Washington Redskins Stephen Bowen could miss opener

Washington Redskins defensive end Stephen Bowen needed to restructure his contract last week in order to avoid being released, as he would have made far too much money on the deal he signed a few years back when first joining the Redskins from the Dallas Cowboys. Bowen is a backup defensive end for the Redskins at this point, and he’s recovering from microfracture surgery, which is one of the most serious procedures that a player can undergo. He was placed on the active/PUP list to start training camp and still hopes to get his knee cleared soon, but he’s in a race to receive clearance before the start of the season.

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According to the Redskins official Twitter account, Jay Gruden stated that he isn’t sure if Bowen will be able to play in the team’s Week 1 game against the Houston Texans. His exact quote was “it’s hard to say”, so Bowen is a full-blown toss-up. Losing him for the opener wouldn’t be a big deal for the Redskins, since he isn’t a key starter. They would, however, like him to become a key part of the rotation and at least play up to the potential he once showed, but he’s a much better fit in a 4-3 than a 3-4 anyway.

Bowen was on the chopping block before restructuring his deal, and he provides the Redskins with some nice depth at DE. Under his old deal, Bowen would have costed $7 million against the cap, and it’s unclear what his cap charge is now. At 30, Bowen might not have that much in the tank if the knee injury saps out enough of his explosiveness, but that isn’t a big issue since the Redskins didn’t cut him outright.