Dwayne Haskins’ time as the quarterback for Washington D.C.’s football team has to be one of the shortest tenures for a first-round signal caller in history. And I’m not trying to be overly hyperbolic with this post. Seriously.
The Haskins era is already over in Washington, D.C.:
Washington has released QB Dwayne Haskins, per me and @TomPelissero.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) December 28, 2020
Sixteen games. Thirteen starts. Four hundred forty-four pass attempts. Twelve touchdowns. Fourteen interceptions. Two seasons. That’s it. A short leash for the 15th overall pick in the 2019 NFL Draft, to be sure. But then again, it’s not all that surprising considering Haskins himself told reporters in our nation’s capital that he felt as if he was on his last chance with the organization as recently as five days ago.
Haskins’ final week as Washington’s quarterback was a rough one. He lost his captaincy and took a $40,000 fine for violating the NFL’s COVID-19 protocols. It was Haskins’ second violation of the COVID-19 protocols, having been fined in October. Things weren’t much better on the field for Haskins, who was removed from his starting role and benched earlier October.
Despite a tumultuous 2020, Haskins is still immensely talented. He has a first-round pedigree and was a stud performer when showcased as Ohio State’s star player in 2018. Remember, Haskins threw for 4,831 yards and tossed 50 touchdowns against just 8 interceptions for the Buckeyes that season. He also earned All-Big Ten Honors and placed third in the Heisman Trophy voting. Clearly, there’s untapped potential here.
Sure, I’ll concede that his uneven play as a pro wasn’t up to snuff. But if all things are equal, I envision Haskins as an ideal candidate for someone who could use a clean slate and change of scenery. And while I have ideas of where that place could be *cough*Chicago*cough* that’s a consideration we can make another day.
UPDATE:
Some words from Haskins, via a tweet:
Former Washington QB Dwayne Haskins has released a statement on his time with WFT coming to an end. pic.twitter.com/vml5W71WIj
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) December 28, 2020
