The Washington Redskins have made one of their biggest gambles in franchise history.
Late last night, the Redskins traded three first-round picks and a second-round selection to the St. Louis Rams for what most people believe will be the services of 2011 Heisman Trophy winner, Robert Griffin III.
Dan Snyder & Co. have been known to roll the dice and for the most part, they have crapped out. Spending a lot of money on players like Albert Haynesworth and Donovan McNabb are risky moves but giving away so many early draft selections for years to come can be even more detrimental to the team.
Free agency is great way to augment a team’s roster but most recent Super Bowl champions have done it through the draft and finding young talent. With the Redskins, unless that young talent comes in the later rounds, they’ll have to hope that RG3 outplays all expectations.
The Redskins were picked by many national analysts to be one of the top teams to make a serious push to land the services of the biggest free-agent in NFL history, Peyton Manning. After word spread that Manning didn’t want to come to D.C. the Redskins immediately turned to “Plan B” which was going to cost them more than just money.
The deal cannot become official until Tuesday when the 2012 NFL league year begins, however, the stomachs of Skins’ fans have already begun to churn. Many campaigned for RG3 but knew it would come at a high price.
Now that we all know the price, is it too much to potentially ease the past 20+years of bad quarterbacking in DC?
As the Redskins hand over the keys to the franchise to RG3, he’ll also have a lot of baggage in tow. Until Griffin outplays his expectations and proves his worth, the size of this investment will always stick with him and undoubtedly add more pressure.
