After Washington spent its first-round draft pick on wide receiver Josh Doctson, wide receiver Andre Roberts became expendable.
As a result, Roberts was released, the Washington Post reports.
Roberts would likely have been no better than fourth on the depth chart this season behind DeSean Jackson, Pierre Garcon and Doctson, and he was due a base salary of $4 million. So the decision to cut him is no surprise.
After signing a four-year, $16 million contract in 2014, Roberts was a disappointment: In his first year he managed 36 catches for 453 yards, and last year he had just 11 catches for 135 yards before he was lost for the season with a knee injury in Week 11. He ended up making $8 million in two years.
Roberts had his best season in 2012 with the Cardinals, when he caught 64 passes for 759 yards and five touchdowns. At age 28, perhaps some other NFL team will think he still has the potential to return to that level of production, and he might draw interest because of his ability to return punts and kickoffs. But he’ll surely end up making a lot less in his next stop than he made in Washington.