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Redskins Sign LB Zach Brown

Boone

Boone

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For Immediate Release
April 3, 2017


REDSKINS SIGN LB ZACH BROWN


LOUDOUN COUNTY, Va. – The Washington Redskins announced today that they have signed unrestricted free agent linebacker Zach Brown. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Brown (6-1, 248) originally entered the NFL as a second-round pick (52nd overall) of the Tennessee Titans in the 2012 NFL Draft. In five combined seasons with the Titans (2012-15) and Buffalo Bills (2016), Brown has appeared in 65 career regular season games with 49 starts, compiling 408 career tackles (291 solo), 17 passes defensed, 14.0 sacks, seven interceptions (including two returned for touchdowns), four forced fumbles and three fumble recoveries.

In his lone season in Buffalo last year, Brown started all 16 games and led the AFC with 149 tackles (97 solo), second-most in the NFL. He also contributed 4.0 sacks, four passes defensed, two forced fumbles and an interception en route to earning his first career Pro Bowl selection.

Brown played collegiately at North Carolina, starting 23 of the 47 games in which he appeared for the Tar Heels. He recorded 230 career tackles (19 for loss), seven interceptions, 5.5 sacks, four passes defensed, three forced fumbles and a fumble recovery.

Brown, 27, attended Wilde Lake H.S. in Columbia, Md., where he earned All-Howard County honors as a senior after rushing for 1,537 yards and 20 touchdowns in addition to collecting more than 90 solo tackles. He was born Oct. 23, 1989.
 
Given his stats, I've been wondering why he sat on the market so long and wondered if he would be here for a visit. Plus... it would be funny to hear "Chicken Fried" over the PA every time he had a sack or INT or something... ;)

Nick
 
Hard for me to muster up excitement right now for this team but I have to admit they've had a few nice pickups so far. The draft will be interesting for sure. This signing gives us more flexibility there now.
 
Pending on the $ it seems a very solid signing at face value.
 
They got some much needed help considering how little depth they have at LB. A little over $4M with incentives. I don't know those details but if hits them probably money well spent and an upgrade against the run as well as the pass. That 10 yard area in the defensive backfield was pretty bad. You give up 40% of 3rd downs of 8+ yds; that's not good. Opposing TE's tore them apart.
 
This is exactly what they needed to do to get the most out of Compton. Brown should help disguise the lack of athleticism of Compton.
 
Certainly an area of great need. Hope to find a good one, or 2 in the draft, as well.
 
Any ideas where Hooker might fall in the draft? Even with the Swearinger signing, I'd still like to see us grab another Safety and Hooker is still a bit of a project with incredible upside, so I thought maybe he drops a little...no? Am I nuts here?
 
Win4us said:
Pending on the $ it seems a very solid signing at face value.
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Quietly signing a young pro-bowler to a reasonable contract in an area of need? That would be very very solid.

A very encouraging sign.
 
So we used MCGloughan's scouting picks before he came to D.C. and then left, anyone think we're still using his data? I assume we still have what he put together while here...no?
 
Perhaps I am just too cynical about this team right now but I have to wonder what a kid with his numbers is still doing on the market?
 
Neophyte said:
Perhaps I am just too cynical about this team right now but I have to wonder what a kid with his numbers is still doing on the market?
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He had interest from several teams including last seasons. Maybe it's as simple as he's from the area and wanted to play at home?
 
Neophyte said:
Perhaps I am just too cynical about this team right now but I have to wonder what a kid with his numbers is still doing on the market?
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Chris said:
He had interest from several teams including last seasons. Maybe it's as simple as he's from the area and wanted to play at home?
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And he knows Breeland, Norman and Swearinger from the SC area, and he took his time, to make sure it was the right decision.....and explains it all here (wants to "be around legendary diehard Redskins fans such as Fear The Spear", etc).

 
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Compton may be a 100% effort guy and favorite of the fans, but to me his limited athleticism is a major weakness on the defense. He seems to know where to go but just doesn't get there fast enough to be in position to make the solid tackles.

Brown is athletic and we don't have enough athletic players on defense.

Solid tackler as well.

The only negative here is Brown blossomed in Buffalo but looked ordinary in Tennessee for the most part.

So, the staff has to compare the situations and ensure that Brown is put in the best possible situation to succeed.
 
Neophyte said:
Perhaps I am just too cynical about this team right now but I have to wonder what a kid with his numbers is still doing on the market?
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I wondered the same for a while. He was a little mercurial in Tennessee and sometimes needed prodding. Can only hope he gets it now.

Nick
 
Bulldog's Twin said:
Compton may be a 100% effort guy and favorite of the fans, but to me his limited athleticism is a major weakness on the defense. He seems to know where to go but just doesn't get there fast enough to be in position to make the solid tackles.
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I agree and this was more evident toward the end of the season, he was playing banged up. In the run, he looked too slow less, mostly in the pass game. Hopefully Brown will help with this because Compton is a smart ILB, and runs the defense well. I don't see him being replaced this year so we have one more season to see if his off-season work with London Fletcher helps.
 
Neophyte said:
Perhaps I am just too cynical about this team right now but I have to wonder what a kid with his numbers is still doing on the market?
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A substantial number of FAs for many teams have taken one year deals. Many of these FAs believe they are worth much more and are willing to take one year, prove it deals. Reality will hit them again next offseason. It's just the way it is now in the NFL.

Also...

Brown's deal is for $2.3M with "likely to be earned" incentives doubling the contract. Truth be told, those incentives are never reached and that allows a team to carry over that amount to next year's cap. So add $2.3M to the Redskins cap for 2018. Terrelle Pryor has a similar incentives deal and $2M will carry over to 2018.

Another thing to keep in mind...

Josh Norman's cap drops by about $13M in 2018 and is very team friendly in the remaining years.

All of this means the Redskins cap swells to around $80M (for now) next year. Think Kirk Cousins. Now you come to the realization that he is here long term.
 
ntotoro said:
I wondered the same for a while. He was a little mercurial in Tennessee and sometimes needed prodding. Can only hope he gets it now.

Nick
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He's had a knock on him about his consistency since college. Once you get that tag it's kinda hard to shake off but obviously he'll have to show it's behind him and he will have the opportunity to do so. Maybe not getting signed sooner had a bit to do with an agent - who he replaced just before going back to talk to Buffalo.

As far as Tenn - last time he was a full time starter there was 2013 (missed all of '14 by injury). And in his first two years; under 750 snaps each. In 2015 in Tenn he was under 500 snaps. Last year in Buffalo almost 1ooo snaps. If you prorated his 2015 stats to 2016 snaps he was as good or better everywhere but sacks. That's pretty low mileage; 3ooo snaps in 4 years.
 
If I were the Redskins giving the way the draft board looks now in Round 1, I would draft Reddick to play ILB next to Zach Brown and then go into Rounds 2 and 3 and grab DT perhaps with both picks.

If Brown doesn't live up to his 2016 performance he is gone in 2018 but if he plays well and we can resign him then we are set at ILB for the next 3-4 years.

Meanwhile, we would have 2 new young DL to add to the 2 younger veteran free agent DEs we acquired in free agency.

At the end of the day, I just don't want to sit here in September and have a true DE TRYING to play NT in our scheme OR have trouble in coverage over the middle because our LBs are too slow to track down tailbacks, fullbacks and TEs.
 
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