The Dolphin
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- Mar 19, 2019
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If Washington hadn’t signed Ryan Fitzpatrick or any other quarterback in free agency, their potential interest in a quarterback with the nineteenth overall pick in the draft would have been glaring. With Fitzpatrick in the fold, it’s less obvious that they’ll grab at quarterback at No. 19.
That makes it more likely that they’ll have the option to take a quarterback they like.
If the depth chart had consisted simply of Kyle Allen and Taylor Heinecke come the commencement of the draft, any team picking below No. 19 with interest in whichever quarterbacks fell through the teens would have known that a move ahead of Washington was likely necessary. Now, those teams may be less inclined to make a move, rolling the dice on the possibility that Washington will stand pat with the players they have.
Fitzpatrick, who endured being benched in 2020 for a first-round rookie before becoming a relief pitcher in a sport that typically doesn’t deploy them, surely wouldn’t be thrilled with the prospect of being jerked around again. The $10 million base salary he’ll earn in 2021 — roughly double his Miami pay — could be a sign that he won’t have to deal with that again.
Which, in turn, makes it more likely that Washington will have the option to take a quarterback at No. 19.
No matter how it plays out, the move to sign Fitzpatrick enhances the possibility that there will be a suitable quarterback left on the board when Washington is on the clock, since it makes less glaring the team’s need at the position.