B
Washington Commanders
Good, not great, for the Commanders: B.
by Maddmax ·
2026 NFL Draft
· 8 picks
· 1 steals
· 2 reaches
They will call it conviction in the building and a reach everywhere else: VJ Payne, 44 picks early at Round 5, Pick 12. Good, not great, and the B says as much.
They punted on edge rusher, and it is the miss that keeps the grade honest. If one pick saves this weekend, it is Davis.
Stockpiling next year's capital is patient, if unglamorous, asset work.
A workmanlike haul that should hold up just fine.
Pick-by-Pick
In pick 12 they get a go-to option on the outside. It fills the loudest need on the roster.
No edge and no loss on Logan Jones in the 92nd overall pick; it is a wash and a sensible one. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.
They stopped a slide they were happy to see, landing Tacario Davis in the Round 4 slot. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
Malik Benson in pick No. 147 is fair value, right on his grade. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
A wild overpay on VJ Payne in Round 5, Pick 12, the sort that defines a class for the wrong reasons. Depth more than a fix, but depth they can use.
No drama and no debate, Demond Claiborne went about where he belonged in the 160th pick. The roster fit checks out.
They reached into another round for Ephesians Prysock, and the board is nowhere close to agreeing. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.
A straight-up fair deal on Miles Kitselman at the Round 7 slot, value and slot in agreement. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.