C
Washington Commanders
The Commanders won the night they stopped Lew from sliding. Grade: C.
by Maddmax ·
2026 NFL Draft
· 10 picks
· 8 steals
· 1 reaches
The board owed the Commanders one, and it paid up: Connor Lew, the No. 82 name on the board, sitting there at pick 123 like a gift left on the doorstep.
The trades bled value they could not afford to lose. Reaching for Muhammad left real value on the table behind him. They covered a lot of ground and still skipped tight end, which is a strange place to end up.
The roster is better shaped than it was, with wide receiver chief among the fixes.
Hit on Carnell Tate and the swing picks, and this ages a lot better than it grades today.
Pick-by-Pick
Carnell Tate at the Round 1 slot is money in the bank, a wide receiver taken below his worth. They walked in needing this and walked out with it.
They barely believed it either: Dillon Thieneman still on the board at pick 53. A quiet depth add at a thin-ish spot.
Christen Miller at pick No. 71 is the sort of value that quietly wins a weekend. The roster fit checks out.
They talked themselves into Malik Muhammad at the 76th pick, and the board did not agree. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
They read the board right and Malachi Lawrence was the payoff at slot 86. Another box on the needs board, quietly ticked.
They will replay Connor Lew at No. 123 for years; that is how good the value is. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.
Nothing to complain about; Malik Benson went a shade earlier than his grade, which is fine. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
Demond Claiborne in the 187th overall pick should not have been possible, and that is the whole point. A need, and now a little less of one.
Ephesians Prysock at Round 6, Pick 28 is a first-round grade at a bargain-bin price, no notes. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
They let Keyshaun Elliott come to them and pounced at pick No. 223. Depth more than a fix, but depth they can use.