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Cowboys Sign Slaton, Washington

By CHRIS DUFRESNE
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Guard Tony Slaton and safety James Washington of the Rams and Chicago Bears’ receiver Dennis McKinnon, headed a list of 12 Plan B free agents signed by the Dallas Cowboys Saturday.

Slaton, 28, was mostly a reserve in six seasons with the Rams, although he won the starting right guard position from Duval Love in 1989 after Love’s long training camp holdout. Love regained his position late in the season. Slaton, signed by the Rams as a free agent in 1984 after playing at USC, has been bothered by an arthritic knee.

Washington, a fifth-round draft choice from UCLA in 1988, played in nine games last season as a reserve. He missed six weeks with a thigh injury. Washington, also bothered by a chronic knee problem, made his only start of the season against the San Francisco 49ers in the NFC title game, filling in for injured Vince Newsome at free safety. Washington made nine unassisted tackles in the Rams’ 30-3 loss.

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Slaton and Washington were among 16 Rams left unprotected by the team on Feb. 1. Plan B players are unrestricted free agents who have until April 1 to negotiate with teams other than their own.

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Chris Dufresne

Chris Dufresne was the Los Angeles Times’ national college football/basketball columnist from 1995 to 2015. He also covered skiing at the Winter Olympics and wrote extensively on most sports. He is a multiple national award winner and was named 2011 California Sportswriter of the Year by the National Sportswriters and Sportscasters Assn. A Los Angeles native, he started at The Times in 1976 as a truck loader and literally worked his way up (two floors to be exact).

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