The Redskins announced today that they have signed former Terp standout Kevin Barnes to a four-year deal, including a respectable $782,000 signing bonus. Barnes, who was drafted in the third round, will compete for the fourth (or third?) CB spot and if nothing else should get plenty of special teams PT.
The CBs currently in front of Barnes on the roster are the overrated Carlos Rogers, the inconsistent DeAngelo Hall, and the injury-prone Fred Smoot. The fourth CB right now is Justin Tryon. Not exactly Madison and Surtain out there for the Skins this season. Barnes could break in before too long.
Was I the only one who didn’t know that Barnes got the highest Wonderlic score of ANY PROSPECT at the combine? I gotta start reading the papes more often. Either way, call me crazy, call me a homer, but I think Barnes can be a player at the pro level. Sure, he’s a little slender at 6′ 1″ 188, and sure, he’s had some injuries. But he plays his tail off. I don’t see him zeroing in on a slot receiver going across the middle and thinking “wait a second, I’m undersized, I need to pull up.” He’s making the hit. As long as he’s on the field, I think he’ll make an impact.
Barnes joins Edwin Williams, Stephon Heyer, and Scott Burley as former Terps on the Skins roster…tied with Minnesota for the most in the league. (Minnesota? Must be some kind of holdover from the Mike Tice era…don’t forget they also gave the great Shaun Hill his NFL start.) Looks like someone is taking a page from the Official Susan O’Malley Sports Marketing Playbook. Good stuff. Go Terps.
(Photo credit: Football News from a chick)
I’m picturing the following scenario: Underrated Kevin Barnes works his way into the starting line-up by the end of the year. The Eagles draft Jahvid Best in the first round to replace Brian Westbrook after his body finally liquefies in January. Kevin Barnes then spends the rest of his career hitting Jahvid Best in the solar plexus so hard that he is forced to vomit up his cookies on a bi-annual basis.
Why does picturing the scenario of Kevin Barns putting his helmet into the midsection of Best in an Eagles jersey resulting in him regurgitating on the field give me joy? Do I have a problem?
Nice Dolphins reference. Where do you even find Wonderlic scores? That’s obsecure. If Barnes is as good as Chad Scott the Skins have found a good player.