Gee, to go by social media, Brian Orakpo is done in DC.
Schoolchildren and sports fans can be so cruel.
Orakpo is lost to the Redskins for the season after tearing his right pectoral muscle in the Titans game. He twice tore his left pectoral muscle. It led to the loss of substantial time in 2011. Then the injury forced him to miss 14 games in 2012.
The twitterverse reacted with glee. He not worth the money! He’s no franchise player. Finished!
Pu-LEASE, people. The man isn’t slacking (cough: Haynesworth). He is injured. Those first tweets about Orakpo were downright embarrassing to the Redskins faithful.
And they are so wrong
Orakpo is more likely to play for Washington next season than for any other team.
The scenario will follow the pattern set in 2012 by the Redskins and London Fletcher.
Fletch wanted to remain with the Redskins at the end of his contract, but not for the number they were offering. He tested the market, very likely with a hip pocket offer from Washington. There were no better offers. He signed the Redskins’ two-year, $10.75 million deal.
This was a bad deal from Washington’s perspective. Fletch under-performed his contract. He still counts as $2 million in dead cap money. That might have covered a sorely needed safety or tackle. We are not complaining, though. It’s London Effin’ Fletcher.
Offering contracts for the appropriate value is what smart teams do. It is a legacy of the Shanahan era.
Chicago’s contract with free agent DE Jared Allen doomed Orakpo’s hunt for a big payoff. ‘Rak is a hybrid outside linebacker. The Redskins sometimes deploy him to rush from the defensive end position as part of Jim Haslett’s versatile defense. Orakpo wanted a deal approaching the base salary of Panther’s DE Greg Hardy ($13.1M) and Rams DE Chris Long ($10.2M). The Redskins saw him as performing like Browns OLB Paul Kruger ($7M).
Then, 10-year veteran DE Jared Allen’s fire sale contract with the Bears gummed up the works. The Bears pay Allen $3 million in base salary. He is a five-time Pro Bowler and a four-time All Pro who scored double digit sacks since 2007. If a star like Allen can be low-balled, what chance did Orakpo have? He was wise to accept the Redskins’ fully guaranteed Franchise offer that made him the best paid OLB for a season.
Nobody loves you like the team what drafted you.
The new CBA squeezes vets who risk pricing themselves out of the market. Negotiating leverage is with the owners; more proof that the union lost the lockout war.
Even when healthy, Orakpo has not performed like DE J.J. Watt. Houston signed Watt to a six-year, $100 million extension before the season. Watts’ base salary is $907, 385. It jumps to $9 million in 2015. The extension includes a signing bonus of $3.7 million. It is fully guaranteed for $30 million.
No team will offer ‘Rak that deal. Nor are they likely to match a Redskins’ offer. The Redskins will do nothing to hinder re-signing Robert Griffin III and Alfred Morris. We think a healthy Orakpo will be offered a base salary of $5-7 million.
Even that is dependent on the Redskins retaining Jim Haslett as defensive coordinator. All bets are off if there is a new DC next season.
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