Thanks, as always, for taking part in the Mailbag, and keep the questions coming! E-mail me at mike.jones@washpost.com with subject line “Mailbag question.”

Here we go!

My question is about the receiving corps. Assuming they bring DeSean Jackson back and restructure Pierre Garcon’s contract, it still leaves the team with only one young “building block” in Jamison Crowder. There’s also a short- and long-term need for a big receiver who can win jump balls. Do you see McCloughan grabbing a receiver in the draft? Is there any chance they target a free agent like Alshon Jeffery?

– Andrew Reilly, Fairfax

It’s still early, so you can’t rule anything out, but I’d be surprised if the Redskins pursue Jeffery, who is expected to be the top wide receiver available in free agency. I’d look for McCloughan instead to look to the draft for help at this position. A pick in the third, fourth or fifth round would seem about right. I’m anticipating defensive help with the first two picks of the draft.

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The Redskins do have Jordan Reed, a stellar red-zone threat with great size. So, even though he’s a tight end, he has a diverse skill set and can help in this area. But drafting a receiver does make sense as well.

We haven’t heard a lot of talk about Keenan Robinson and a new contract. He was our starting ‘mike’ linebacker for two years and played well. Injuries played a role, but he is by far our most athletic linebacker. McCloughan keeps saying we want to keep our own so what are the Redskins going to do? Keep him (I hope) or let him walk?

– Felix Trammell, Brandywine Md.

The Redskins just seem lukewarm on Robinson. Yes, he has great size and athleticism. But he’s undisciplined as a tackler and misses more than his coaches would like. Durability has also always been an issue for him. It seems more likely that the Redskins let Robinson walk than to re-sign him to a long-term deal.

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Will Compton finished off the second half of the season on a strong note, and coaches felt more confident in him than Robinson. It’ll be interesting to see if defensive coordinator Joe Barry sticks with Compton (an exclusive rights free agent and likely to re-sign) as his starter at that position, or if he and McCloughan feel like they can find an upgrade in the draft or free agency.

Why is there a rumor the Skins will just release RGIII? They need to trade him. That way they get something for him and control where he goes. If they release him it could come back to them, and you know what they say about payback.

– Gregory R. Jones

There’s not a team in the league that will give up a draft pick for Griffin because his contract calls for him to make $16.155 million in 2016. They know the Redskins have no desire to retain him. Washington has no leverage. And so, potential suitors will just wait and let Griffin hit free agency after Washington cuts him, and then sign him to a more favorable deal, which likely will come with a lower base salary and lots of incentives. The Redskins don’t have any leverage here.

What do you think the holdup is with cutting RGIII? I don’t know about the rest of Redskins nation, but if they are going to cut ties, then why haven’t they done it already? It would benefit, Robert, Kirk, the team, and most of all, the fans that are still having trouble going all in with Captain Kirk.

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– Rob Fox, Lincolnton, N.C.

There are a few reasons why the Redskins haven’t cut Griffin yet. First, Feb. 8, the day after the Super Bowl, is the first day that teams can start placing players on waivers. But as Scot McCloughan said last week, the Redskins don’t have to make a move on Griffin until March 9, and they likely will not do so until then. At 4 p.m. on that day, the new league year starts, and that’s when the $16.155 million salary of Griffin’s fifth-year option would count against Washington’s cap. So, if they plan to cut Griffin, which is fully expected, then they’d do it then to avoid that hit.

But, for now, Griffin is the only quarterback that the Redskins have under contract for 2016. They hope to work out a deal to re-sign Kirk Cousins to a long-term deal, but until they do so, they will hold on to Griffin to keep an ace in the hole in case something falls through with Cousins, and to attempt to muster some kind of leverage during contract negotiations with Cousins’s camp. They could attempt to say, “That’s too much that you’re asking for, and if needs be, we’ll just move on and give Robert another shot, because he’s been working, and he’s got a lot of talent.” Now, Cousins’s agent Mike McCartney will likely call that bluff. But it’s possible the Redskins could try that. More than anything right now, though, Griffin will serve as an insurance policy (even though the Redskins could just use the franchise tag to retain Cousins) while they continue to negotiate to retain No. 8.

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Given their respective performances over this past year during their rookie seasons, should the Washington football team have drafted Leonard Williams instead of Brandon Scherff with their first draft pick?

– Bill Hannon, Washington D.C.

No, I don’t think so. The Redskins badly needed to upgrade the interior of their offensive line even more than they did to fix their defensive line, and Scherff helped do just that. Yes, Washington’s defensive line needed and still needs work, but the offensive line was in worse shape prior to Scherff’s addition. And, the free agent signings of Ricky Jean Francois and Terrance Knighton, plus the returns of Chris Baker and Jason Hatcher helped buy the Redskins time.

Scherff had a solid rookie season and looks like he will become a fixture there at right guard for years to come. That’s what McCloughan wanted. A rock-solid first pick to kick off his tenure as general manager, and a player that could meet a pressing need. The Redskins had questions about Williams’s personal life and his drive and thus, weren’t as enamored with him as some teams. The Redskins will, however, approach this draft with the goal of adding to the defensive line.

I am not usually an NFL conspiracy theorist, but is there any chance Cousins got voted into the Pro Bowl as an alternate (ahead of Bridgewater and/or Winston), but the NFL skipped him over because he was already booked on their London promotional tour? Are the Pro Bowl combined vote results (players, fans, coaches, and whoever else votes) published anywhere? Is there anything in place that would stop the league from doing this? I just found it interesting that Cousins was already “working” for the league this past week and thought Kirk might be more valuable to the NFL in London than he would be in Honolulu.

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– Dave Reynaud, Towson, Md.

There is no chance of this being the reason why Cousins didn’t make the Pro Bowl. At the time that the Pro Bowl votes (for starters, backups and alternates) had to be turned in, Cousins had solid numbers (20 touchdowns, 10 interceptions), and the Redskins were 5-7. It wasn’t until the final four games of the season that we really saw Cousins and the Redskins take off. He threw 12 touchdown passes and just one interception, and Washington won four straight, with three of those four coming on the road. So, had Cousins and his team enjoyed a November similar to their December, he probably would have made the Pro Bowl.

E-mail a Redskins question to mike.jones@washpost.com, with the subject “Mailbag question,” and it might be answered Tuesday in the Mailbag.

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