An Intriguing, Albeit Outrageous, Draft Strategy for the Washington Commanders

By: Mike Patt

Hello sports fans, and welcome back to the IE Sports Radio Blog. The Super Bowl has come and gone (congrats Philly), which means the off-season is now in full swing. Free agency is coming up quick, and the NFL Draft is right around the corner. These two events promise to drastically change the NFL landscape, as they always do. Some pundits have been in mock draft mode for some time now. I myself have only just begun said process and will not dive too deeply until free agency is somewhat complete. This year's draft class is one of the better ones in recent memory. There is quality talent at every position, and teams will get good value from pick 1 to 257.

While the Commanders are expected to accomplish most of their roster upgrades via free agency, they have the opportunity to find help in the draft as well. They currently own their own 1st, 2nd, and 6th round picks, along with Miami's 3rd, New Orleans' 5th, and 7th round selections from the Broncos and Eagles. The late day three selections will mostly serve to help with depth and special teams, while the team should be able find immediate impact guys in rounds 1-3. Only having 3 picks in the first half is a stark contrast to last year, where Washington had six of the top 100 picks.

In most cases, a team would take a balanced approached and address multiple needs with these choices. As you can tell from the title of this article, we are not doing that. Instead, we are pondering the scenario where Washington addresses all of their needs but ONE in free agency and leaves that one need completely open for draft night. Then, they use ALL THREE top 100 picks to restock that position for the foreseeable future. Is it wild? Yes. Is it impractical? Probably. Are we about to look at what position groups the Commanders could do this with? You bet.

Makes the Most Sense: Offensive Line (Specifically tackle) 

Originally this was just going to be OT, but it made more sense to broaden the scope. Washington did a great job addressing the Oline last off-season, but there is still work to be done. They return all five of their starters, but with a few caveats. RG Sam Cosmi suffered an injury in the playoffs and will likely start the season on IR. LT Brandon Coleman played admirably as rookie, but LT might not be his best position long-term. RT Andrew Wylie was just okay and is in the last year of his contract. Major financial benefit in releasing him. LG Nick Allegretti was average and may be of better service as the team's top reserve (and probably Cosmi's injury replacement) in 2025.

If the team let all free agents walk and cuts Wylie, they could in theory use their three picks on two new starters and a key back-up. With OL, there are numerous scenarios and combinations in play. My ideal scenario would be one of Josh Simmons or Josh Conerly fall to 29 and come in as the starting LT, with Coleman moving to RT. Then the team scores a top guard prospect in round two like Donovan Jackson, Tyler Booker, or Tate Rutledge. In round three, a versatile back-up like Wyatt Milum or Anthony Belton would round out the group. It would make the line incredibly young, but with high upside that could grow into one of the best in the league. The Super Bowl showed us the importance keeping the trenches strong, which brings us to our next group.

Also Makes Sense: Defensive End/Edge Rusher  

There is an old adage that you cannot have enough pass rush. Washington's pass rush was decent last year, but they only have veteran Dorance Armstrong and 2nd year pro Javontae Jean-Baptiste under contract for 2025. They could spend the money to re-sign players like Dante Fowler Jr., who had 10.5 sacks last season, and attack the position in free agency. This would be costly, as free agent edge rushers tend to attract a lot of interest. Going into the trade market provides an additionally avenue to fill this need, but this would also cost a good amount of salary cap AND probably eat into what is already limited draft capital.

Of course, we have another solution to this problem. This draft boasts a promising group of edge rushers. There should be plenty of options to choose from throughout the top 100, assuming teams don't go crazy and start scooping them up (which is possible). With the combine coming up, there could be a lot of movement in the rankings to come. Based on today's rankings (via ESPN), my preferred trio in order would be Mike Green, JT Tuimoloau, and Princely Umanmielen. I also like Nic Sourton and James Pearce as first round options, Landon Jackson and Kyle Kennard in round two, and Donovan Ezeiruaku and Bradyn Swinson in round three.

Less Likely but I Could See it: Secondary 

Washington's secondary is not as open as the first two position groups, but there are still holes. Starting safety Jeremy Chinn and corners Ben St. Juste, Mike Davis, and Noah Igbinoghene are free agents. If the team were to dedicate funds to the other positions on this list, there might not be much left for improvements here. Even if they did re-sign a few guys, the late first and early to mid day two range seems to be the sweet spot for DBs in this class. Only a few absolute studs promise to be gone before pick 20, leaving some really good options on the board at 29.

There are about 12 corners that factor into the conversation between the Commanders three picks. If we came away with one of Ben Morrison, Shavon Revel, or Jahdae Barron in the first, that would be excellent. Day two options include Darien Porter, Denzel Burke, Azareye'h Thomas, and Dorian Strong among others. For safety, I imagine anyone but Malaki Starks (who figures to go early) is in play. Xavier Watts is a great fit to go with Quan Martin and a hopefully re-signed Jeremy Chinn. If not round one, there are probably four or five quality day two options there. Luckily, they only need one of them, versus probably 2 corners (just to be safe).

Perhaps, but might not be a Big Enough Position Group: Wide Receiver

This would be interesting. The WR free agent market promises to be expensive, as guys like Tee Higgins figure to get contracts north of $30 million a year. The Commanders have Terry McLaurin and Luke McCaffrey signed for 2025. That is not a lot, but would they pay top dollar to another guy when McLaurin is making big money and due for an extension soon. Maybe, maybe not. There are great receivers in the draft, especially starting late round one and into day two. Guys like Emeka Egbuka, Matthew Golden, and Tre Harris would make excellent #2's to Scary Terry. Tez Johnson, Xavier Restrepo, and Nick Nash highlight mid-day two. The question is, is it worth taking three early WRs when one of them will be at most #4 on the depth chart for several years?

Wild and Crazy Idea: Running Back

Now we come to the inspiration for this whole article. The Commanders have Brian Robinson Jr. and Austin Ekeler under contract for next year, but both dealt with injuries throughout the season and showed some inconsistency. If both were released or traded, the team would have a blank slate and could build one of the most exciting RB cores in the league for the next four years. Top prospect Ashton Jeanty will likely be gone by pick 29, so that pick would come down to Omarion Hampton or Kaleb Johnson. Day two options consist of TreVeyon Henderson, Quinshon Judkins, Cam Skattebo, Dylan Sampson, and RJ Harvey (among a few others). If Washington came away with three of these seven, their run game would be absurd in 2025.

There are other factors to consider here. One, Washington may trade their first pick, either on draft night to move back or in a trade for a veteran. Certain transactions would have to take place to set this up, which might reveal the plan to the rest of the league (which they could then predict and use to their advantage). In any case, it's still fun to ponder this type of unbalanced approach. Tune in to Let's Wine About DMV Sports, hosted by Mike Patt, on Saturdays at 9 PM EST/6 PM PST. Visit iesportsradio.com for the latest and greatest sports news. Shout out to our sponsors, Planet Jerky Premium Brisket Beef Jerky, Seal the Deal Wax Stamps, Vital Apparel, and Raw Nutrition. Shout out as well to all you loyal listeners that continue to help our network grow. Thank you for reading, and we will see you next time on IE Sports Radio; your direct feed for ALL that is sports.