Jimmy Graham got his long-term deal in New Orleans on Tuesday, but it appears Brian Orakpo will not join the contract party.
NFL Media Insider Ian Rapoport reported that the Washington Redskins outside linebacker is expected to play on the franchise tag as opposed to reaching a new contract before Tuesday's 4 p.m. ET deadline.
Orakpo is set to make $11.45 million on the franchise tag in 2014. The 27-year-old pass rusher consistently has expressed a desire to remain in Washington, but said he wouldn't hold out to get a new deal.
Coming off a 10-sack season, Orakpo said in April he doesn't have to prove he's worthy of a long-term pact.
"I have to prove myself again, huh?" Orakpo said, per CSN Washington. "I don't have to prove myself to anybody. I'm already proven in this league. I don't have to prove anything to anybody. That goes for fans, that goes for media. Anybody. I'm well-proven in this league."
Orakpo's career high in sacks, 11, came during his rookie season, and he's just a year removed from a pectoral injury that forced him to miss most of the 2012 season.
The Redskins could work out a long-term deal with Orakpo at the end of the season or face competition on the open market. The cost of tagging the linebacker again next year would shoot up to approximately $13.74 million.
UPDATE:The deadline passed without a completed long-term deal.
The latest "Around The League Podcast" bangs the table for Cordarrelle Patterson and predicts which stars will soon descend.
