Here’s some fodder for the old grist mill: pointless trade proposals that will never happen. But hell, I’m sure this will generate some weekend discussion at least, even if simply to say that this will never happen or that it’s ridiculous…or that it absolutely should happen, depending upon your prerogative.
Bill Barnwell earlier this week put together a list of trade proposals that teams should pursue in advance of the early November deadline, and one of them sees the Pittsburgh Steelers acquiring a player via trade and sending one away, though the focus of the trade is the player they are getting in return.
You’ve already read the title so there’s no reason for suspense. Barnwell proposes that the Steelers go after Dwayne Haskins, a 2019 first-round draft pick at the quarterback position, sending 2019 third-round cornerback Justin Layne and a 2021 fourth-round draft pick to the Washington Football team in order to do so.
Washington already cleaned house from last year. The regime that brought Haskins in is gone, replaced by Ron Rivera at head coach. And he has already benched Haskins after just four games. In fact, they even made him third-string, starting Kyle Allen and having Alex Smith back him up. Smith had to play on Sunday and got sacked six times. Barnwell writes of the hypothetical trade:
It’s fair to say that Haskins is on the outs in Washington, given that Ron Rivera just benched the 2019 first-round pick for Kyle Allen. It’s too early to give up on the former Ohio State star, but Haskins wasn’t great in his first 349 pass attempts, and Rivera wasn’t yet in town when owner Daniel Snyder pushed for his franchise to draft Haskins last year. The Washington Football Team is likely going to be in position to draft its quarterback of the future next offseason, which would leave Haskins in a vulnerable position.
Haskins realistically needs time to go develop behind an established quarterback, which is why the Steelers could make sense. Ben Roethlisberger looks solid in his age-38 season, but he is close to the end of his career. Mason Rudolph showed little filling in for Roethlisberger last season, and he is about to enter the final year of his rookie deal. Layne, a third-rounder in 2019, is at the bottom of a deep cornerback room in Pittsburgh and hasn’t played a single defensive snap as a pro. Layne and a fourth-round pick might not seem like much value for a 2019 first-rounder, but Washington hasn’t done much to make Haskins look valuable.
If you actually believe that Haskins has the potential to be a future franchise quarterback, then it’s actually a very reasonable trade. You have a young quarterback with talent who is just in his second season. The Steelers gave up a first-round pick for a second-year former first-round safety last year, and they’re not shy about acquiring players via trade. But don’t bet on this happening.
