Washington draft 2024: rounds 2 and 3
April 26, 2024
by Steve Thomas
With the 4th pick in the round two, 36th overall, Washington drafted Illinois defensive tackle Jer’Zhan Newton. The team then traded the 8th pick in round two, 40th overall, the 14th pick in round three, 78th overall, and the 17th pick in round five, 152nd overall, to the Philadelphia Eagles in exchange for picks 18 and 21 in round two, 50th and 53rd overall, respectively, plus the 26th pick in round 5, 161st overall. They then drafted Michigan corner Mike Sainristil with the 18th pick in 2 round and Kansas St. tight end Ben Sinnott with the 21st pick. In round 3, Washington drafted TCU offensive lineman Brandon Coleman with pick 3 and Rice wide receiver Luke McCaffrey with pick 37.
Round 2, pick 4: DT Jer’Zhan Newton (6’2” / 304)
Newton, who grew up in the Clearwater, Florida, area and goes the name “Johnny”, spent four years at the University of Illinois. He started three seasons, playing a total of 44 games, and made 187 total tackles, including 80 solo and 27.5 for loss, and 18 sacks. In 2023, Newton played 12 games and had 52 tackles, including 26 solo and 8.5 for loss, and 7.5 sacks, and was named as a Consensus All-American, and earned the Nagurski-Woodson Defensive Player of the Year Award and the Smith-Brown Defensive Lineman of the Year Award. Newton was unable to participate in the NFL Combine or Illinois’ pro day in order to recover from foot surgery.
Newton is a true inside defensive lineman, and while he doesn’t have tremendous size or length, is viewed by scouts as a player with good agility, quick hands, and instincts, and understand leverage. However, he lacks the desired arm length and the ability to accelerate from the line of scrimmage at the snap.
Honestly, Newton’s selection is very puzzling. Given that Washington has two engrained starters at defensive tackle in Jonathan Allen and Daron Payne, plus 2022 second round pick Phidarian Mathis, it is tough to see how Newton will be able to get much playing time, let alone starts, absent injury. Washington now has two highly drafted defensive tackles who likely will not be able to start for multiple seasons, at best.
Round 2, pick 18: CB Mike Sainristil (5’9” / 182)
Sainristil is originally from Haiti, but attended high school in Massachusetts. He spent five seasons at the University of Michigan and played in 62 games, with 108 total tackles, including 70 solo and 10.5 for loss, 3 sacks, and 7 interceptions. In 2023, he played in 15 games, and made 44 total tackles, including 26 solo and 4 for loss, 1 sack, and 6 interceptions, and was named as a First-Team All-American. Sainristil fully participated in the NFL Combine, running the 40 yard dash in 4.47 seconds and the 20 yard shuttle in 4.01 seconds, and jumping 40 inches in the vertical leap and 10’11” in the standing broad jump.
Sainristil is known to be an explosive athletic with great ball skills and a relentless attitude. However, his size may limit his role in the NFL. In addition, he is inexperienced at defensive back, having switched from wide receiver to corner at Michigan in 2022. Washington now has a number of young, highly drafted corners, so Sainristil will have to compete with Emmanuel Forbes, in particular for a starting role on Washington’s defense. He may be more suited to a slot role rather than as an outside corner.
Round 2, pick 21: TE Ben Sinnott (6’4” / 250)
Sinnott attended high school in Iowa and played for Kansas St. for four seasons. He was originally a walk on and did not see any playing time in 2020. From 2021 – 2023, he played in a total of 38 games, and made 82 receptions for 1138 yards, 13.9 yards per catch, and 10 touchdowns. In 2023, he played 12 games, with 49 receptions for 676 yards, 13.8 yards per catch, and 6 touchdowns. He earned First-Team All-Big 12 honors in both 2022 and 2023. Sinnott participated in the NFL Combine, and ran the 40 yard dash in 4.68 seconds and the 20 yard shuttle in 4.23 seconds, and jumped 40 inches in the vertical leap and 10’6” in the standing broad jump.
Sinnott is known as an “F” tight end, meaning that Kansas St. moved him around from the slot, to the fullback role, and sometimes inline, as opposed to a full-time traditional inline “Y” tight end. He is known to be versatile, and to have good agility and the size of a traditional NFL tight end. Sinnott is viewed by scouts as having adequate, but not great, route-running ability and as a good run blocker. However, he is a below average pass blocker and has only average speed.
Sinnott was viewed by most has a high day 3 pick, so Washington may have overdrafted him in round 2, but they have a need at tight end, so Sinnott will likely be able to compete for a valuable role in Washington’s offense, perhaps even a starting role, as a rookie.
Round 3, pick 3: OL Brandon Coleman (6’4” ½ / 313)
Coleman attended high school in Denton, Texas, and spent his 2018 and 2019 seasons at Trinity Valley Community College before transferred to TCU for the 2020 through 2023 seasons. Coleman played a total of 26 games at TCO and was a starter in 2021, 2022, and 2023, earning Second-Team All-Big 12 honors in 2023. He participated in the some of the athletic testing at the NFL Combine; he ran the 40 yard dash in 4.99 seconds, jumped 34 inches in the vertical leap and 9’6” in the standing broad jump, but did not do the bench press. Coleman’s arms were measured at 34 5/8 inches.
Most scouts view Coleman as being more appropriate for a guard role in the NFL, but some believe he can also play tackle at some level or another. He’s known to be athletic by NFL offensive lineman standards, and the arm length many see as a requirement for a tackle. Some analysts question the consistency of his blocking technique.
Washington’s offensive line is an epic tragedy, particularly at tackle, so while he might not end up being a plus-level tackle in the NFL, he will doubtlessly get an opportunity to be a day one starter somewhere in the offensive line group. It is probably too early to assume that Coleman is best suited to either guard or tackle.
Round 3, pick 37: WR Luke McCaffrey (6’2” / 198)
McCaffrey has an elite NFL pedigree, as he is the son of former Giants and Broncos receiver Ed McCaffrey and the younger brother of reigning NFL Offensive Player of the Year, 49ers running back Christian McCaffrey. Luke attended high school and spent the 2019 and 2020 seasons at the University of Nebraska before transferring to Louisville, but then left that university a few months later for Rice, where he remained for the 2021, 2022, and 2023 seasons. In total, he played in 44 games, and made 131 receptions for 1732 yards, 13.2 yards per reception, and 19 touchdowns, as well as 157 rushing attempts for 927 yards, 5.9 yards per carry, and another 7 touchdowns. In 2023, McCaffrey had 71 receptions for 992 yards, 14.0 yards per reception, and 13 touchdowns, and 15 rushing attempts for 117 yards, for 7.8 yards per carry. At the NFL Combine, he ran the 40 yard dash in 4.46 seconds and the 20 yard shuttle in 4.02 seconds, and jumped 36 inches in the vertical leap and 10’1” in the standing broad jump.
McCaffrey is rated much lower than his brother. He started out his college career competing to be the quarterback at both Nebraska and Rice. He didn’t earn the starting job at either university and eventually transferred to receiver in 2022, at which he started for two years. Scouts viewed his 2023 season to be a significant improvement. McCaffrey is viewed by most as a possession receiver best suited for the slot. He has great hands and made multiple highlight reel contested catches, and his time as a quarterback means that he has a high football IQ. However, scouts feel that his route running still needs work, and also question his ability to separate from defenders.
McCaffrey is a “name”, so fans will be excited to have him on Washington’s roster. Considering the status of Washington’s receiver group, McCaffrey probably has a legitimate shot to earning the slot receiver role alongside starting outside receivers Terry McLaurin and Jahan Dotson.