The Washington Redskins are among three teams interested in trading for disgruntled wide receiver Antonio Brown. According to Adam Schefter of ESPN, the Redskins, Oakland Raiders, and Tennessee Titans have emerged as the most interested in landing Brown.
The Antonio Brown sweepstakes could come down to a battle between brothers Jon Gruden — the head coach of the Raiders — and Jay Gruden — the head coach of the Redskins, technically.
Oakland is looking to replace Amari Cooper, who they traded to the Dallas Cowboys last season, only to see him blossom within their offense. Washington has a huge void at wide receiver for the past two seasons after parting ways with both DeSean Jackson and Pierre Garcon.
Last season, the Redskins’ passing game struggled mightily with Alex Smith at quarterback and even more so after he suffered a gruesome leg injury in Week 11.
The Redskins have turned to projects for their No. 1 wide receiver in each of the past two seasons, only to fail. Terrelle Pryor had a disastrous 2017 season that ended in him going on IR. Paul Richardson was signed in 2018 but he too struggled with production and injury, landing on IR with a shoulder injury.
While Washington sorts out their quarterback position in wake of Smith’s injury, there is still a need to improve their receivers. Josh Docston is on the cusp of being labeled a bust after three disappointing seasons. Jamison Crowder is a free agent and the chances of him going to another team is high.
Having the most interest doesn’t guarantee landing Brown. Both the Raiders and Titans are in desperate need of a top wide receiver as well. The price of a player the caliber of Brown could be driven up even with his rocky divorce with the Pittsburgh Steelers that has put Brown’s character in question.
Brown has made it clear his issues are with his quarterback Ben Roethlisberger and the way the QB points blame at other players with Pittsburgh’s struggles. He took another swipe at Roethlisberger while appearing on LeBron James’ HBO series The Shop.
However, production is production. And we’ll have to see how much the Redskins are willing to levy to land Brown.
