It seems safety Dashon Goldson will be punishing ballcarriers and pass-catchers from the comfy confines of FedEx Field for the duration of the 2015 NFL season as The Tampa Bay Times and Albert Breer of NFL.com reported Friday that the Tampa Bay Buccaneers have shipped the thumping safety off to the Washington Redskins.
The two teams confirmed the move shortly thereafter.
"The Redskins have traded a 2016 sixth-round pick to the Buccaneers for S Dashon Goldson anda a 2016 seventh-round pick," Breer tweeted of the compensation involved in the deal.
Goldson's contract is worth $8 million for the 2015 season, with approximately half of that guaranteed. According to Mike Garofolo of FOX Sports, there was "some tinkering" with Goldson's contract as part of the trade.
The soon-to-be 31-year-old Goldson is a two-time Pro Bowler and has for his career 499 tackles, six forced fumbles and 15 interceptions.
In just 14 games for the Buccaneers last season, Goldson amassed 81 tackles and one pass defensed.
For the Bucs, the move continues second-year head coach Lovie Smith's quest to divest the Bucs of the hefty contracts and ill-fitting pieces left behind by the previous regime. Smith has also parted ways with former first-round safety Mark Barron and All Pro cornerback Darrelle Revis.
As Breer noted after news of the trade broke, the Bucs have invested two first-round picks and approximately $45 million since the 2012 offseason to add Baron, Revis and Goldson and all three players are now elsewhere.
For the Redskins, Goldson adds competition to a defensive secondary that allowed 249.4 yards per game last season - good enough for 24th in the NFL. Redskins head coach Jay Gruden recently talked up former Seattle Seahawk and recent offseason acquisition Jeron Johnson, but stopped short of naming him a starter for next season.
Brandon Meriweather and Duke Ihenacho both failed to take hold of starting spots last season as they battled injuries - Ihenacho was lost for the year in Week 3 - and veteran Ryan Clark struggled with inconsistency.
New Redskins GM Scot McLoughlan has a reputation as an aggressive personnel man and was on the San Francisco 49ers staff that originally brought Goldson into the league as a fourth-round pick in the 2007 NFL Draft.
