong case to pull the plug on Haskins.

In that case, maybe it’s time to see what Kyle Allen can do. While Allen’s 2019 stats are far from stellar, he did perform well in a handful of games for the Panthers in 2019 (see weeks three and six). Most importantly, he offers more experience in the NFL and familiarity with Ron Rivera and Scott Turner’s offensive scheme, and that may be all it takes to string together some wins in a horrible NFC East. He won't become a franchise quarterback, but if Rivera and his staff want to have a chance in a year where the division winner may only have seven wins, Allen is the more likely of the two QBs to achieve this.

Option 3: Draft a quarterback

With 10 starts under his belt, some have seen enough of Haskins and are ready to move onto 2021. However, barring a complete meltdown, the WFT is almost certainly out of the Trevor Lawrence sweepstakes. Luckily, there are plenty of other promising quarterbacks in the 2021 draft class. While Haskins was the 15th overall pick just two years ago, he wasn’t chosen by a football mind - he was chosen by Dan Snyder. If Snyder truly wants to turn this franchise around, he’ll let Rivera and his staff call the shots this time around.

Texas senior quarterback Sam Ehlinger could be a steal in the draft. Dual-threat quarterbacks are the future in the NFL, and Ehlinger is just that. In his junior season as a Longhorn, he rushed for 663 yards and seven touchdowns, averaging 4.1 yards per attempt. While still not an elite passer, his completion percentage, passing yards, and passing efficiency rating have all improved each year (along with his total rushing yards) at Texas. Other intriguing prospects include Georgia’s Jamie Newman, North Dakota State’s Trey Lance, and Mississippi State’s KJ Costello.

A first round quarterback pick is always a gamble, but sometimes you can hit the jackpot - just look at the Arizona Cardinals, who picked Kyler Murray after a disappointing showing by their previous year’s first round pick, Josh Rosen. Drafting a quarterback would allow Ron Rivera and his staff to hand-pick their own guy, and rebuild a winning franchise around them.

Option 4: Trade for a quarterback

The last option is a bit more complicated, but could pay dividends. With the sixth-highest amount of cap space in the NFL, WFT has some money to spend. One option to trade for is Jameis Winston, who is currently on a one-year deal as third-string QB for the Saints. Winston threw for 5,109 yards and rushed for 250 yards for the Buccaneers in 2019, finishing first in the league in passing yards. His 30 interceptions thrown are a concern, but he also finished second in the league - behind only MVP Lamar Jackson - for total touchdowns (33) in 2019.

Conclusion

There is no perfect solution to the problem at the quarterback position for Washington. Each has its pros and cons - some more than others - but no option is foolproof. Odds are, no matter which direction the organization chooses to go in, fans will be upset and the media will critique the decision. But it is 2020 after all, and there's never been a more perfect year for something to actually go right for the Redskins -- er, Washington Football Team.