A year ago, the NFL draft gave the Washington Commanders a chance to find their quarterback of the future with the No. 2 overall pick.
They took Jayden Daniels and he helped them turn into an immediate playoff team with a surprise trip to the NFC championship game, earning AP Offensive Rookie of the Year honors as he took the league by storm. That success changed the course of the organization’s short-term expectations for becoming a legitimate contender.
They don’t pick until 29th this year and traded several other stockpiled selections for veterans who can help right away. They have just five to use, but those will still be important to fill voids and build around Daniels with the window to win wide open.
“We have a massive opportunity, and none of us are taking that lightly,” controlling owner Josh Harris said earlier this year. “We’re all fully committed to continuing to build our team and be elite over the long term.”
After doing just about everything right in his first year on the job as general manager, Adam Peters shifted his focus this offseason. He sent a fifth-round pick to San Francisco for receiver Deebo Samuel and traded four picks to Houston for left tackle Laremy Tunsil and a fourth-rounder.
And that comes after giving up picks at the trade deadline last season to acquire cornerback Marshon Lattimore from New Orleans.
“Understanding we were able to get really good players at really good, important positions, there’s give and take to that,” Peters told reporters at the annual spring league meeting in West Palm Beach, Florida. “Obviously, you do want to build through the draft. I feel that all the time. But understanding when you can get a premier corner, a premier receiver, a premier left tackle — those are things you have to really look into — and we just felt that was the best move for us.”
After 29th, Washington has picks in the second (61st), fourth (128th), sixth (205th) and seventh (245th) rounds.
Wheeling and dealing could lead to perhaps an early-to-mid third-rounder instead of a second and some other trading down and around to make this a deeper rookie class than it would be at the moment.
“With trading down, you have to have somebody who wants to trade up,” Peters said in West Palm Beach. “I always say, ‘I’d love to trade down all the time, but there has to be somebody else that wants to trade up,’ and it has to be the right deal and how far do you want to go back and all those different things you take into account.”
That's a concern for Friday night April 25 when rounds 2 and 3 happen and Saturday April 26 for rounds 4-7.
When the spotlight is on in the first round on Thursday night, April 24, the Commanders are waiting much longer to choose a player than they did with Daniels and can go a lot of different ways.
“Picking 29, it’s not like you’re picking in the top five and you get a sure thing or as close to a sure thing as you can get,” Peters said, specifically referring to getting Tunsil to anchor the offensive line. “With what we did in free agency and with the trades, we have the optionality to really do anything at 29, which we feel really good about.”
Need
You can almost hear coach Dan Quinn chanting, “De-fense! De-fense!” Even bringing back Lattimore and six-time All-Pro linebacker Bobby Wagner and shifting things around on the defensive line, the Commanders could use edge rushers, as well as help in the secondary and elsewhere on that side of the ball.
Part of Peters' task has been refilling the cupboard after the previous regime under Ron Rivera botched so many high picks, including first-rounders Jamin Davis in 2021, Jahan Dotson in 2022 and Emmanuel Forbes in 2023, all of whom were released or traded.
But the front office is also conscious of giving Daniels and offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury more options beyond Samuel, top wideout Terry McLaurin and running backs Brian Robinson Jr. and Austin Ekeler.
Don't need
For the first time in a long time in Washington, a quarterback.
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AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl
Stephen Whyno, The Associated Press
