Redskins Acquire Quarterback Case Keenum in Unexpected Move

The Washington Redskins made a trade for a quarterback Thursday evening. But it wasn’t who many had expected.

In a move that came completely out of left-field, the Redskins acquired Case Keenum from the Denver Broncos.

The #Broncos and #Redskins have agreed to terms on a trade to send QB Case Keenum to Washington for draft picks and with an adjusted contract, sources say. Broncos get Skins 6th, Washington get a 7th.

— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) March 7, 2019

On the surface, the deal appears to be somewhat of a low-risk move. The Redskins acquire a potential starting quarterback, and give up very little draft capital in return. In fact, his acquisition merely cost a swap of picks in next year’s draft.

Broncos have trade parameters with Washington for QB Case Keenum: Broncos get WAS 6th in 2020, WAS gets Broncos 7th in '20, per source. Keenum's contract reworked. Broncos pay him $500K restructure bonus and pay $3.5 million of his $7M salary. Washington pays $3.5 mi. #9sports

— Mike Klis (@MikeKlis) March 7, 2019

As can be seen above, the Redskins simply exchanged their 2020 sixth-round pick for the Broncos seventh-round pick. Further sweetening the deal is the fact that the Broncos are willing to eat a portion of Keenum’s salary. If reports are correct, the Redskins will be paying Keenum 3.5 million dollars next year.

So if all of the terms are what they appear to be: Here's the cap hits for #Redskins now.

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Case Keenum: $3.5 M (full guarantee)

Colt McCoy: $3.375 M (2 M full. guaranteed).

Alex Smith: $20.4 M (100% fully guaranteed)

Total: $27.275 against 2019 Cap. #Redskins #NFL https://t.co/pOOnwNHjMU

— Chris Russell (@Russellmania621) March 7, 2019

Three-and-a-half million dollars is a meager salary for a starting-caliber quarterback in the NFL. In fact, if you add up the salaries of Keenum, Colt McCoy, and Alex Smith, their compounded salary of 27.275M is still less than Kirk Cousins; who will earn 27.5M next year for the Minnesota Vikings.

Next Steps?

This trade is a peculiar one, for it may have a domino effect in next month’s NFL draft. Where do the Broncos go with the 10th pick? Although they have acquired Joe Flacco, they may not view him as a long-term solution at quarterback. Remember, he was benched midway through the season last year. They have also been linked to Missouri’s Drew Lock in the first round.

The Redskins now have two capable, but middling, options at the quarterback position. Will they remain content and proceed into 2019 with this current quarterback group? Or will they look to other options with free agency and the draft upcoming?

Regardless, it’s safe to say that this was an unexpected acquisition. It’ll be interesting to see what transpires next.