Houston Texans free agent spotlight: Nate Washington
Nov 24, 2013; Oakland, CA, USA; Tennessee Titans wide receiver Nate Washington (85) runs with the ball after making a catch against the Oakland Raiders in the first quarter at O.co Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Cary Edmondson-USA TODAY Sports
Predictions for the Texans
Nate Washington was signed by the Houston Texans this offseason on a 1-year, $1 million contract, which provides great short term value for the Texans. While Washington isn’t going to get paid like a 1000-yard receiver, his veteran presence and knowledge of the game can come at a much cheaper price.
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The biggest thing to realize is that Washington isn’t going to be a top 3 receiver, barring injury to one of the players higher on the depth chart. He will probably play most snaps in the slot, but should still start behind other free agent acquisition Cecil Shorts.
Even though the veteran won’t be getting a huge number of snaps, he should be very influential on the progressions of rookie draft picks Jaelen Strong and Keith Mumphery. Strong is expected by many fans to start, and Mumphery’s name has been mentioned a lot during OTA’s, so it should be pretty exciting to see how each plays as we get closer to the start of the season.
At 32, he won’t be a starting player for Houston, but still should be able to put up some decent numbers. Based on how Washington has performed in his career, I would expect him to finish the season with 25 receptions, 385 yards, and 2 touchdowns.
That about does it for this week’s edition of Free Agent Spotlight. Comment below if you have your own predictions, or if you have a request for a player to cover next week!