The Washington Redskins have signed 29-year old safety Oshiomogho (O.J.) Atogwe to a 5-year, $26 million dollar deal.  Atogwe played in 16 games for the Rams last season and he had 73 tackles, 2 sacks, 4 tackles for a loss, 9 passes defensed, 3 interceptions and 2 forced fumbles.  He has now played in 88 games in his first six years in the NFL and he has 393 tackles, 42 passes defensed, 5 sacks, 16 forced fumbles and 22 interceptions (1 returned for a TD).  O.J. Atogwe gives the Redskins a big time playmaker at the back end of the defense.  I just love this signing for the Skins.

The Redskins have signed 27-year old DE Jeremy Clark.  Clark played in 2 games for the Cowboys earlier this year and he had 3 tackles.  He has now played in 6 games in his first two years and he has 7 tackles.  Don’t expect much out of Clark going forward as his signing was for depth purposes only.

UPDATE:  (12/26/2010) – The Redskins have released Jeremy Clark before he even got into a game for them.

The Redskins have cut 33-year old punter Hunter Smith and they have signed 26-year old punter Sam Paulescu to replace him.  Smith played in 9 games for the Redskins this season and he punted the ball 57 times for 2,310 yards (40.5 avg).  He also placed 17 punts inside the opposing 20-yard line (29.8%) and he had only 1 touchback (1.8%) for the Skins.  But, he botched a snap on an extra point which would have tied the game against the Bucs last week and that is the most likely reason he is unemployed right now.  Sam Paulescu will replace Smith as both the punter and the holder on field goals and extra points.  Paulescu played in 1 game for the Redskins last season and he punted the ball 3 times for 150 yards (50.0 avg).  He has now played in 17 games in his first three years in the NFL and he has punted the ball 85 times for 3,606 yards (42.4 avg).  He also has 10 touchbacks (11.8%) and he has pinned the opposition inside their own 20-yard line 23 times (27.1%).

The Redskins have signed 24-year old safety Macho Harris.  Harris played in 15 games as a rookie for the Eagles last season and he had 41 tackles and 2 passes defensed.  Harris also returned 19 kickoffs for 394 yards (20.8 avg) last season.  The Redskins might need Harris to learn quickly as LaRon Landry won’t be playing this week due to injury.

The Redskins have signed 24-year old RB James Davis to the practice squad.  Davis played in 4 games for the Browns this year and he carried the ball 4 times for 9 yards (2.3 ypc).  Davis has played two years in his NFL career appearing in 6 games in which he has carried the ball 13 times for 24 yards (1.8 ypc).  He has also caught 4 passes for 5 yards (1.3 avg) in his NFL career.  It never hurts to stash a young guy like Davis on the practice squad.

The Redskins have signed 33-year old punter Hunter Smith.  Smith played in 13 games for the Redskins last season and he punted the ball 57 times for 2,356 yards (41.3 avg).  He placed 23 punts inside the opposing 20-yard line (40.4%) last season and he had 5 touchbacks (8.8%).  Smith was signed because 34-year old Josh Bidwell his having hip problems which could land him on I.R.  Bidwell has played in 4 games for the Redskins so far this year and he has punted the ball 15 times for 625 yards (41.7 avg).  He pinned the opposition inside their own 20-yard line 3 times (15%) and he didn’t have any touchbacks. 

UPDATE:  (10/7/2010) – The Redskins have placed Josh Bidwell on I.R. so his season is over.

The Redskins have signed 25-year old RB/KR Chad Simpson.  Simpson played in 14 games for the Colts last year and he carried the ball 15 times for 102 yards (6.8 ypc) with 2 TD runs and he also caught 3 passes for 1 yard (0.3 avg).  Simpson also returned 38 kickoffs for 898 yards (23.6 avg) last year for the Colts.  Simpson has now played in 25 games in parts of two years in the NFL in which he has carried the ball 30 times for 147 yards (4.9 ypc) with 3 TD carries and he has caught 6 passes for 31 yards (5.2 avg).  Simpson has also returned 53 kickoffs for 1,242 yards (23.4 avg) with 1 TD return in his NFL career.  This was a good signing for the Redskins as Simpson can provide depth in the backfield while helping out on special teams.

The Redskins have signed 34-year old safety Tyrone Carter.  Carter played in 16 games (12 starts) with the Steelers last year and he had 61 tackles, 1 sack, he defensed 4 passes and he had 2 interceptions (one he returned for a TD).  Carter has now played in 151 games (53 starts) and he has 409 tackles, 5.5 sacks, 27 passes defensed and 9 interceptions (two TD returns).  This is a solid signing so late as Carter has a lot of experience.

The Redskins have signed 29-year old fullback Carey Davis.  Davis played in 6 games (0 starts) for the Steelers last season and he carried the ball 2 times for 15 yards (7.5 ypc).  Davis has now played in 37 games (10 starts) in his NFL career and he has carried the ball 31 times for 118 yards (3.8 ypc).  He has also caught 17 passes for 76 yards (4.5 avg) in his career to date.  Davis is a pretty solid fullback who could also help the Skins’ on special teams so I like this signing for them.

The Redskins have signed WR/S Mike Furrey.  Furrey played in all 16 games for the Browns last season in which he caught 23 passes for 170 yards (7.4 avg) and he also had 16 tackles and defensed 2 passes.  Furrey has now played in 94 games in his NFL career in which he has caught 221 passes for 2,298 yards (10.4 avg) with 7 TD grabs.  He has also made 77 tackles, defensed 10 passes and he has 4 interceptions (143 return yards) with a TD return.  Furrey is a ideal player for the Redskins to add as he can help them out a little bit on offense, defense and special teams.