Here is what you need to know on this Monday, April 9, 17 days before the NFL draft.

Breaking down the Redskins’ current roster

Here are some notes on the current construction of the Redskins’ roster.

—Officially, the Redskins have 74 players on their roster. That number does not count reserve offensive tackle Ty Nsekhe. He has not signed his restricted free agent tender, so he is still a free agent. He has until April 20 to sign an offer sheet with another team. There has been no reported interest in Nsekhe from other teams and the chances that he will return are high enough that we’ll call the roster count 75 and include Nsekhe in the various breakdowns that follow.

—The roster limit is 90, so the Redskins have 15 open spots. As of now, they have eight draft picks. They could trade down and end up with more or trade up and have fewer, but we’ll go with eight for right now. In a change that was made several years ago, draft picks count against the roster as soon as the card is turned in, not when they are signed to a contract.

—Once the draft is over, they will begin signing undrafted free agents. After they have seven signed, they will have to release a player for each one they sign. That will begin a cycle of roster churn that will accelerate when rookie minicamp starts on May 11. The Redskins will bring in dozens of players to try out for a roster spot. A number of them will be signed and replace players who may have signed within the last week and a half.

—The Redskins currently have 35 offensive players, 36 defensive players, and four specialists. They will keep the balance roughly even going into OTAs starting May 22. That means adding seven or eight draft picks and undrafted free agents on each side of the ball.

—One position they are certain to add to is wide receiver. They currently have six on the roster and they will want to go into OTAs with about 12. Why so many? They like to have a lot to run through plays with three- and four-receiver sets. The dozen may shuffle before and during training camp, but the number will remain about the same. Somebody has to take those “empty the bench” snaps during the preseason and start the exhibition game.

—Who says the Redskins don’t have a nose tackle? They have four on the roster now in Phil Taylor (listed weight 343 lb.), Ondre Pipkins (321), A.J. Francis (337), and Montori Hughes (350). If you want to count Ziggy Hood, who played the nose all last year, that makes five. But I guess if you have five nose tackles, you don’t have any nose tackles.

Stay up to date on the Redskins. Rich Tandler covers the team 365 days a year. Like his Facebook page, Facebook.com/TandlerNBCSand follow him on Twitter @TandlerNBCS.

Tandler on Twitter

In response to my post from yesterday, which covered what it would take for the Redskins to trade back to pick up the third-round pick they dealt in the Alex Smith trade

While I think the Redskins agree, especially with the first part, have to find a team to trade with. — Rich Tandler (@TandlerNBCS) April 8, 2018

Timeline

Days until:



—Offseason workouts begin (4/16) 7

—Training camp starts (approx. 7/26) 108

—2018 NFL season starts (9/9) 153

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