Washington Redskins: Decision made on Jay Gruden
A hot name on the coaching carousel finally has his answer from the Washington Redskins
Washington Redskins head coach Jay Gruden will not be a victim of the annual “Black Monday” NFL coach firings.
NFL Network insider Ian Rapoport says the Redskins plan to keep Gruden despite his team sitting at .500 for a third consecutive season. In four years with the Redskins Gruden is 28-34-1 with one playoff appearance in 2015.
Rapoport believes the Redskins mounting injuries and Gruden’s ability to keep the team together through a tumultuous season ultimately saved his job for at least one more season. Had Gruden been fired he would likely have been the top candidate for the Cincinnati Bengals job with Marvin Lewis potentially retiring. Gruden was Lewis’ offensive coordinator prior to joining the Redskins.
Washington enters a critical offseason with quarterback Kirk Cousins set to be a free agent. Cousins has signed the franchise tag for two consecutive seasons and the price tag for another tag would be too rich for the Redskins.
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With the possibility of losing Cousins the Redskins and Gruden could be looking at a potential rebuild in Washington. If the team believes they can compete with a veteran quarterback, Vikings starter Sam Bradford could be a quality starter until the team finds their franchise quarterback.
Washington enters the 2018 offseason with the ninth-most salary cap with $54 million available prior to making any cuts or re-signing Cousins. They have no players making more than $1 million with zero dead cap, which makes cutting money even tougher.
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Cornerback Josh Norman is slated to make $20 million next year, but if the team waits until June 1 to cut him they will only pay $3 million. Trent Williams may also be due for a restructured contract with nearly $14 million owed next year alone.