Draft week musings
April 26, 2022
by Steve Thomas
We’re finally here. It’s draft week! Get excited. Everyone loves the league’s annual ode to collegiate greatness regardless of the team to which you pledge your loyalties. Since we have a couple of days until Thursday, though, let’s dive into what the Redskins Washington Football Team The Team that Mistreats Women, Cheats on its Finances, and has Contempt for its Fans Washington might do this year. This isn’t going to just be a Washington mock draft, because most of you have already done a thousand of them. We’ll go over some options for the team and what sort of selections might be most useful.
First, though, let’s discuss priorities. There’s no doubt that teams should obviously try to draft the best players they can, and shouldn’t sacrifice a massive amount of draft capital in order to fill a gaping maw on their roster. However, what is equally dumb is failing to take team needs into account and simply drafting whoever is next up on the fan mock draft board. The truth appears to be that most teams do take team needs into account – as they should – when constructing their draft boards, at least in the early rounds, no matter how many random folks in Satan’s playground, Twitter, scream “BPA” at the top of their virtual lungs. The degree obviously varies, but it’s there. As for Washington, Rivera drafted Chase Young in 2020, who was too highly rated to pass up, and linebacker Jamin Davis last year. Davis was an obvious need pick who most had ranked lower than pick 19, where Washington selected him. Therefore, it’s clear that Washington subscribes to common thinking and takes need into account to one degree or the other. As a result, that’s what I’ll do for this exercise.
It’s almost impossible to successfully guess more than even one or two picks, and making guesses on middle to back of the draft selections is nothing more than entertainment. Therefore, I’ll give my picks for the top four rounds only, in which Washington only has 3 picks, then just discuss possibilities for the remainder.
Round 1, Pick 11: Given both the rumors coming from our local beat writers and team needs, odds seem best that Washington will be after either a wide receiver or defensive back here. Defensively, Notre Dame safety Kyle Hamilton makes sense, since safety is a big need, but it’s possible that he doesn’t last until pick 11. Amhad “Sauce” Gardner, the corner from the University of Cincinnati, is another player craved by fans, but he also may not be available when Washington’s turn comes. The defensive back who will most realistically available at 11 is LSU corner Derek Stingley Jr. Personally, I don’t think drafting a pure corner is the most efficient use of this pick, as starting corner isn’t a big need for the team, but Rivera loves defense. In my view, linebacker and receiver are much bigger needs. The linebackers who will most likely be available to Washington in this spot are Nakobe Dean from Georgia, and Utah’s Devin Lloyd, although I think 11 is too high for either one. Ohio St. receiver Garrett Wilson is an option here, as is Arkansas’ Treylon Burks, Wilson’s teammate Chris Olave, USC receiver Drake London, and possibly Alabama’s Jameson Williams. Most analysts have Burks and Williams rated lower than 11. We obviously don’t know who the team rates higher, but I’d go for London over the rest because of London’s size and hands, both of which are things Washington could use. Washington made noise last week about speaking with some defensive linemen, which . . . God help us if they do something that dumb. Same with quarterback – the addition of Carson Wentz eliminates that as a need. There’s also a decent chance that the team trades down here, although Ron Rivera doesn’t have a history or doing so in round 1. I’m not normally in favor of trades down in round 1, but in this case it’s not a terrible idea given the team’s lack of picks this year.
Steve’s pick: USC WR Drake London
Round 2, Pick 15, #47 overall: If Washington goes receiver in round 1, that leaves linebacker as the biggest need on the roster, with interior offensive line, safety, and tight end in the mix as well. I’d put Georgia safety Lewis Cine as a strong possibility here, as is Alabama linebacker Christian Harris, and possibly Baylor safety Jalen Pitre. Harris is a bit undersized, but he’s nonetheless viewed as an inside linebacker, which is what Washington needs most. At the end of the day, Washington’s linebacker group is in crisis, so if Harris is available and round 1 goes as I predicted, I fail to see how Washington could afford to pass on him.
Steve’s pick: Alabama LB Christian Harris
Round 3: Washington traded their third round pick, #9, #73 overall, to the Colts in the Carson Wentz deal. However, if they should trade back into round 3, look for them to aim for another starter, probably one that they haven’t already addressed in rounds 1 and 2. It wouldn’t surprise me too much if Ron Rivera made a move here, but without knowing what pick they hypothetically acquired, it’s impossible to even hazard a guess.
Round 4, Pick #8, #113 overall: At this point in the proceedings, we’re getting out of the territory where teams are necessarily looking for surefire starters. In the past, Washington has found a couple players in the 4th round who’ve stuck around the NFL, so it’s reasonable to think they could uncover some talent this year as well. For this position, I’d look for what’s left of the needs Washington hasn’t already filled and add interior offensive line and running back to the mix. Multiple mock drafts have Oklahoma guard Marquis Hayes available at this spot. Other possibilities that would make sense for Washington include Ohio St. tight end Jeremy Ruckert, Georgia running back James Cook, USC running back Keanontay Ingram, North Carolina St. running back Zonovan Knight, as well as a number of wide receivers.
Steve’s pick: Oklahoma guard Marquis Hayes
Round 5: Washington does not have a fifth round pick thanks to last year’s trade for the Eagles’ 2021 sixth and seventh round picks. Should Washington trade back into round five, I think they’ll most likely be after a specific player who’s available rather than have general team needs in mind. Either that or they tack on a fifth rounder in a trade down in rounds 1 or 2. My guess is that the team passes on a trade unless it’s part of a bigger package of some sort.
Round 6, Pick #10, #189 overall: Washington needs a young developmental quarterback, and this is the point at which the team could conceivably look for one, perhaps Notre Dame’s Jack Coan. Otherwise, look for Washington to draft someone who’s the best draft value here, regardless of need. They’ll try to find someone who they have ranked higher but who for whatever reason has been skipped over. I think they’ll probably pass on a quarterback here, though. Look for the team to possibly go offensive line in this spot – even if they’ve drafted a guard earlier, as I predicted, they could still use a tackle prospect. My guess is that they’ll draft a tackle somewhere, and this strikes me as the most likely place. Other possibilities include a special teams candidate, and those are normally linebackers and safeties. The team could also go for a backup corner. Again, though, this round could be almost anyone.
Steve’s guess: tackle
Round 7, Pick #9, #230 overall, and Pick #19, #240 overall: Washington has an extra pick in round 7 as a result of the Carson Wentz trade. I think this is the round that Washington finds a developmental quarterback, maybe Western Kentucky’s Bailey Zappe, Miami’s D’Eriq King, or Dustin Crum from Kent St. The “need pick” here would probably be a special teamer, but much like round 6, the team could do almost anything. Since my job is to take a guess, I’m going with quarterback and linebacker in round 7.
Steve’s guess: quarterback, linebacker
That’s it folks. What do you think? Let me know in the comment section below.