The Washington Redskins are doing it right in 2015. Lake Lewis of Sports Journey has confirmed that the team has just re-signed tight end Niles Paul for three years and up to $10 million. It is a cap-friendly contract, safe for the team with $2.5M guaranteed with $1M signing bonus. Earlier in the offseason, there was talk of Paul being courted by the Atlanta Falcons but the Redskins did the right thing by locking him up.
One of the knocks on this team over the years has been that they make big-time free agent signings during the off-season before – or in some cases, without – taking care of their own guys… guys they drafted and who have worked hard throughout their time in Washington. Not this year. This year, the team has started off on the right foot by re-signing a home-grown guy like Paul, a guy they drafted in 2011 in the fifth round out of Nebraska.
Paul was originally drafted as a wide receiver but was converted to tight end back in 2012 under former head coach Mike Shanahan’s tutelage. When the move was made, Shanahan went so far as to compare the former Cornhusker to his Hall of Fame tight end Shannon Sharpe who played for the Denver Broncos while Shanahan was an offensive assistant there.
It wasn’t an unfair comparison in terms of the two players’ similarities to each other. Physically they were similar to each other with Paul being an inch shorter and a bit heavier than the Hall of Famer. Both were really good wide receivers while in college. Both were drafted in the later rounds (Sharpe was taken in the seventh round). And, believe it or not, Sharpe wore the number 84 on his jersey, as does Paul.
Shanahan didn’t get to two Super Bowls by being stupid and moving Paul to tight end was one smart move. The Nebraska product is fast… he ran a 4.45 40-yard dash at the 2011 Combine. Shanahan saw a good pass protection blocker in Paul and he has been a special teams standout since coming to the team. As a pass catcher, the former wide out is an exceptional route runner. Seems he was made to be a tight end and props should be given to Shanahan for finding a way to keep Paul on the team after Washington signed Pierre Garçon and Josh Morgan back in 2012.
The other two tight ends currently on the Redskins’ roster, Jordan Reed and Logan Paulsen are completely different players. Reed excels as a slot receiver although he seems to have a bit of a hard time staying healthy. Paulsen, while not as talented at catching passes, has been willing to do whatever the team asks of him.
But over Paul’s tenure in Washington, he has played in almost every game. The times that Jordan Reed has been injured, Paul has filled in admirably for him. In 2014 he put together a career year, catching 39 balls for 507 yards and averaging 13 yards per catch. His longest last year was 50 yards with one touchdown. In his four years with the Redskins, he has 53 receptions for 735 yards with an average of 13.9 yards per catch and two touchdowns. In the four years, he has fumbled the ball only once.
New general manager Scot McCloughan is making his mark on the team and taking care of their productive draft picks, beginning with Paul. Well done Redskins.
Hail.