The Washington Football team has released Dwayne Haskins. Is it the end for a player who showed great promise?
To understand how good Dwayne Haskins is, you need to start at the beginning.
Haskins promised at ten years old that he would attend Ohio State and play QB. He did. Earlier, a local high school football coach saw Haskins playing catch with his father. “If I could get him to transfer,” the coach said, my team would win the state championship. The coach thought Haskins was a teenager, eligible immediately to play high school ball. In truth, Haskins was in 4th Grade.
In high school, Haskins was known for his work ethic and attention to detail. He redshirted his freshman year of college. The next year, the starter (J.T. Barrett) entered the NFL draft, which meant the starting QB job was up for grabs. There was competition, including with the eventual #1 overall draft pick, Joe Burrow. But Burrow broke his hand, which meant Haskins would lead his team to The Promised Land, a national championship.
Haskins exceeded expectations by breaking the Big 10 record for passing yards (4,300+) and passing TD (50). He ended up 3rd in Heisman Trophy voting and led Ohio State to a 10-1 record.
After the season, and against his coach’s advice, Haskins decided to enter the NFL Draft. Urban Meyer said at the time: “He is not NFL-ready right now.” Two quarterbacks went before him–#1, Kyler Murray, and #6 Daniel Jones. Haskins went #15 overall, picked by the Washington Football Team. “The league messed up (drafting him lower),” Haskins said.
Haskins was a native of the D.C. area and went to high school with WFT’s GM son. But reports said that the coaching staff didn’t want to draft Haskins. The team wanted to win quickly, and you don’t often do that with a rookie quarterback.
And Haskins was a mediocre NFL quarterback…or less. He was underwhelming as a rookie, throwing for 7 TDs and 7 INTs. Previously known for his preparation, Haskins became known in the NFL as lazy and relaxed, and (for some reason) assumed a sense of entitlement.
His second year was even worse than his first. With Alex Smith hurt, Haskins played nine games, throwing 5 TDs and 7 INTs. He was demoted to 3rd string. One of his coaches said that he was so bad at understanding the offense he thought Haskins might have dyslexia. We know for sure that Haskins showed poor effort in practice and was constantly late for meetings.
Even though the QBs ahead of him worked harder at their craft, Haskins was given another opportunity (due to injuries) to redeem himself. He started against the Seahawks but played poorly. After digging themselves into a 20-3 hole, Washington came back and almost won, losing by five, 20-15.
But that wasn’t the end of the story. The very next day, Haskins was photographed with strippers without a mask on. WFT took action, and (among other things) Haskins was benched for the season’s final game.
Is attitude the problem? That’s what it seems. Haskins isn’t reliable–on the field or off. In pro sports, you don’t get superstar treatment unless you play like one. But when you see Haskins on the sidelines, you don’t see a player engaged. You don’t see him seeking advice from veteran players as Tua does of Fitzpatrick in Miami. Instead, what you see from Haskins is poor body language and disengagement.
But what Haskins offers–and what any team needs–is talent. Plenty of talent, t00. That’s why it’s unlikely that this year is the end of Haskin’s NFL career. While teams are sniffing around, what they don’t know is this: Will Haskins show up?
Will he be what he once was … a dedicated athlete, one who could raise teammates to another level? Or will he continue to be an irresponsible player who can’t seem to get and keep his head straight?
The answer will be Dwayne Haskins’ legacy.
