It looks like LB Brian Orakpo isn’t going anywhere. The Washington Redskins have used their franchise tag on the former Longhorn heading into his 6th year in the league:
#Redskins announce they have placed the franchise tag on LB Brian Orakpo.
— Dov Kleiman (@NFL_RealUpdates) March 3, 2014
Orakpo had 60 total tackles last year with 10 sacks and an INT so it’s pretty important that they keep him on that struggling defense. The Redskins really had no choice but to tag him considering the drop off is significant between him and him backups.
Here is Brian Orakpo’s quote from ESPN’s Josina Anderson:
“I’m excited to continue to play football. I’m glad we’ve made the first step, but hopefully we can still get things done in the long run. I don’t have a problem with the decision (the Washington Redskins) made, but I still want a long-term deal. This is new to me. I’m just letting this play out to the end. I’m excited to be with the Redskins as of right now, but now we will go from here. It’s always good to try and finish up with the team that drafted you. However, it is a business and I understand the business. If it works out then it works out. At the very least I’m happy they took this step forward.”