The DeSean Jackson chase is getting heated up and the Washington Redskins are reportedly close to a deal, while the San Francisco 49ers and Cleveland Browns have also shown strong interest in the released Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver and could try to sign him to a free agent contract after he visited the Redskins facility in Virginia this week.
According to ESPN.com, the Redskins met with Jackson on Monday and Tuesday and are close to a deal after he toured their facility and went out with players including DeAngelo Hall and Pierre Garcon and he also has publically received praise from Robert Griffin III and Hall. Jackson was released by the Eagles last week in a surprising but not shocking move, with reports citing his high salary, work ethic, missing meetings and possible gang connections as reasons for the cut. The Eagles never explicitly said that Jackson was released for the latter issue, but many have speculated it is the reason after a report from NJ.com came out hours before his release.
ESPN.com reported that at least nine teams were interested in Jackson, including the NY Jets and Oakland Raiders, while the Redskins is the first team he has visited and the 49ers could be next on that list. The Niners have "guarded" interest in Jackson, while the Cleveland Browns have also been identified by Pro Football Talk as a team with "real" interest. The report says that the Redskins are the frontrunners in getting Jackson, while the Browns and 49ers are the other two teams in the chase.
The Oakland Raiders have a high amount of cap space and likely could get a deal done, while the Niners have just $4 million in cap space and that could make things tricky. The Redskins have more cap space than the Niners and they look like they have a deal on the way with Jackson and that would be a huge boost for the offense as Jay Gruden takes over. Robert Griffin III could use another explosive weapon behind Pierre Garcon and adding Jackson a year after he had 82 catches for over 1,300 yards and nine touchdowns would be huge.
Jackson was in the middle of a five year deal with the Eagles and he was set to make over $10 million next season and he had $30 million left on the deal when head coach Chip Kelly released him. Jackson can return punts as well and he has over 350 receptions in his career.