With less than a week standing between Tyler Polumbus and unrestricted free agency, the Redskins’ right tackle says he remains hopeful of returning to Washington.

“I certainly want to be back there,” Polumbus told ESPN 980’s Inside the Locker Room on Wednesday afternoon. “I hope that they want me back. I think that they do. We’ve had an opportunity to play for Coach [Mike] Shanahan now for three seasons, including Denver, and he’s a dream coach to play for.”

Polumbus started 16 of 17 games for the Redskins in 2012 after replacing the injured Jammal Brown in training camp. Although Polumbus was inconsistent, he showed improvement and was part of a cohesive unit that paved the way for the NFL’s top rushing offense. His $700,000 salary in 2012 (and $540,000 cap charge) also made him the most affordable starter on the offensive line -- not an insignificant factor given the team's sticky cap situation.

The 27-year-old said there have been preliminary discussions between his agent and the Redskins, but those talks have been slowed by the uncertainty surrounding the $18 million cap penalty and whether the team will be able to recoup any of it.

Free agency opens at 4 p.m. Tuesday.

“As you guys know, everything that’s going on at the Redskins is moving real slowly right now,” Polumbus said. “They got crushed with the whole cap situation. So nothing is moving too fast there.”

“There’s been some initial …discussions. Here’s where we feel, here’s where they feel type of things,” he continued. “But I think there’s progress that needs to be done before either side is ready to move forward.”

“I’m hopeful to end up with the Redskins, but I know they’ve got a very peculiar situation that they’ve got to work through. So we’re obviously going to let them work through all that, and hopefully both sides can come up with something both sides can be happy with.”