Ryan Kerrigan has one year to go on his deal with the Redskins, but he’s hoping to stick around for longer. The edge rusher told the team website that he wants to finish his career in Washington.
“I obviously hope to be here for the duration of my football career, however long that is,” said Kerrigan. “I’ve gotten to talk to [head] coach [Ron] Rivera a couple of times over the phone, [but] haven’t really been able to meet him in person yet because of the whole lockdown and whatnot. Hopefully, I’m here for the long haul. I want to be here. They know where I stand and I want to be here.”
From the sound of it, the two sides have yet to discuss an extension. For now, Kerrigan is set to earn $11.5M in base salary for 2020, though that sum is completely non-guaranteed. A longer deal would allow the Redskins to smooth over the $11.687M cap hit while giving Kerrigan the additional years he’s seeking.
Kerrigan stands as the Redskins’ second-longest tenured player on the roster. The nine-year pro is 1.5 sacks away from topping Dexter Manley as the franchise’s all-time leader in the category. He’s also coming off of a down year, which may complicate things. In 2019, Kerrigan had just 5.5 sacks, the lowest single-season tally of his career.
“What I did last year was definitely not what I ever want to put on film again,” Kerrigan said. “I got away from some fundamental things that really prevented me from being productive like I usually am.”
There was some talk that the Redskins would cut Kerrigan this offseason, but Rivera said in February that the veteran is staying put.
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