LANDOVER, MD – SEPTEMBER 15: Jordan Reed #86 of the Washington Redskins looks on during the first half of the game against the Dallas Cowboys at FedExField on September 15, 2019 in Landover, Maryland. (Photo by Scott Taetsch/Getty Images)
With his latest concussion formally sending him to IR, will Washington Redskins tight end Jordan Reed consider retirement?
Washington Redskins tight end Jordan Reed has yet to play this season due to a concussion suffered in the team’s third preseason game. According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, Reed has been placed on IR.
The oft-injured Reed has never played more than 14 games in an NFL season since coming into the league as a third-round pick by Washington in 2013. He could theoretically return in Week 14, but as Washington’s season heads toward a top pick in the 2020 NFL Draft it’s a fairly safe bet he’s done for 2019 without playing a game.
It’s believed this most recent concussion is the seventh documented of Reed’s career dating back to his college days at Florida. A report from Schefter in September pointed to concern his career is over based on that lengthy history, but since-fired head coach Jay Gruden remained optimistic Reed would play this season.
Reed has two years left on a five-year deal he signed after the 2016 season, with base salaries of $8.25 and $8.75 million respectively. If the Redskins cut him after this season, according to Schefter, they would save $8.5 million in cap space for 2020.
At 29 years old and having suffered a litany of concussions, Reed has to consider his long-term health above everything. According to Spotrac, he’ll have made a total of $64.841 million (salary and bonuses) in his career through the end of this season. So the $17 million in base salary he’d be leaving behind over the next two seasons by retiring shouldn’t be something he’ll miss in the bigger picture.
Among Reed’s concussions, with the accumulation of previously brain injuries surely a factor, this one appears to be the most severe. The team can cut him and benefit when this season is over, and they surely will if his health is a question.
But hopefully Reed makes the best decision he can for his life and health, if only to keep the decision in his hands and not on the whims of a dysfunctional Washington organization.