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The Washington Redskins waste no time in shoring up their cornerback position by signing restricted free agent Quinton Dunbar to a three-year deal a day after their season ended. Dunbar posted the signing on his Instagram account.
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Dunbar was an undrafted free agent at wide receiver when the Redskins signed him in 2015. They moved him to cornerback due to a rash of training camp injuries that season. He has since blossomed into one of the better outside cornerbacks in the NFL with great size standing at 6-foot-2 and speed that clocked in at 4.44.
Dunbar has learned the ins and outs of the cornerback position in the three seasons playing it. While only playing a total of 373 snaps, Dunbar graded out higher in pass coverage and overall than both Josh Norman and Bashaud Breeland, the Redskins’ top-2 outside corners, according to Pro Football Focus.
In fact, the re-signing of Dunbar more than likely spells the end of Breeland’s tenure with the Redskins. Breeland will be an unrestricted free agent. While details of Dunbar’s deal have not yet been released, he is certain to come at a much cheaper price than Breeland.
Breeland struggled over the past two seasons despite showing flashes of great coverage. In a Week 14 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers, Breeland was benched in favor of Dunbar.
Dunbar will have the opportunity to lock in the No. 2 outside cornerback position opposite of Norman in 2018. He will have some competition from 2017 third-round pick Fabian Moreau. However, it may be Dunbar’s position to lose. Kendall Fuller will man the slot corner position. Fuller had a breakout sophomore campaign in 2017, landing the recognition as one of the best slot corners in the NFL.
The prospect of Dunbar and Norman on the outside with Fuller in the slot serves just as formidable as this past season’s trio with Breeland. Corner was the least of Washington’s concerns moving into this upcoming off-season in large due to the development of Dunbar. Now they can move on to address other positions across the roster, including quarterback and inside linebacker.
