Gibbs: Redskins, Holdman Agree
 

[url="http://www.redskins.com/news/newsDetail.jsp?id=7057"]http://www.redskins.com/news/newsDetail.jsp?id=7057[/url]
Head coach Joe Gibbs said Wednesday that the Redskins have agreed to terms on a deal with versatile linebacker Warrick Holdman.


Holdman is a 6-1, 235-pounder who played for the Cleveland Browns last season after five years with the Chicago Bears. He started 14 of 16 games last season with the Browns and logged 78 tackles and 0.5 sacks.

With a new coaching staff in place in Cleveland, Holdman's future was in doubt. He was released by the Browns on Feb. 23.

"We tried to sign Warrick last year and he wound up going to Cleveland," Gibbs said. "We've added a veteran guy with a lot of experience. With Warrick and Brian Allen, we've added two veteran guys at the linebacker spot. So we'll announce that [signing] on Thursday."

Holdman is familiar with Redskins' defensive coordinator/defensive line coach Greg Blache and linebackers coach Dale Lindsey. Holdman, who played for the Bears from 1999-2003, was previously coached by Blache from 1999-2003 and Lindsey from 1999-2001.

"He's somebody who our coaches here know a lot about because they've coached him," Gibbs said.

Holdman has played all three linebacker positions in his career and will bring solid depth to the team's linebacker corps.

"The Brown s released him this year due to the new coaching staff," Gibbs said. "He's somebody we liked last year and we thought he fit in good with us, so we jumped on it. He came in for a quick visit and we reached a quick agreement."

In his career, Holdman has recorded 424 tackles, four sacks and one interception. His best statistical season was 2001, when he logged a career-high 93 tackles, 1.5 sacks, eight forced fumbles and eight passes defended. Holdman played linebacker at Texas A&M from 1995-98. He started 40 games during that span, recording 249 tackles, 16.5 sacks and seven forced fumbles. He is a native of Alief, Texas.
[url="http://www.redskins.com/news/newsDetail.jsp?id=7057"]http://www.redskins.com/news/newsDetail.jsp?id=7057[/url]

Re: Gibbs: Redskins, Holdman Agree
 

hes a good linebacker. We definitly have a ton of depth at linebacker now and dont hvae to worry about who plays middle or if someone gets hurt

Re: Gibbs: Redskins, Holdman Agree
 

meh. well at least we know he can play middle linebacker. im not sure how i should react to this, seeing as how linebacker is probably the position we have the most depth at.

Re: Gibbs: Redskins, Holdman Agree
 

I think that this will be an upgrade over Pierce. He has the experience, size, toughness and speed needed in the middle. We tried to get him last year and I think that he will be a great fit in our defensive schemes. I just hope we didn't pay too much to get him. Great pick up anyway. He will be solid for 2-3 years until Robert McCune is ready to man the middle.

Re: Gibbs: Redskins, Holdman Agree
 

[QUOTE=REDSKINS TANK]I think that this will be an upgrade over Pierce. He has the experience, size, toughness and speed needed in the middle. We tried to get him last year and I think that he will be a great fit in our defensive schemes. I just hope we didn't pay too much to get him. Great pick up anyway. He will be solid for 2-3 years until Robert McCune is ready to man the middle.[/QUOTE]

Great i agree and welcome that was your first post HTTR:)

Re: Gibbs: Redskins, Holdman Agree
 

Also just wanted say that this was the "Big news that was a year in the making". I was really hoping that it was gonna be Darrell Green. GO SKINS!!!

Re: Gibbs: Redskins, Holdman Agree
 

Eight forced fumbles? That's pretty good for someone who hasn't played much.

Re: Gibbs: Redskins, Holdman Agree
 

Does anyone have any idea why we have this many LB's on our roster when, from what I can think, we have two probowlers on the outside who will be more than just mainstays in the lineup to say the least! I like the Holdman move.....with Blache and Lindsay being familiar with him......does anyone think that Lavar is going to be coming off the edge A LOT more this year....just a strange thing to pick up another LB when we run the 4-3.......could Williams mix the 3-4 a little this year since we haven't really looked hard at DT's or DE's.....except for UDFA???? I know its a long stretch....but just wondering what others thought??????

Re: Gibbs: Redskins, Holdman Agree
 

Hey saden1, that's sweet. How you get that?

Re: Gibbs: Redskins, Holdman Agree
 

He won a bet with Matty about the draft!

Anyhow, big deal. Just what we needed, another mediocre LB. We have Arrington and Washington as bookends with good OLB options (Marshall, Clemons, etc) MLB is still a question, but on gameday how many "LB's" will we carry? I know lots will be special team players, but still.

Re: Gibbs: Redskins, Holdman Agree
 

I would think that this pretty much puts the final nail in the coffin of Barrow's Redskin career. And I'm guessing Holdman and Marshall battle it out for the starting MLB position

Re: Gibbs: Redskins, Holdman Agree
 

[QUOTE=skinnyfan]Does anyone have any idea why we have this many LB's on our roster when, from what I can think, we have two probowlers on the outside who will be more than just mainstays in the lineup to say the least! I like the Holdman move.....with Blache and Lindsay being familiar with him......does anyone think that Lavar is going to be coming off the edge A LOT more this year....just a strange thing to pick up another LB when we run the 4-3.......could Williams mix the 3-4 a little this year since we haven't really looked hard at DT's or DE's.....except for UDFA???? I know its a long stretch....but just wondering what others thought??????[/QUOTE]

Nice post. Good thoughts. Welcome to the board!

Re: Gibbs: Redskins, Holdman Agree
 

Holdman can play; this is a valuable addition - - assuming of course that he doesn't break his leg or go into a coma between now and Labor Day.

Signing him tells me that the Skins are not counting on a lot of participation from Mike Barrow this year. If Holdman catches onto the system, Holdman can be the starter in Game 1; if it takes a while, he ought to be the starter by mid-October.

As to all the LBs on the roster, several will play special teams and nothing else. And don't be surprised if more than one of them is released before the opening kickoff.

Re: Gibbs: Redskins, Holdman Agree
 

[QUOTE=sportscurmudgeon]Holdman can play; this is a valuable addition - - assuming of course that he doesn't break his leg or go into a coma between now and Labor Day.

Signing him tells me that the Skins are not counting on a lot of participation from Mike Barrow this year. If Holdman catches onto the system, Holdman can be the starter in Game 1; if it takes a while, he ought to be the starter by mid-October.

As to all the LBs on the roster, several will play special teams and nothing else. And don't be surprised if more than one of them is released before the opening kickoff.[/QUOTE]
Good points all, Curmudgeon. Holdman was the guy they wanted before Barrow. Greg Blache made the push for him, and he was his coordinator for several years in Chicago. We should assume that they expect him to step into an active role.

Re: Gibbs: Redskins, Holdman Agree
 

Yeah this is ominous for Mr. Barrow. But, depending on contract terms, this could be one their best off season moves. If they got him at a bargain price (read:less than pierce), they got a quality starter with versatility at a value. Of course the terms aren't public yet to my knowledge so that is TBD. I like it. I know I feel better immediately about our LB corp. Marshall is a fine player and all but I don't know if he was the answer they need at MLB. Now he can be a total miss and it is not a huge deal.

Re: Gibbs: Redskins, Holdman Agree
 

Anyone got the past stats on Holdman?

Re: Gibbs: Redskins, Holdman Agree
 

[url]http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/players/stats?statsId=4756[/url]

Re: Gibbs: Redskins, Holdman Agree
 

Sweet, I get lazy sometimes. ;)

Judging by stats alone, this guy is a great pickup. I guess we need all this depth because of how important the LB is in Williams' defense.

Re: Gibbs: Redskins, Holdman Agree
 

I agree the writing is most likely on the wall for Barrow

Re: Gibbs: Redskins, Holdman Agree
 

The Barrow situation is terribly disappointing. He was a good pickup, real production guy with little to no injury history at all. Shows how older guys just deteriorate at sucha great speed. Especially at high impact positions.

Re: Gibbs: Redskins, Holdman Agree
 

Too bad he changed his number for NUTHIN'.

Re: Gibbs: Redskins, Holdman Agree
 

Yeah Barrow is DEFINITELY gone after June 1 now. The salary cap space will be needed for the rookies.

Holdman was awesome back when Blache and Lindsay had him in Chicago, but he got hurt and hasn't been the same player since. But it's been a few years since that injury, so hopefully he's healthy now. I don't think this signing is anything to get too excited about, which is exactly what we need, if that makes any sense. We need players who will fit comfortably into our scheme (we know he will after playing for Blache) for a very low price. He got signed last year for one year, $1.4 million in Cleveland, and he didn't earn a bigger contract. I'd be willing to bet we got him for close to the veteran minimum.

Re: Gibbs: Redskins, Holdman Agree
 

i'm glad we signed him, you can't have too much experience. maybe his strengths mirror some of our weaknesses.i doubt we payed alot for this muffler lol, it's a good signing.way to go skins. maybe we'll see them sign some cheap but talent from here on out, who knows.by the way how's everyone doin? it's a beautiful day,and all i'm missing is a hammock.

Re: Gibbs: Redskins, Holdman Agree
 

[QUOTE=56FAN]i'm glad we signed him, you can't have too much experience. maybe his strengths mirror some of our weaknesses.i doubt we payed alot for this muffler lol, it's a good signing.way to go skins. maybe we'll see them sign some cheap but good talent from here on out, who knows.by the way how's everyone doin? it's a beautiful day,and all i'm missing is a hammock

Re: Gibbs: Redskins, Holdman Agree
 

This is a shock to me. We have so many LB's, maybe they are just trying to push people in camp. Kind of strange we picked up Holdman though because last year before we got Washington I wanted us to get Holdman.

Re: Gibbs: Redskins, Holdman Agree
 

[QUOTE=skinnyfan]Does anyone have any idea why we have this many LB's on our roster when, from what I can think, we have two probowlers on the outside who will be more than just mainstays in the lineup to say the least! I like the Holdman move.....with Blache and Lindsay being familiar with him......does anyone think that Lavar is going to be coming off the edge A LOT more this year....just a strange thing to pick up another LB when we run the 4-3.......could Williams mix the 3-4 a little this year since we haven't really looked hard at DT's or DE's.....except for UDFA???? I know its a long stretch....but just wondering what others thought??????[/QUOTE]

Last year at this time we had a few people raise that same question. Head Coach Defense Williams likes to have good depth at the LB positon. After the large amount of injuries at the LB position last seasonr, his overstocking of the LB position made sense. Especialy since the defense played so well despite missing 2 of 3 starting LB's Arrington and Barrow. Add to that replacement starter Khary Campbell tore his ACL in game 9 and missed the rest of the season. It is just coach Williams way and it seems to work. Plus LB's generally help out better at special teams than say having extra WR's.

Re: Gibbs: Redskins, Holdman Agree
 

[QUOTE=Mattyk72]I agree the writing is most likely on the wall for Barrow[/QUOTE]
Barrow aside, I think the writing is on the wall for Arrington. :oink:

Re: Gibbs: Redskins, Holdman Agree
 

I'd really doubt that. How many years are left on his current contract?

Re: Gibbs: Redskins, Holdman Agree
 

[QUOTE=TheMalcolmConnection]I'd really doubt that. How many years are left on his current contract?[/QUOTE]


I think he has either 5 or 6 more. Arrington isn't going anywhere. I wish some of us here would get that thought out of their heads.

Re: Gibbs: Redskins, Holdman Agree
 

Why would anyone WANT him to go either? Freelancer or whatever he is, he is talented and doesn't get nominated to Pro Bowls because of his outgoing personality.

Re: Gibbs: Redskins, Holdman Agree
 

[QUOTE=TheMalcolmConnection]Why would anyone WANT him to go either? Freelancer or whatever he is, he is talented and doesn't get nominated to Pro Bowls because of his outgoing personality.[/QUOTE]

One very good reason : Is Arrington really the money/salary cap space space he takes up? .
He missed most of last season and our defense still ranked #3 in the NFL. The guy that played in place of Arrington is not as explosive of a player, but he makes a fraction of what Arrington is making and is an adequate player.

If you examine the spending habits of the consistantly winning teams (in contrast to our spending habits) like the Eagles or Patriots... when one of their great players contract is up and if the player askes for a huge contract, they usually (not always) just cut them. For example the Eagles gave up both of their starting/probowl CB's last year, instead signing them to huge deals and the Eagles still made it to the Super Bowl.
Look at our deals with WR Moss and Brunell.

Re: Gibbs: Redskins, Holdman Agree
 

Arrington isn't going anywhere

Re: Gibbs: Redskins, Holdman Agree
 

wow arrington again. Everyone knows that there is no possible way to get rid of him and he is with us for at least 3 more years. Unless he agrees to give up the penalty and we trade him, i doubt that he will give that $. Otherwise is he worth it? i would say we over pay him but that is no fault to him, its just that he is a leader and many of us have forgotten how he was thee face of the team. And even though we were ranked #3 that doesn't mean we wouldn't improve greatly, remember there is no cap on how good a D can be.

Re: Gibbs: Redskins, Holdman Agree
 

i can understand the stats part about arrington's replacement last year, but lemar marshall hasn't gotten playmaker status yet. a lot of people on this website think we would be better off without arrington, but please, the guy is also a leader and none of you are in the locker room. you are just going off've what the media feeds you. remember when lavar returned an interception for a touchdown in 2000. they say that was the play that turned there season around. they won five of their next eight after that. not to mention, im sure if we won a super bowl a lot of players on our team would start to understand the team concept a lot more and we wouldn't be hearing a lot about players unhappy with our contracts. look at the patriots. the media says they have no playmakers on that team. that's not true. tom brady is a playmaker, so is richard seymour, so is tedy bruschi, etc. those guys aren't complaining about their salary because they feel its worth it because of the super bowl rings they have.

Re: Gibbs: Redskins, Holdman Agree
 

Great pickup..........now we just need a DE...............

Re: Gibbs: Redskins, Holdman Agree
 

Does anyone know why Arrington is costing 10 million against the cap next year? What is the logic behind this?

Re: Gibbs: Redskins, Holdman Agree
 

There is never enough linebackers... Patriots have 15 on their roster. I hope Williams can revive his career

Re: Gibbs: Redskins, Holdman Agree
 

[QUOTE=diehardskin2982]There is never enough linebackers... Patriots have 15 on their roster. I hope Williams can revive his career[/QUOTE]

the reason the patriots have 15 on their roster is because they run a 3-4. they need more linebackers. and some are probably gonna get cut before the season starts. i think in william's scheme he will get revived. he made an undrafted linebacker look like a pro bowler, remember.

Re: Gibbs: Redskins, Holdman Agree
 

[QUOTE=mooby]the reason the patriots have 15 on their roster is because they run a 3-4. they need more linebackers. and some are probably gonna get cut before the season starts. i think in william's scheme he will get revived. he made an undrafted linebacker look like a pro bowler, remember.[/QUOTE]

Williams defense is one where he uses players all over the place so I don't think its a problem. I like the pick up :biggthump