How Washington Football Team Wins 2022 Super Bowl
Needs, Free Agency, Draft, Trades
The NFC East is the easiest division in the NFL right now. With the NFL entering week 11 of the regular season, the NFC East as a division only has 10 wins. Contrasting with the NFC West which has 22 wins, you can see how the divisions compare.
The Washington Football team has a few needs and before we dive into free agency, the upcoming draft, and potential trades — I’m going to discuss the top four needs that come to mind immediately when I think of the team that should be owning the NFC East.
I’ll be projecting a potential 2021 Washington roster that would not only make a run for the 2022 Super Bowl, but would be scalable with young talent for years to come.
1. Four needs:
- Start Dwayne Haskins
If you turn on your TV and tune in to ESPN to watch your beloved Washington Football team sling the ball around with their #15 overall 2019 draft pick, instead you’ll find 36 year old comeback player of the year Alex Smith tossing the rock.
Alex Smith, after experiencing one of the most gruesome leg injuries seen in recent NFL broadcasting, has admittedly shown extreme determination overcoming it after potentially never being able to play the game again. He definitely deserves a spot in the NFL, whether it be a #2 QB position or a coaching job, but when it comes to suiting up for gameday, I strongly believe it is in WFT’s best interest to start their young dual threat Dwayne Haskins at QB #1.
- Reconstructed Offensive Line
2/5 of the starting offensive linemen for Washington know how to both protect the QB and open running lanes for the RB. Those two linemen will be free agents at the end of the season.
It is no question that WFT will be looking at the draft for help in this position, and we will get to that later. The good news is that Washington has the cap space to sign these would be free agents onto multi-year deals.
Here are Washington’s top 5 OL.
Of those five, I believe if Washington is to make a post season run to the Super Bowl in 2022, the team needs to find space in their cap to pay Pro-Bowler right guard Brandon Scherff and center Chase Roullier. This would minimize the need in the draft for lineman to two positions, LT and LG.
- Managing Salary Cap
The Washington Football Team sheathes a dangerous double-edged sword with their available cap space in 2021. If strategically managed, this could be their secret weapon for making a shot at the Super Bowl.
Considering that the NFL salary cap will potentially decrease for the first time in years due to Covid-19, Washington will have to manage it even closer. The team already paid big dead money to Paul Richardson in 2020, but will be able to rebound nicely if they allocate their resources more towards their needs this offseason.
Assuming they roll over their left-over cap space from 2020 to 2021, the Washington Football Team could be working with upwards of 50 million leading into next season, ranking in the top 5 teams for available funds.
Let’s take a look at some potential contract extensions, and where that would leave the WFT.
- Scherff signs a back-heavy three-year 36.5-million-dollar deal with a 2021 cap hit of 12.4 million.
- Chase Roullier signs a two-year deal worth around 3.5 million with a cap hit in 2021 of 1.2 million.
- Washington also signs Ronald Darby to a two year 3.7-million-dollar extension with a cap hit in 2021 of 1.5 million.
These moves would bring the cap space down to around 35 million. Leaving Washington plenty of money to fill some left-over holes in the roster.
- Rebranding
The owner of the Washington Football Team was called to change the franchise’s name in 2019 after pleas for racial justice and threats of losing sponsors. Many saw the Redskins as being a condescending slur for Native Americans, and thus, The Washington Football Team was quickly inked into paper.
This name should not stick, and apparently the franchise already has some top runners for a new name. Leading contenders are Red Tails, Airmen, Warthogs, Warriors, and Founders.
2. Free Agency:
- Justin Simmons (FS)
This just in, Justin Simmons is an animal.
Really, Simmons has 3 interceptions already this year, and somewhere around 60 tackles. If he continues this kind of production not only will he easily find a team to call home in the offseason but could find a big contract from Washington who desperately needs help at safety. WFT could offer a two year 20-million-dollar deal to the FS incurring 8 million in cap next year.
- James Conner (RB)
James holds-onto-the-rock Conner. This man has only fumbled the ball once this year and if memory serves, he recovered it. He does not turn the ball over, something Washington will need to master if they are going to be a threat in the NFL next year. James Conner is a franchise running back and belongs in the top 7 conversation. He is a powerful balanced runner with speed and doubles as a dump off receiving threat as well. Washington can offer him a backloaded 5 year 34-million-dollar contract assuming 6 million in cap next year.
- Chris Godwin (WR)
This man is going to get signed, and he is going to make a difference on the team he ends up with. Washington can get by with the receiving core they have, especially if they take a deep threat specialist in the draft to open up space midfield for Terry Mclaurin to do his thing. I do not see Godwin accepting anything other than a stellar contract, but with the right provisions and onboarding swooning, the WFT could sign him to a 3 year 52-million-dollar deal eating 12 million in cap space next year.
- Yannick Ngakoue (DE)
‘But we have Matthew Ioannidis, Da’ron Payne, Chase Young, Montez Sweat, and Jonathan Allen.’ Yes, Washington loyalists you have a stacked defensive line, but remember it is a Super Bowl we’re after and Super Bowls are won by teams with depth. Especially with the NFL adding a game to the season, and more teams qualifying for playoffs.
This super star is only being paid 5 million this year, at least shoot him the same offer and see if he bites. Ngakoue adds a comfortability factor to the WFT at this point, and being only 25, if they are able to keep him on the squad after signing him to a 1 year deal next year, then they can afford to let go some of the higher paid, older defensive lineman going forward. WFT signs Yannick Ngakoue to a one year 6.5-million-dollar deal, suffering 6.5 in cap space.
Contract negotiations are an artform, and players love to ask for more than they are worth. Assuming each of these players accepts these offers, Washington envelopes 32.5 million in cap next year on free agent signings. After cutting some players and redesigning their official squad of 51, the WFT will have enough cap space left for the draft, and as the cap increases into 2022–2023, enough to pay for the future of their team.
3. NFL Draft:
Round 1 pick #3: Penei Sewell OL
Penei is day one starting talent. Adding youth to the offense that is going to get even more powerful over the next four years, Sewell will learn from Scherff, who is an athlete of the century candidate.
Round 2 pick #35: Jalen Mayfield OL
Mayfield is an agile lineman. Able to seal the outside, hit a trap block, or get between the running back and a linebacker. He doesn’t have as much footage as some more conservative GMs like to have when making an early pick, so I could see him falling to the second round.
Round 3 pick #67: Hamsah Nasirildeen SS
This guy will force turnovers in the NFL. He is a hard hitter with better than average speed and body control for that size of a human being. Clocking in at 6’4” 220lbs he fits the glove opposite of Landon Collins or Justin Simmons. Safeties are usually in abundance in the draft and this class is no exception, I think its reasonable to believe Washington can snag him in the third round barring a DK Metcalf type combine.
Round 4 pick #105: Trade
Round 5 pick #145: Kadarius Toney WR
This only happens if Washington doesn’t secure a Godwin-esk type of receiver in free agency. Kadarius is fun to watch suit up for the Florida Gators and will be only 22 years old come draft day. Toney is hard to tackle. He is slightly undersized, but that is why he will be available at #145, and he makes up for it by being able to stop on a dime, and change direction without losing speed. His play style reminds me of Marquise Brown who is doing fantastic in the first few years of his career for Baltimore.
Round 7 pick# 226: Trade
4. Trades:
The only trades I find worthy for Washington would be to give Haskins another Red Zone weapon to edge them towards victory in the close games destined in 2021. The team I find able to negotiate a win-win scenario with the WFT is the Chicago Bears and their tight end Jimmy Graham. The bears signed the TE to a two-year deal worth about 16 million and have 12.9 million remaining, 3.1 of it being in contractual bonuses.
If the Bears accept the #105 and #226 overall picks along with TE #2 Jeremy Sprinkle from WFT, the Bears only incur 3 million in dead cap from Graham and add to their hindered draft capabilities going into next season.
Assuming either Pat Feiermuth or Bevin Jordan is still available by the time the Bears are on the clock, they wouldn’t be down a starting TE and would add potential depth to their roster with the additional two picks. For Washington, they get by paying the 5x Pro-Bowler 6 million in 2021 on their way to the post season.
5. Conclusion:
Here is the mock lineup for the Washington Football Team in 2021 that I believe would have a shot at the Super Bowl.
