The reason I posed the question is that I think the Skins OL could be worse this year than last. It doesn't have to be that way, but it might.
Chris Samuels is getting long in the tooth. He is still a good tackle but the chances that he will get significantly better year over year at this stage of his career are slim. And he is the best offensive lineman on the roster.
Dockery is good - not great. Is he an upgrade over Pete Kendall from last year? Yes. But is he the lynchpin around whom a great offensive line can be built? Probably not since he has been in the league about 5 years now and that never happened.
Rabach is a journeyman. It would be a huge surprise if he suddenly got a lot better than he has shown for the past two seasons - - and that hasn't been anything near outstanding.
Randy Thomas had neck surgery in the off-season. I cannot remember any time when that was considered a career-enhancing move for an offensive lineman. Can Thomas play this year? Can he play well? Can he play 16 games?
Everyone who is "in the mix" to play RT is flawed.
Jansen is aging and has been hurt a lot in the last 2-3 years.
Heyer is underwhelming.
Williams is so out of shape it might be November before he could possibly make the line-up - - assuming he returns to something like his old form in the first place.
Reinhart and Clark are merely the latest rookies that Bugel has gushed over - - turn back the clock 12-18 months and listen to him rave about Heyer.
For 2009, Bridges is the best player of the bunch here by a good margin but he is a gamble as a starter because of his "self-control problems".
Notice, I didn't even hint at the possibility that there could be a couple of injuries across the line that resulted in season-ending situations.
Yes, things can fall into place and work out for the best, but this is the part of the 2009 team that looks to be a weak link. Therefore, I thought the FO might at least find out what the price would be to make a trade with a team that seems to have plenty of players at a position where the Skins might need a solid player. No need to inquire within the NFC East; no one there will trade to help out the Skins just as the Skins would not trade to help any of the other teams in that division out.
Since the Skins play the NFC South this year, I would think a trade with a team there might be problematic too. So, looking around at other teams in other divisions, the Jags seemed like a place where a phone call might make sense. The Ravens also might have a surplus across the line and perhaps a phone call there would be in order too. Sure, these teams might cut one of those offensive linemen next month - - but then there would be 31 other teams who had an equal shot at signing the player. If the cost were reasonable, a trade would assure that a desirable player came to Washington.
I am not advocating making a trade that costs next year's first round pick or something of that magnitude. But you can't know what the cost is unless you ask...