Who was the best free agent signing in Washington History

burgold

Super Bowl MVP
Staff member
BGO Ownership Group
Joe Gibbs Club Member
2nd Monthly Contributor
Joined
Jul 16, 2011
Messages
8,143
Reaction score
6,785
Points
643
This is a really hard one. It could have been one of the USFL guys like Gary Clark. Maybe it was Wilbur Marshall. London Fletcher was great for us for several years. I bet there were some amazing guys back in the George Allen days and before even though free agency didn't really exist.

I guess the answer lies partly on how you define "best," too. Were they the best because we recognized something in the player and got them for dirt cheap and they became a star here? Were they the best simply because they were Hall of Fame quality? Were they the "best" because they signed your kid's football at training camp one year and played toss with him for a minute?

In any case, prodigy suggested this thread and I thought it was fodder for a great offseason topic. I can't wait to see the deep cuts and names we pull out of our collective memories or reremember those players who dominated the stat sheets or just were great for us!

Thanks for the idea, prodigy... and I suspect you were half joking when you said ES has scared you off of starting threads, but it really is okay to do so here. Every thought deserves to be a thread! (Well, maybe not, but thoughts that don't deserve to be a thread just fall off the first page and it's not a big deal.)
 
Adam Archuleta lol 😝…. Maybe London Fletcher… DeAngelo Hall wasn’t bad either….but the 1 FA I wish would have signed here was Reggie White… remember it was between us and the Packers… he chose the Packers
 
As a longtime lurker on the other board, I’d like to preface my first post with appreciation for the regulars here. Unusually high ratio of signal to noise.

The answer to the question, in my lifetime anyway, is Joe Jacoby.
 
Garcon has to be one of the top picks, that dude was a DUDE


To that point, could you imagine Garcon being on THIS team? Holy crap.
 
a few that haven't been named, off the top of my head, that I liked:
- Henry Ellard
- Terry Allen
- Shawn Springs
 
IMG_5609.jpeg

Sometimes Terry runs with some physicality that reminds me of Garçon, but Garçon brought that on every play. Dude ran angry.
 
Ken Harvey and Wilbur Marshall.

Harvey made the pro bowl 4 times, all with the Redskins. He was also 2nd team All Pro twice.
 
Bigwig said:
As a longtime lurker on the other board, I’d like to preface my first post with appreciation for the regulars here. Unusually high ratio of signal to noise.

The answer to the question, in my lifetime anyway, is Joe Jacoby.
Click to expand...
I wasn't thinking in terms of UDFAs, but that is a great call. Lurk less :)
 
Riggo and Williams paid obvious dividends.

Wilbur Marshall played like man possessed In Super Bowl XXVI.
 
Anselmheifer said:
Does Santana not count because it was a trade?
Click to expand...
To me the answer would be no for the same reasons I would not call Jim Lachey the best free agent pickup.

I think the obvious choices have already been mentioned. How about Gary Clark, does that count or was he a supplemental draft pick?
 
Last edited:
Just looking up the history of free agency is interesting:

Here's a more detailed look at the history of free agency in the NFL:
  • 1920-1946: The Reserve Rule
    - Teams had the right to re-sign players indefinitely, effectively locking them into a team for life.

  • 1947-1962: The One-Year Option Rule
    - Players could negotiate with any team after their option year was up.

  • 1963-1976: The Rozelle Rule
    - The Commissioner could award compensation to the team losing a free agent.

  • 1977-1988: Right of First Refusal and Compensation
    - Teams had the option to match offers for their players, and signing teams had to compensate the team losing the player.

  • 1989-1992: Plan B Free Agency
    - Teams could protect 37 players, and the remaining players became unrestricted free agents.

  • 1993: The NFL's Current Free Agency System
    - The White Settlement created unrestricted free agency for veterans, but also introduced the ability for teams to franchise tag a player.
 
Anselmheifer said:
Does Santana not count because it was a trade?
Click to expand...
Correct. Santana was not a free agent. You could choose Lavernious Coles though. He had a helluva year before he decided he wanted to get paid more than play.

Santana is a candidate for best trade though :)
 
Darrell Green Fan said:
To me the answer would be no for the same reasons I would not call Jim Lachey the best free agent pickup.

I think the obvious choices have already been mentioned. How about Gary Clark, does that count or was he a supplemental draft pick?
Click to expand...
I think Gary counts. He was a free agent via the USFL. What I can't remember is whether there was a "draft" of some type in which teams could make a claim on players. I remember the big prizes were like Jim Kelly and I want to say Bo Jackson?
 
burgold said:
I think Gary counts. He was a free agent via the USFL. What I can't remember is whether there was a "draft" of some type in which teams could make a claim on players. I remember the big prizes were like Jim Kelly and I want to say Bo Jackson?
Click to expand...

Without Googling, hadn't all the USFL players already been drafted by the NFL? Meaning that, they could play in other leagues (or sports as Elway threatened) but the individual teams who had drafted them held their NFL rights once the USFL had folded.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Users Who Are Viewing This Thread (Total: 1, Members: 0, Guests: 1)

Help Users

You haven't joined any rooms.

    You haven't joined any rooms.
    Top