Redskins show desperation, Dolphins get great value for Taylor

Looking at all the stories about the Miami Dolphins' trade of Jason Taylor to the Washington Redskins, you would think the Dolphins got fleeced.

The reality is the Dolphins got the better end of the deal.

The Redskins could have just let Demetric Evans replace the injured Phillip Daniels. (Getty Images)

You can praise all you want the proactive ways of the Redskins, how they filled a need just hours after starting defensive end Phillip Daniels went down for the season with a knee injury. You can praise their foresight of having enough cap room to fit in Taylor's huge salary -- for a change -- as well.

But last time I checked the Redskins weren't exactly being penciled in as a Super Bowl favorite. Playing in perhaps the toughest division in football, they are the fourth team in a four-team division.

Better than Dallas? No. The Giants? No. The Eagles? No.

So does getting Taylor put them over the top? No.

The Redskins get a 33-year-old defensive end -- he will be 34 in September -- who didn't play as well last season as he had in previous seasons. He's two years removed from being the Defensive Player of the Year, but when things start to go downhill for older players they can go fast.

He had 11 sacks, which is better than any Redskins player had last year, but he wasn't as effective, according to some scouts.

"Watching the tape from last season, he just wasn't the same player," said one team's personnel chief. "He wasn't worth more than a fourth-round pick."

I agree.

The Redskins gave up a second-round pick in next year's draft and a sixth the following year. That's too pricey.

They also inherit Taylor's $8.1 million salary, which eats up almost all of their remaining cap room. There is also no guarantee that Taylor plays longer than one season.

The biggest issue, one overlooked by all, is that Taylor now moves from the right side to the left end position. That might not seem like a major move, but it requires a player who can anchor in against the run.

Daniels excelled as a run end. Taylor does not. The knock on him in his career is that teams could run at him consistently. He improved as he got older, but he isn't a great run player.

Andre Carter will play right end, Taylor the left side. Look for teams to pound it at the right side against the Redskins defense.

So let's cool the hoopla surrounding this deal and call it what it truly is, which is a desperate act. Couldn't the Redskins have just played Demetric Evans there and moved on?

Fans love deals that involved big-name players. Most of the time, these backfire for the teams that get that player.

This one will be no different.

Taylor for a second-round pick is a fleecing all right. It's the Dolphins that did the fleecing.