#1 Priority this offseason...

...No brainer, re-sign London Fletcher!

They were just talking about if Fletcher would be re-signed or be leaving on Redskins Nation.  They seriously must be running out of stuff to talk about because this really shouldn't even be an issue.  London is by far the best player on our football team, re-signing him should be the first thing we do this offseason.

I agree but I wonder what good old London is looking for.  imean we are his 3rd team so he is not above walking to the highest bidder.... I think 3 years 30M with half of it being a signing bonus should be about right for a player of his age and ability.

I really dont think money matters all to much to Fletch, and he's already said that he would like to retire a Redskin.  I'd do whatever it takes to keep him in the burgundy and gold.

LOL all the smart ones say that until they get low balled by their team, because the player has made them think they can get a home team discount becuase good old so-and-so doesn't care about the money and just wants to stay a whatever team,and then they cry they were disrespected. The fans love them, blame the team, and the player gets the fat deal he wanted to begin with from somebody ready to win a SB like NE. I agree Fletcher should not and will not negotiate in the press becaue he is a classy guy, but this is his last chance to get paid and he is going to get paid. Count on that. His last contract was like stealing as we only paid him 25M over 5 years. He was worth double and now he will expect and deserve to get his back pay. 10per year for 3-4 years with half guaranteed shouldnt be too much of an insult.

This is the direct quote of what Fletcher actually said. Sounds like hedging your bets to me......

"I'll take some time to sit back and reflect on the season, reflect on my time here in Washington," Fletcher said in the wake of Sunday's 34-10 loss at Philadelphia. "I like playing here. I believe in coach Shanahan. I like playing for the Washington Redskins. ... Call me crazy. When I came (in 2007) here I wanted to help establish a tradition, get them back to the Redskins of old. Obviously, there's a business aspect that has to be worked out. My first choice would be stay here in Washington if they want me. It's really up to them if I'm here or not. ... I was also told I was wanted in St. Louis and I was wanted in Buffalo. They wanted me, but their level of want and my level of appreciation wasn't the same."

The big difference between here and Buffalo and St Louis is that we really do want him here.  Mike Shanahan has already come out and said that re-signing Fletcher is a top priority.  Fletcher deserves to get a good contract and I think Bruce Allen will treat him well,

We ar all on the same page. We all want him back. Shanahan said it was a priority, not a top priority, but that is semantic. i am sure that he wants him back. i am also sure most teams who lose their free agents that want more than they are willing to pay, wanted their guy back, but there is point where someone else may be willing to pay enough more that we just can't match it and continue withe the rebuildng process. Those are just the logistics of it all unfortunately.

My only point is don't be romanticized by London Fletcher. He is a superior player and a class act, but he was that when he walked form his last two teams and this is his last contract so he needs to make it count. 

I don't think there is any doubt that he can make any contender better and could take a very good defense and make it a SB defense. Teams that are in that position may be willing to do that for a lot of money if they think they can win now. 

I like London Fletcher and all that but at 36, I'm not giving him 10 million a year. Especially when so much of his play at his position is depended on athleticism.

At some point he has to hit the wall.

I'd rather let him hit it somewhere else.

I like London Fletcher and all that but at 36, I'm not giving him 10 million a year. Especially when so much of his play at his position is depended on athleticism

i disagree.  the guy is clearly still an elite MLB/ILB and we have no solution outside of him.

i think it comes down to does he want money or to win.

and for his sake, i would like to see him move on.  let him go to the Packers, Patriots, Ravens, Steelers, or Saints and let him prove on the biggest stages that he is one of the top 2-3 MLB of his generation.

If we do the right things in the draft and free agency we should be a contender next season.  If we don't re-sign Fletcher I think our defense will take a big step back.

I like London Fletcher and all that but at 36, I'm not giving him 10 million a year. Especially when so much of his play at his position is depended on athleticism.

At some point he has to hit the wall.

I'd rather let him hit it somewhere else.

Whoa. Fletcher is more than just a 36 year old ILB, he is the face, the heart of our defense. That is very important, more than you think mate.

Every defense, any team needs a leader, a strong one to lead them and we are very lucky we got Fletcher. Ray Lewis, Urlacher, Patrick Willis, Jonathan Vilma are great leaders at MLB and their defense play much better when those guys are balling.

If Fletcher was breaking down in 2011, I would probably think twice but the guy is our leading tackler since he came here, not to mention the whole NFL and showing no signs yet that is he slowing down.

I read Homer's article that gives an excerpt of Fletcher giving Kerrigan a peptalk after the last game vs the Eagles, Fletcher was encouraging Kerrigan to keep up the great work he has done and continue to improve for next season. That's the leadership we need in this team, we need for the next few years, even if Fletcher might start to 'break' down and become the 2nd or 3rd leading tackler in this team.

SIGN him ASAP.

I like London Fletcher and all that but at 36, I'm not giving him 10 million a year. Especially when so much of his play at his position is depended on athleticism.

At some point he has to hit the wall.

I'd rather let him hit it somewhere else.

I would agree that he might get 3 years for $6 mil per from me.  And he isn't headed for a wall... he is headed for a cliff, and eventually he is going to fall straight off.

He is my favorite player on the team, and I expect him back. 

He's a great player, but no team out there is going to offer him more money than the Redskins by a long shot.


HAIL!

I'd make him the highest paid linebacker in the league just to reward him for being one of 3 or 4 players on our team over the past several seasons who brings 100% to the field every Sunday . I'd really love to see London with some sort of coaching position on the skins when his body can longer keep up with his passion to play the game. 

I completely agree with you Cracker, we have the money and if there is any player on our team or in this league that is deserving of a nice contract extension it's London...He is the epitome of class, if only we could have 53 London Fletcher's.

  I'd make him the highest paid linebacker in the league just to reward him .... I'd really love to see London with some sort of coaching position on the skins when his body can longer keep up with his passion to play the game. 

i disagree, in football you can't give the derek jeter lifetime true-up contract.

if you want to repay him, give him an over paid spokesperson/consultant job after his career

I'd make him the highest paid linebacker in the league just to reward him for being one of 3 or 4 players on our team over the past several seasons who brings 100% to the field every Sunday . I'd really love to see London with some sort of coaching position on the skins when his body can longer keep up with his passion to play the game.

I don't disagree with the sentiment... but this is the 3rd year, and with a few pieces in place already, and the Redskins $50 million under the cap at the start of Free Agency with a deep free agency class.

I mean, this is the year we've been waiting for since 1999 when Danny dismantled a team that was about two seasons from a Super Bowl.

$6 million per for Fletcher is fair and is WAY more that anyone else in the league will offer him.

We need to be smart with our money, he'll be well taken care of by the organization for the rest of his life, and he's smart, I think he would rather the Redskins go get some playmakers and take 4-5 mil and get another ring before he takes the biggest check on the team.


HAIL! 

I would agree that he might get 3 years for $6 mil per from me.  And he isn't headed for a wall... he is headed for a cliff, and eventually he is going to fall straight off.

For 3 years I'd give him $24 million.  If he falls off the cliff in two years then we 'overpaid' him by $4 million which I would GLADLY give to him then to ANY OTHER PLAYER who took more than $10 million to sit on the bench, play somewhere else, or just be fat and lazy.  This guy has earned it more than anyone else on the team imo.

totally agree, pay the man he deserves it more than anyone else on our team.

On top of that, I belive it sets a good example for ownership/player relations to resign and pay him what he's worth right NOW.  If you wokr and play hard and have a HoF career you should be able to get a pretty phat contract at the end of your career...rather then be cast off to the mist of forgettableness (see: Clinton Portis, Lavar Arrington, etc.).

The NFL draft is still roughly three months away, but with the East-West Shrine game taking place this week, and the Senior Bowl next week, and the NFL combine a month from now, the buzz has gotten underway.

ESPN draft analyst Mel Kiper Jr. released his first mock draft on Wednesday, and today hosted a conference call and offered his opinion on the early projections.

The Redskins currently hold the sixth overall pick, but Kiper believes that the team will have a tough time getting a much-needed franchise quarterback at that pick. Stanford’s Andrew Luck is a shoo-in for the first pick, and Kiper believes Baylor quarterback Robert Griffin III will go anywhere from second to fourth.

Unless the Redskins are able to trade up to get Griffin before Cleveland (the next QB-needy team after Indianapolis), Kiper predicts that Mike Shanahan & Co. would draft for need and take LSU’s Morris Claiborne.

The 6-foot, 185-pound Claiborne last season recorded six interceptions and 51 tackles for LSU and could help bolster a Redskins secondary that recorded only 10 interceptions and is in need of a strong nickelback.

“There’s no other quarterback after [Griffin] to even consider in the early to mid first round, or even the late first as well. I don’t see a quarterback figuring in there,” Kiper said. “Claiborne, to me, it’s a need area. It’s a kid that has a high grade. [Oklahoma State receiver Justin] Blackmon I think will be gone by then. ... I’d put Claiborne there because other guys I was considering [for Washington], I feel will be off the board.”

But what about quarterback?

After Luck and Griffin, the pedigree appears to drop off significantly, but Washington still could wind up with a quarterback. The Redskins have a high second-round pick, and Kiper doesn’t believe any of the other quarterbacks in the draft are first-round worthy.

“The guys you’re looking at would be Brock Osweiler from Arizona State, who I think would be a little high for, same thing with Nick Foles from Arizona, or Ryan Tannehill from Texas A&M. So those will be your next three quarterbacks with no specific order right now, because we’re still very early in the process.”

Kiper points out there are questions about each of those passers, and they could be more developmental players than franchise saviors.

Tannehill was set to display his talents in the Senior Bowl, but now will miss the game with a broken foot. He could have helped his stock with a strong performance during Senior Bowl week, Kiper believes. Also hurting Tannehill is the fact that he has struggled in big games.

The knock against Osweiler is his questionable decision-making (too many games with multiple interceptions), and Foles struggles with accuracy at times as well.

Brandon Weeden from Oklahoma State is an interesting prospect, but he will be a 29-year-old rookie, and he too has accuracy issues. So Kiper projects him to go in the third round.