The Redskins have re-signed 27-year old DE Adam Carriker to a 4-year, $20 million dollar deal.  Carriker played in all 16 games for the Redskins last year and he had 34 tackles and 5.5 sacks.  He has now played in 32 games in his first two years with the Redskins and he has 71 tackles, 7 sacks, 4 tackles for a loss, 1 fumble recovery and 1 pass defensed.  It was smart of the Redskins to re-sign Carriker as he is turning into the player the Rams thought he was going to be when they drafted him a few years ago.

The Redskins have signed 25-year old WR Pierre Garcon to a 5-year, $42.5 million dollar deal.  Garcon played in all 16 games for the Colts last year and he caught 70 passes for 947 yards (13.5 avg) with 6 TD grabs.  He also carried the ball 4 times for 28 yards (7.0 ypc) last year for the Colts.  He has now played in 58 games in his first four years in the NFL in which he has caught 188 passes for 2,519 yards (13.4 avg) with 16 TD grabs and he has also carried the ball 8 times for 44 yards (5.5 ypc).  Garcon will likely be the Redskins’ #1 WR in 2012 and that’s a good thing.  He has the game breaking kind of speed that the Redskins lacked at WR in 2012.

The Redskins have released 30-year old safety O.J. Atogwe.  Atogwe played in all 16 games for the Redskins last year and he had 60 tackles, 3 interceptions, 6 passes defensed, 1/2 a sack and 1 tackle for a loss.  He has now played in 101 games in his first seven years in the NFL and he has 453 tackles, 25 interceptions (1 returned for a TD), 48 passes defensed, 5.5 sacks, 16 forced fumbles and 8 tackles for a loss.  The Redskins are going to have to add getting some safeties to their off-season shopping list.

The Redskins have released 36-year old fullback Mike Sellers.  Sellers played in 12 games for the Redskins last year and he didn’t have any carries.  He caught 1 pass for 15 yards and he also had six tackles last year.  Sellers has played in 174 games in his first 12 years in the NFL (11 with the Redskins) and he has carried the ball 50 times for 158 yards (3.2 ypc) with 3 TD runs.  Sellers has caught 123 passes for 1,095 yards (8.9 avg) with 18 TD grabs in his career.  Sellers also has 78 tackles, 2 forced fumbles and 2 fumble recoveries so far in his career.  The Redskins will miss Sellers’ blocking and special teams work in 2012.

The Redskins have acquired the #2 overall pick in a deal with the St. Louis Rams, but it didn’t come cheap.  The Redskins shipped their first round picks in 2012 (#6 overall), 2013 and 2014.  They also sent the Rams their second round pick in 2012 as part of the deal.  The Redskins are after Robert Griffin III out of Baylor.  They are desperate for a franchise type QB and they have paid a steep price to get one, but if Griffin is the real deal…..this move will be more than worth it.

The Redskins have used the franchise tag on 26-year old TE Fred Davis to lock him up for 2012.  Davis played in 12 games for the Redskins last year and he caught 59 passes for 796 yards (13.5 avg) with 3 TD grabs.  He has now played in 55 games in his first four years with the Redskins and he has caught 131 passes for 1,648 yards (12.6 avg) with 12 TD grabs.  This was a smart move for the Redskins as Davis was the best receiver they had in 2011.

The Redskins have re-signed 30-year old DE Darrion Scott.  Scott played in 7 games for the Redskins last year and he had 4 tackles and 1 tackle for a loss.  He has now played in 9 games in his first two years with the Redskins and he has six tackles and 1 tackle for a loss.  Scott has now played in 57 games in his first six years in the NFL and he has 134 tackles, 9.5 sacks, 6 tackles for a loss, 1 forced fumble, 3 fumble recoveries and 6 passes defensed.  Scott is nothing more than a backup player and he might have a hard time making the team in 2012.

The Redskins have re-signed 29-year old center Will Montgomery to a 4-year deal.  Montgomery played in 16 games (all starts) for the Redskins last year and has now played in 45 games (25 starts) in his first four years with the Redskins.  Montgomery has now played in 58 games (31 starts) in his first six years in the NFL.  This was a very solid move for the Redskins as Montgomery has developed into a very solid player.

The Redskins finally decided to make some picks in a NFL Draft instead of trading them all away for veterans and they found some nice players for the future. Here is a look at how the rookie class did in 2011:

23-year old OLB Ryan Kerrigan was the Redskins’ first round pick last April. Kerrigan played in all 16 games for the Redskins last year and he had 63 tackles, 7.5 sacks, 4 tackles for a loss, 4 forced fumbles, 4 passes defensed and a interception that he returned for a TD. Kerrigan is going to be a beast on the Redskins’ D for a long, long time.

23-year old DE Jarvis Jenkins was a 2nd round pick last April. He was a beast in the pre-season before suffering a torn ACL and spending his rookie season on I.R. The Redskins hope he can stay healthy next season as he has a huge upside.

22-year old WR Leonard Hankerson was a 3rd round pick for the Redskins. He played in 4 games for the Redskins last year and he caught 13 passes for 163 yards (12.5 avg). His season was cut short due to injury, but the Redskins like what they saw out of him in 2011.

23-year old RB Roy Helu was picked in the 4th round by the Redskins. He played in 15 games for the Redskins last year and he carried the ball 151 times for 640 yards (4.2 ypc) with 2 TD runs. Helu also caught 49 passes for 379 yards (7.7 avg) with 1 TD grab. He looks like another steal for head coach Mike Shanahan, as he likes looking for RBs late in the draft.

22-year old safety Dejon Gomes was a 5th round pick by the Skins. He played in 15 games as a rookie for the Redskins last year and he had 35 tackles and 2 passes defensed. Gomes could be a starter down the road for the Redskins.

22-year old WR Niles Paul was also a 5th round pick by the Skins. He played in 13 games for the Redskins in 2011 in which he caught 2 passes for 25 yards (12.5 avg) and carried the ball 1 time for 7 yards. Paul also returned 1 kickoff for 15 yards and 1 punt for 0 yards.

24-year old RB Evan Royster was picked in the 6th round by the Skins. He played in 6 games for the Redskins last year and he carried the ball 56 times for 328 yards (5.9 ypc). Royster also caught 10 passes for 76 yards (7.6 avg). He will likely battle it out with Roy Helu for the starting RB job in training camp.

23-year old WR Aldrick Robinson was picked in the sixth round by the Redskins. He didn’t play in any games in 2011.

22-year old CB Brandyn Thompson was picked in the 7th round. He played in 6 games for the Redskins last year and he had 2 tackles.

24-year old OG Maurice Hurt was picked in the 7th round by the Redskins. He played in 8 games (all starts) for the Redskins last year as he was a major steal for the Skins so late in the draft.

24-year old LB Markus White was picked in the 7th round by the Skins. He played in 2 games but didn’t make any tackles.

24-year old NT Chris Neild was a 7th round pick too. He played in all 16 games for the Redskins last year and he had 10 tackles and 2 sacks. He was a nice find so late in the draft.

GRADE FOR 2011: B+

GRADE FOR THE FUTURE: A+

The Washington Redskins need to clear the deck and bring in some new QBs for the 2012 season.  31-year old Rex Grossman was 5-8 (38.5%) as the Redskins’ starting QB in 2011.  He played in 13 games (all starts) for the Redskins last year and he completed 265 of 458 passes (57.9%) for 3,151 yards with 16 TD passes and 20 INTs (72.4 QB Rating).  He also carried the ball 20 times for 11 yards (0.6 ypc) with 1 TD run last year.  Grossman has now played in 54 games (47 starts) so far in his NFL career and he has completed 863 of 1,562 passes (55.2%) for 10,232 yards with 56 TD passes and 60 INTs (71.4 QB Rating).  He also has carried the ball 81 times for 106 yards (1.3 ypc) with 4 TD runs in his NFL career so far.  Grossman is now 25-22 (53.2%) as a starting QB during the regular season in his NFL career.  I can see the Redskins bringing Grossman back as a backup in 2012, but they need a new starting QB.

30-year old John Beck was a bust for the Redskins as they were 0-3 in his starts.  Beck played in 4 games (3 starts) for the Redskins last year and he completed 80 of 132 passes (60.6%) for 858 yards with 2 TD passes and 4 INTs (72.1 QB Rating).  He also carried the ball 10 times for 43 yards (4.3 ypc) with 2 TD runs last year.  Beck has now played in 9 games (7 starts) so far in his NFL career and he has completed 140 of 239 passes (58.6%) for 1,417 yards with 3 TD passes and 7 INTs (67.6 QB Rating).  He has also carried the ball 19 times for 55 yards (2.9 ypc) with 3 TD runs in his NFL career.  Beck is now 0-7 as a starting QB in his NFL career.