Newly acquired Jason Taylor has been introduced by the Redskins at a news conference.  The 33-year-old Pro Bowl defensive end from the Miami Dolphins was picked up Sunday by the Burgundy and Gold for two draft picks.  Last season in Miami, Taylor had 55 tackles, 11 sacks and an interception.  He has been selected for the Pro Bowl six times. 

Taylor fell out of favor with Bill Parcells of the Dolphins for appearing on “Dancing With The Stars” on network television.  While admitting to having ambitions to star in Hollywood, Taylor says he isn’t ready to hang up his helmet and pads yet.  He was acquired after Washington lost Phillip Daniels and Alex Buzbee from the defensive line to injuries Sunday on the first day of training camp.

The Washington Redskins acquired DE Jason Taylor from the Miami Dolphins. The Skins gave up a 2009 Second Round pick and a 2010 Sixth Round pick to get the 11-year veteran.

According to reports the Redskins will not have to negotiate a new deal with Taylor as he will honor the deal he has in place. There still is no guarantee for the the Skins that Taylor will play beyond this year. Taylor has stated previously this would be his last year.

“We’re fortunate there was a guy that caliber on the market when somebody got hurt,” Washington executive vice president Vinny Cerrato said. “Normally, in most years, there’s not a guy of that caliber on the market.”

Taylor has started every game each of the past eight years. He had 11 sacks during the 2007 season, giving him 117 over his career.

“His play speaks for itself. I think it’s easy to talk about Jason Taylor. He’s got statistics and everything else to back up everything that he’s done,” Cerrato said.

He is expected to report to Redskins Training camp on Monday.

Training camp is almost here and its time to take a look at the season ahead; particularly the competition in the NFC East. Several teams have made some key off-season additions. Let’s look at them team by team.

Dallas Cowboys – (13-3 in 2007)

The Dallas Cowboys didn’t go crazy this year, but did add two key players that could mean trouble for the rest of the NFC. (and maybe for the Cowboys themselves) They drafted RB Felix Jones in the first round, who looks to be a good complement to Marion Barber. (I hate to admit it, the dude is just a beast) We’ll see how he does in the NFL, but I would suspect that he will do fairly well, and will give Barber some rest; although I hope he doesn’t work out, and Barber is exhausted by the fourth quarter of every game. They also added troubled CB Adam “Pacman” Jones (I don’t care if he’s dropping the “Pacman,” its not going anywhere) We don’t even know if this guy is going to be able to play, although he probably will. Commissioner Roger Goodell temporarily lifted Jones’ suspension so that he could practice with the Cowboys, but he could still be suspended for the season. Again, I’m pretty confident he will be on the field. The good thing for Eagles fans is that Jones hasn’t played since 2006. We can hope he’s lost something in that time. I doubt it, but there’s always hope. With troubled players and draft picks, its always a risk. We’ll see if these players work out. If they do, the Cowboys could once again take the #1 seed in the NFC. They are the number one competition, not only for the Eagles, but the entire NFC.

New York Giants – (10-6 in 2007)

The Giants were relatively quiet this year as far as key acquisitions go. They did draft WR Mario Manningham, and S Kenny Phillips, but their off-season is more on what they lost. They lost three of their starters to free agency; S Gibril Wilson, LB Kawika Mitchell, and LB Reggie Torbor. The biggest loss to the Giants has to be the retirement of Michael Strahan. Strahan’s retirement was bitter sweet. As an Eagles’ fan I was glad to see him go. We won’t have to see that guy put McNabb on his back anymore. As a fan of the game, and an Eagles’ fan, I’m going to miss him. He’s a great guy (at least he’s going to be on Fox’s pregame show.) His battles with big Jon Runyan were great. I’m going to miss that feud. I would think with Giants’ fans, its going to be a wait-and-see mentality for the upcoming season. Which Manning will they get? 20 interceptions in a season, or the near perfect QB we saw during the playoffs? Can the defense repeat with all the losses? We’ll all find out soon enough. Dallas may be the biggest competition, but the Giants are the team to beat.

Washington Redskins – (10-6 in 2007)

Who knows what to think with this team? Hall of Fame coach Joe Gibbs retired from the game, again. Some say the game passed him by, and I have to agree. They made the playoffs twice, but also went 6-10 in 2004, and 5-11 in 2006. The Redskins made no huge splash in free-agency, seeing as how they were almost maxed out on their salary cap.

They did have a fairly good draft though. They picked two big receivers in the draft in Malcolm Kelly and Devin Thomas. Thomas is a high risk-high reward pick. He came out after a very productive junior year, but was relatively quiet in his other two seasons. We’ll see how he turns out. Kelly was most noted for his complaining about the turf he ran his forty on during his pro-day. After switching to a different turf, he still didn’t do all that hot, but when it comes to playing the game, does it really matter was his pro-day forty time was? I don’t know what to really expect from the Redskins. Honestly I don’t expect much, and I see them bringing up the rear in a tough division.

Philadelphia Eagles – (8-8 in 2007)

You would think after an 8-8 season it would be hard to get your hopes up. Not so for Philly fans. McNabb is back and healthy. We got little production from the tight ends, and you have to believe with L.J. Smith back to full health, and Brent Celek having a year under his belt, that this will change in 2008. The Eagles were not quiet during the off-season, especially on defense. I think they took it personally, and they should, that the Giants won a Super Bowl using their defensive scheme. The Eagles signed CB Asante Samuel, possibly the biggest name on the free agent market, and DE Chris Clemons, (a situational pass rusher for the Oakland Raiders), on the first and second day of free agency. Samuel has had 16 interceptions in his last two seasons. (The Eagles only had 11 last season as a defense) There are questions as to whether he was only productive because of New England’s system, or if he’s really just an outstanding playmaker. I’m going to have to go with the latter. I don’t care how good the system is, 16 interceptions in two seasons, 22 career, is just outstanding, and you have to be a special player to do that no matter what system you are in. Clemons only played about 35% of the snaps last season and was able to rack up 8.5 sacks. That’s pretty impressive in itself. You have to think he will be able to help our pass rush.

There wasn’t anything too exciting about the draft. The Eagles traded out of the first round, again. They did draft WR/PR Desean Jackson and DT Trevor Laws. Jackson is an immediate boost for special teams, and looks to actually get on the field as a receiver. Laws lead the nation last year in most tackles for a loss. He should be a great help to our run defense, and will give Bunkley and Patterson some rest.

Andy Reid was dealing with family issues last off-season. (his two sons were arrested on drug charges) You have to believe that was affecting him during the season. With this issue somewhat cleared up, Reid should be back to the great coach he has been for so many years here in Philadelphia.

The outlook for this team is high, and to answer the question, the Eagles are able to compete within the division and the NFC. Our defense should be even better than last year. With added pressure on the QBs, we should see turnovers go way up. Our run defense is solid and should be a top ten again this season. Our offense should look more like it did in 2006. We came up short on the big plays (plays over 20 yards) last year, unlike 2006 when we were tied with Saints for first. Things look good for 2008 and the Eagles should be contenders, not only in the NFC East and the NFC, but throughout the NFL.

The Redskins are going to take a chance on former first-round bust Erasmus James, who today they got from the Vikings for a conditional seventh-round pick. James was to be placed on waivers by the Vikings Friday, but the Skins wanted him and called before they could file the paper work, getting a deal done before he could become a free agent.

He was the 18th overall pick in 2005, and had four sacks his rookie season, but then tore a ligament in his left knee in the second week of the 2006 season, and was really never the same. He will be back with D-line coach John Palermo, who was an assistant at Wisconsin when James was the Big Ten defensive player of the year.

“He is young, talented and has a great deal of potential,” executive vice president Vinny Cerrato said.

The Redskins seem to be in no real hurry to sign QB Jason Campbell to any sort of contract extension.  Campbell has two years left on his rookie deal, and the Washington Post reports the team has not opened any sort of talks with him or his agent.  Campbell is one of those NFL QB’s that you have no idea if he’s going to be a star or not- along the lines of the Vikings Tavaris Jackson, the Texas Matt Schaub, the Broncos Jay Cutler and the Cards Matt Leniart.

Campbell has 20 NFL games under his belt, a QB rating of 77.3.  Last season in 13 games he threw for 2700 yards with 12 touchdowns and 11 interceptions.  He was playing fairly well until he got hurt in week 14 vs the Bears.  From there Todd Collins came in and led the Skins to the playoffs before bowing out to the Seahawks.

Flip a coin on if the Skins should give Campbell a new deal.  I would wait till the season gets rolling, see how he assumes the role of team leader in the new offense, and then go from there.  If the QB gets off to a slow start, the team can always start to look at their options for the future.

NFL Gridiron Gab has spent the past few weeks breaking down the divisions with our “Offseason Overviews.”  We went through all 32 teams, and today we highlight the NFC East.  Click below to read the Offseason Overview of your NFC East team:

New York Giants - Were the Giants a One-Year Wonder?

Dallas Cowboys - Cowboys Look to Move Past Playoff Letdown

Washington Redskins - Redskins to Have a Much Different Look in 08

Philadelphia Eagles - Can the Eagles Fly High in the Tough NFC East?

I couldn’t figure this one out. One of the hottest Google searches right now is Chris Cooley. A lot of people were talking about how he was recently married to Christy Oglevee. Considering Cooley is the Redskins’ good-but-not-great tight end who gives non-football fans little to no reason to know who he is, I figured that Christy Oglevee must be a celebrity. Perhaps this is football’s new version of the Kris Benson and Anna Benson marriage. (By the way, Google Kris Benson and the first thing that comes up are three provocative photos of his wife.)

All I had read about Christy Oglevee was that she was really hot. So, to find out who exactly she was (and, admittedly, just how hot she is) I Googled her. You know what I found? Websites and news about her new husband.

Apparently, Christy Oglevee is a former Redskins cheerleader who is now famous simply for being Cooley’s wife. There is a little spice added on in that she was fired after her relationship with the tight end was discovered. Bu still, this doesn’t make a whole lot of sense. Chris Cooley is not Tom Brady. He’s not even Jeremy Shockey. Why is his social life considered such hot gossip news? Christy Oglevee is indeed “hot,” but so are hundreds of other women married to professional athletes. And the cheerleader story is indeed juicy, but this is so long after the fact (Oglevee was fired before the start of last season, and news of their relationship became public then too). I’m still a little perplexed.

Then again, maybe my perplexity will disappear after I ask myself why I just chose to give the Chris Cooley marriage story attention.

FRANCHISE PLAYER: None

TRANSITION PLAYER: None.

UNRESTRICTED FREE AGENTS

• G Rick DeMulling was signed in September, cut in November and re-signed in December. He played sparingly in six games and will only return with a minimum contract.

• LB Randall Godfrey signed in training camp because of his history with assistant head coach Gregg Williams. Godfrey was a solid run defender while starting four games because of injuries to Marcus Washington and Rocky McIntosh. Godfrey, who mulled retirement last year, will be 35 in April and might choose to follow Williams to Jacksonville rather than return to the Redskins.

• TE Brian Kozlowski played in at least parts of the past four years for the Redskins. He was signed during the season in 2006 and 2007. He had one catch in three games last year and with Joe Gibbs gone, maybe the 37-year-old Koz is finally gone for good, too.

• WR Keenan McCardell was the Redskins’ 12th-round pick in 1991. He finally made his Washington debut in October 2007. McCardell caught 22 passes in 10 games and doesn’t plan to retire at 38. He has experience in the West Coast offense so perhaps new coach Jim Zorn wants him back.

• C/G Mike Pucillo was the extra lineman in jumbo packages in 2006. However, Pucillo’s surgically repaired back gave out in him in October and Lorenzo Alexander assumed his old role. Pucillo, who’ll be 29 in July, will have to prove he’s fully healthy to receive a new contract.

• S Omar Stoutmire played regularly as a backup in 2005 before signing with New Orleans where he started most of 2006. Stoutmire returned in 2007 but was cut and re-signed twice while playing sparingly in three games. Stoutmire will be 34 in July and is probably finished.

RESTRICTED FREE AGENTS: None.

EXCLUSIVE RIGHTS FREE AGENTS: None.

PLAYERS ACQUIRED

• WR Jerome Mathis: Not tendered as RFA by Texans; terms unknown.

PLAYERS RE-SIGNED

• LS Ethan Albright: Potential UFA; terms unknown.

• DT Ryan Boschetti: UFA; terms unknown.

• RB Nehemiah Broughton: Not tendered as ERFA; terms unknown.

• RB/KR Rock Cartwright: UFA; $3.55M/3 yrs, $300,000 SB/$300,000 RB; $200,000 RB ‘09; 2008 cap: $705,000.

• QB Todd Collins: UFA; $9M/3 yrs, $3M SB.

• OT Jason Fabini: UFA; $870,000/1 yr, $40,000 SB; 2008 cap: $485,000.

• P Derrick Frost: UFA; $805,000/1 yr, $200,000 SB.

• K Shaun Suisham: ERFA; terms unknown.

PLAYERS LOST

• QB Mark Brunell: UFA Saints; 2 yrs, $1M SB, other terms unknown.

• WR Reche Caldwell: UFA Rams; $645,000/1 yr, $40,000 SB.

• WR Brandon Lloyd (released; post-June 1 designation).

• CB David Macklin: UFA Rams; $770,000/1 yr, $40,000 SB.

• S Pierson Prioleau: UFA Jaguars; terms unknown.

• OT Kevin Sampson (released/failed physical).

• C Ross Tucker: UFA; retired.

Despite a 9-7 mark and a playoff birth last season, the Redskins will look a lot different in 2008, with a new coach, new offense and hopefully better results across the board. Jim Zorn comes in with hopes of running a lot of 3 and 4 wide out sets, and while the team was not able to get WR Chad Johnson, they were able to draft wide outs Devin Thomas and Malcom Kelly, as well as tight end Fred Davis to go along with star TE Chris Cooley. If Jason Campbell can pick up Zorn’s new wide open offense fast, the offense can be fun to watch.

The defense last season did a nice job vs the run, but will have to shore up the pass defense, which was their undoing in their playoff loss to the Seahawks. It would also be a lift to put some more pressure on the QB, making those players make faster decisions to help out the secondary. Overall, the Skins are going to be a lot different this season, it will be interesting to see if its for the better or not.

Offseason Grade to Date: C+