ASHBURN, Va. -- The Washington Redskins have released former starter Perry Riley and one of their bigger offseason acquisitions from a year ago, Stephen Paea, multiple sources said, while trimming their roster to 75 by Tuesday’s 4 p.m. ET deadline. The moves save Washington more than $7 million in cap space.
Riley’s cut wasn’t surprising as he wasn’t working with the starters and was not viewed as a strong special-teams player. Riley had played well in three games alongside fellow inside linebacker Will Compton last season before breaking a bone in his foot. That opened the way for Mason Foster to replace him, and the coaches liked how Foster performed over the final five games in 2015.
Also, Martrell Spaight’s development in his second season with Washington – after missing all of 2015 with a concussion – gave the Redskins confidence that it could withstand an injury to Compton or Foster. They also have rookie Su’a Cravens, who was mostly viewed as a nickel/dime linebacker as he transitions to playing inside in the NFL. Terence Garvin is a special-teams player who also plays inside.
6 great years of memories and friendships that will last a lifetime! Thanks to everyone who supported me along the way! #HTTR #NEXTchapter
— Perry Riley Jr (@PR56) August 30, 2016
The move saves the Redskins $4 million against the salary cap. Riley, a fourth-round pick in 2010, started 63 games with Washington.
As for Paea, his spot was in jeopardy when the Redskins signed Cullen Jenkins on Monday, a move that showed their displeasure with some parts of the line. The Redskins have three young players competing for possibly one spot – and two at the most – in fifth-round pick Matt Ioannidis, undrafted rookie Anthony Lanier and 2015 undrafted pick Corey Crawford, who spent last year on the practice squad.
But Jenkins can fill the role they had hoped Paea would when they signed him in the 2015 offseason and gave him a four-year, $21-million deal with $7.85 million guaranteed. Paea said Monday that he felt as good as he has in his career. But one source said it was a move that was good for both sides -- the Redskins save money ($3.4 million vs. the cap) and Paea can find a place where he has a better chance to contribute.
"It takes a lot of thought and a lot of times now when you have the depth that we feel like we have, it’s not so much about the player we release, it’s about the players that we kept," Redskins coach Jay Gruden said. "We’ve got some guys at linebacker who have played extremely well and we’ve got some guys on the defensive line who are competing and doing a good job. Those two guys are excellent football players; I imagine they’ll latch on somewhere else and do well. They have a lot of football left in their career. They’re both great guys that worked hard and it’s just part of the decision process.”
The Redskins first free-agent class under general manager Scot McCloughan has turned out to be a tough one, at least those acquired in the offseason. They’ve parted ways with several key players from that group in addition to Paea: nose tackle Terrance Knighton, corner Chris Culliver and safeties Jeron Johnson and Dashon Goldson (via trade). But they also added Foster, defensive back Will Blackmon and kicker Dustin Hopkins after the season began and all have become key contributors.
The Redskins entered Tuesday with approximately $11.7 million in available cap space; they can carry unused space into next offseason.
