Breaking: Washington Redskins' Quinton Dunbar requests to be traded or released
After reporting earlier that Washington Redskins' cornerback Quinton Dunbar will not report to the teams OTAs this coming season, it has been reported that he has asked the organization to trade or release him.
The report comes straight from Dunbar himself, telling NBC Sports Washington's JP Finlay. To restate what Dunbar meant by "I don't know them and they don't know me," he is referring to the new front office and coaching staff changes.
Dunbar was heavily involved with ex-general manager Bruce Allen and ex-head coach Jay Gruden with a possible contract extension. Now that both have been relieved of their duties in the organization, Dunbar sees it as a way that he will not get his money.
While he certainly has been a great cornerback for the team, he has yet to play a full 16 games for the team. Injuries have put him on the sidelines several times since 2015, when he signed with the Redskins as an undrafted free agent. For now, it's unclear if the Redskins will honor his request, or will keep him for now and try to discuss possible contract extensions.
Dunbar has previously discussed that he needs help around him in the secondary. The Redskins did sign Pro-Bowl safety Landon Collins in the offseason of 2019, but other than Collins and Dunbar, there were not many impactful players in the secondary.
Assuming this stands, it will be a huge blow to the already-depleted Redskins secondary. While the cornerback position was one that had to be addressed in the coming free-agency and draft, losing Dunbar will make it an even more important position for the team. The Redskins will most likely release Josh Norman, who was benched in the second half of the 2019 season. The rest of the roster consists of second-year cornerbacks that have yet to be groomed properly. Hopefully, the organization understands his value to the team and gives him a team-friendly contract that will make him change his mind.