The Washington Redskins appear to be taking a slow-and-steady-wins-the-race approach to the off season. Good for them. With the exorbitant contracts signed league wide so far, it was the wrong off season to jump in with both guns blazing. After filling their two biggest needs early in free agency, all of their most recent signings have been depth players that have been here before.
Today the Redskins re-signed tight end Todd Yoder.
Yoder signed with Washington one game into last season, and found his way into the line-up for fourteen of the Redskins fifteen remaining games. Used primarily as a blocking tight end and on special teams, his only reception was a 4-yard touchdown catch against the team that he started with, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Yoder originally signed with the Bucs as an undrafted rookie out of Vanderbilt in 2000, and would play his first four seasons there. Though he saw action in 57 games for Tampa Bay, he only started in two of them and left following the 2003 season to join the Jacksonville Jaguars.
He started eight games for the Jags and caught fourteen passes for 157 yards that first season (2004) in Jacksonville; but in 2005 he suffered a knee injury and spent the entire year on the injured reserve list. He returned for the 2006 training camp and preseason but was released the week before the regular season.
This will be Yoder's eighth NFL season. For his career, he has 10 starts, 87 games and has caught 29 passes for 304 yards. He has three career touchdowns.
Washington only has Chris Cooley and Eric Edwards listed on their roster at tight end, so Yoder's signing is more significant than it might appear.
Boschetti Also Re-Signed
The Washington Redskins announced on Monday that Ryan Boschetti had been re-signed.
Boschetti was a regular contributor to the defensive line rotation in 2005, but saw limited action last year. He played in just two games and was only called into action when both Cornelius Griffin and Joe Salave'a were injured.
This will be Boschetti's fourth NFL season, all in Washington, after being picked up as an undrafted rookie free agent out of UCLA in 2004.
Remember Ross Tucker?
Late last week, the Redskins picked up an interesting offensive line prospect in 6'4", 310 pound Ross Tucker. Tucker has bounced around a lot in his career, and did not play at all in
2006 after being released by the Cleveland Browns following the preseason. Tucker will look to resurrect his NFL career with the team that originally drafted him back in 2001.
He saw action in three games that year as a rookie, but was released by Washington during the 2002 preseason. He was subsequently picked up that preseason by the Dallas Cowboys, when they ran into a rash of offensive line injuries. Tucker went on to start seven games at left guard for Dallas that season.
The following season he landed in Buffalo (with then head coach Gregg Williams). He was used primarily as a reserve, but started the last five games at right guard thanks to an injury to then Buffalo Bills guard, Mike Pucillo. Tucker started twelve games the following season (2004), eight at guard and four at center. In all, he started 17 games and played in 28 for the Bills. Buffalo released him during the 2005 preseason.
He caught on with the New England Patriots in time for their final regular season game that year, and he logged a playoff appearance (AFC Divisional Playoff vs. Denver Broncos). He was traded the following off season to the Cleveland Browns.
With the departure of Derrick Dockery via free agency, and releasing Jim Molinaro, the Washington Redskins need offensive line options. Hopefully Tucker can come to camp in great shape and surprise some people. He's done it before.
Wade A Minute
Todd Wade is reportedly very close to re-signing with the Redskins. Wade had expressed a desire to play somewhere where he could start this year, and was allowed to pursue the free agent market. Is his renewed interest in the Redskins because he exhausted those free agency opportunities, or because Dockery's departure opens the door for him to start at guard?
Regardless, Wade was terrific in his brief outing for the Redskins last year. His addition would make the offensive line corps considerably stronger all around.
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