In a conference call earlier this week, ESPN's Bill Polian gave positive remarks about Scot McCloughan, saying he's going after "good, solid football players."
Once he was hired by the Washington Redskins, general manager Scot McCloughan made it clear he has a plan in place for how he wants to shape the roster both in the short-term and the long-term.
With free agency, he wanted to bring in quality talent that are still relatively young but have experienced the NFL grind, not players reaching the end of their careers.
"We're not going to have to go out to other organizations and bring in 32 and 33 year olds who have different plans," McCloughan said at his introductory press conference.
He started his tenure with the Redskins by signing players like Stephen Paea (26 years old, 40 starts), Chris Culliver (26 years old, 20 starts) and Terrance Knighton (28 years old, 81 starts).
Then McCloughan acquired two-time Pro Bowl safety Dashon Goldson, a player he helped bring into the league when he was with the San Francisco 49ers.
This process is similar to what McCloughan did when he was with the 49ers and Seattle Seahawks, two teams he helped load with talent.
Bill Polian, a 2015 Pro Football Hall of Fame inductee, said he is certainly a fan of McCloughan's approach.
"The foundation for San Francisco was laid when he was there and it was sound and solid," Polian said earlier this week in a conference call. "It was meat and potatoes. Not a lot of flash and dash. Just good, solid football players who block and tackle and ran and were tough. You have to give him high marks for that."
As for what he's done with the Redskins so far in his first four months on the job, Polian -- who had an extremely successful career as general manager of the Buffalo Bills, Carolina Panthers and Indiana Colts -- said they've made "wise decisions."
"I think the overall direction, you'll have a better understanding and feel for it when we see what they did in the draft," Polian continued. "But it's going to be meat and potatoes, which is the right way to go about it."
With the first round of the draft less than two weeks away, the Redskins' focus has shifted to all prospects in this year's class.
While a lot of attention circulates around early-round picks, McCloughan believes every round is essential in finding productive players that make up a solid core.
"In Washington, we're going to draft these guys and we are going to draft them and mold them as Redskins," he said in January. "I think the best case scenario is you draft and mold your own and re-sign your own."
As for the team's fifth-overall pick, McCloughan is open to all possibilities.
"I'm never under the assumption that you draft for need," he said. "You draft the best available football player on the board. You know people say, 'Well, if you have this and this, why would you do that?' Because, you know, in the long run, they are the one."
RELATED LINKS:
-- Former Colleagues High On Scot McCloughan
-- Washington Redskins 2015 Mock Madness
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