Give the Redskins credit. They overpaid for a veteran as they usual do, but at least their newest 30-something addition is not past his playing prime.
He’s just past his playing desire.
Let’s be honest. Jason Taylor to the Washington Redskins may seem like a good move at face value, but the only kinds of column this move helps are written local papers, and not of the win-loss variety.
A second-round pick next year and a sixth in 2010 is too much for a 31-year-old who can still play football, but doesn’t want to. Don’t think for a second that Taylor’s tango with the Miami Dolphins this summer was just a ploy to get traded, or that he was tired of being on a losing team towards the end of his career.
He doesn’t want to do this anymore, and that’s okay.
What’s not okay is that the Redskins always think marketing instead of market value. They are willing to sell the barn to get the Kentucky Derby runner-up, in hopes that enough people pay attention and believe that they are making every effort to win a Super Bowl.
And in my mind, I don’t doubt that Daniel Snyder wants badly to bring a champion to Washington, especially after the Washington Wizards and Washington Capitals are proving to be a solid sports product in the area. But he doesn’t know football, he doesn’t know football personnel, and he doesn’t know personnel value.
And he surrounds himself with people that know these things, but are too intimidated to push back against his self-serving position of power.
At best, Jason Taylor will make the Redskins more talked about than a lot of other teams in the league, and he might make a serious contribution this season. At worst, this is nothing more than the hype that surrounded Serena Williams joining the Washington Kastles.
And that’s too bad for a team that at face value, had the look of finally putting it all together.
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Whoa there, cowboy. You rake the Redskins over the coals for this deal. Who should they have taken instead? Chauncey Davis? Mike Rucker?
Do you like it if Taylor plays the remaining two years of his contract? The Redskins say he will. Let’s see how this plays out before pronouncing “won’t work.” Two draft picks for Taylor, if he plays two more years, may be overpayment, but only marginally so.
I’m a local Redskin blogger who’s denounced Daniel Snyder plenty of times, like when he brought in Deion Sanders and benched Darrell Green. This is not one of those deals.
How do you know that Jason Taylor does not want to play Football anymore? Have you interviewed him? Because he did “Dancing with the Stars” This is one of the more sensible moves Snyder has made in recent years. Let’s not forget this is same MVP of the NFL who has average 10+sacks over the last 4-5years. If he had no desire to play he could have just retired, and pursued other intrests. Your snap judgement is unwarranted, noone will truly know if they overpaid until the season unfolds.
It’s always wise to take the “wait-and-see” attitude, but most signs point to him not wanting to play.
He’s been talking retirement for a couple of years now, and up until this weekend, he was on track to become the next Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson.
We are all excited about JT being in Washington. In regards to him not wanting to play anymore, I would be interested in knowing where people get their information. JT will work hard and produce. He’s not one that enjoys losing! Maybe these people that doubt his desire are the same people I have had the pleasure of trying to explain to them the past 11 years who Jason Taylor even was. Football fans, PLEASE!!!!!!! Our prayers go out to JT and we will be Redskins fans for sure!!!!
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