Rivera's Culture Club = Plenty of Questions
Monday was a busy day for Washington, starting with releasing five defensive players, one of which includes troubled safety, Montae Nicholson. Additionally, they traded away Quinton Dunbar and trading for Carolina Panthers quarterback Kyle Allen.
Tuesday morning brought a lovely present from Trent Williams' agent demanding a trade or release.
Assessing these moves by themselves, value aside, Ron Rivera continues to stand true to his word from his intro press conference:
"Now, it's not accepting certain things that happened. If that's not the right way, we have to be able to point it out and say 'That's not how we do things here. This is how we do it.' Eventually, if people don't want to buy into what the vision is, people don't want to agree with what you do, then we have to get rid of them. That's just the way it has to be." - Ron Rivera, January 2, 2020.
Montae Nicholson had shown plenty of flashes during his short time in Washington. However, Montae's inconsistent plan, in addition to his off the field mishaps, made him unreliable as a Redskin'. It was not worth the hassle for a new regime, and the signing of safety Sean Davis made it easier to move on as well.
Quinton Dunbar, who was another troubled player, was traded to Seattle for a fifth-round pick. Dunbar has been asking for a new contract for some time now, and on multiple occasions, was turned down by the Redskins new staff. In the public light, Dunbar has changed his stances on a couple of occasions, stating that he never wanted to be traded; however, compromising his integrity in the same vein because he was quoted for demanding a trade.
I was all for the extension of Dunbar, whose $1.9 million annual average, according to spotrac, currently ranks him the 59th highest paid at his position, but when your integrity is compromised for all to see, it is hard for anyone to defend him. Regardless on if Washington lost the trade or not, which they did, the bottom line is the Dunbar trouble was not worth it.
Washington needed a clear-cut backup quarterback, and it worked out in their favor as they traded for Kyle Allen. He is the right player to push Haskins', all while not legitimately challenging him for the starting spot. Is that the right approach? Who knows, but we do know Kyle is capable of spot duty and is knowledgeable of the Redskins offense.
Monday may be the busiest day for Washington this week, and that is fine. Some concerns still exist with this team, and even more now, because Washington traded away a starting cornerback, which is a position that was already vulnerable.
Furthermore, Washington's approach has been abundantly clear - depth pieces and role players - after missing out on their number one target receiver Amari Cooper. Make no mistake; I know Washington cannot turn around their team in one year; however, if the same roster issues from 2019 exist post-draft, what is there to say about what could have been during the free agency period?
Jamual Forrest has been a freelance sports journalist for four years, covering the Washington Redskins and can be heard as a co-host on The Hog Sty Network's "The Hog Sty" podcast. Additionally, Jamual contributes to The Hog Sty Network and SB Nation's Hogs Haven. You can follow Jamual on Twitter at @LetMualTellit and see his Redskins film breakdowns here.
