Redskins may sign Aqib Talib; How that Affects Bengals

The Washington Redskins are always one of the highest-spending teams once NFL free agency begins, and it looks as though that will happen this year.

Several of this year's top free agents are drawing interest from Washington, including New England Patriots cornerback Aqib Talib. Regarded by many as the best free agent CB, Talib is expected to get a contract that pays him anywhere between $7-10 million annually.

ESPN's John Clayton is predicting the Redskins will be the team to sign Talib, and that could impact the Cincinnati Bengals. With Washington having just around $26 million in cap space, signing Talib would take-up a lot of contract space.

Washington is reportedly showing interest in offensive tackle Anthony Collins. If they sign Talib though, they may not have enough cap space to outbid the Bengals for Collins' services.

For comparison, Sam Shields' contract with the Green Bay Packers was four years and $39 million. Brent Grimes re-upped with the Miami Dolphins for four years and $32 million with $16 million guaranteed. He'll be 31 in July and has played in every game in three of the past five seasons.

After signing Talib, Washington would need to hold about $4-6 million to sign their draft picks and keep another $3-5 million to sign players to fill-out the rest of their roster. Signing Collins away from the Bengals may require them to pay around $6.5 million. It's still unclear as to how much the Bengals value Collins, but it's likely enough to outbid the Redskins if they're paying Talib big money.

In other words, if Washington signs Talib, don't expect Collins to land there as well.