A
Washington Commanders
The Commanders bet the future on Daniels. The board says A.
by bshea ·
2024 NFL Draft
· 18 picks
· 9 steals
· 2 reaches
The search is over. The Commanders handed the keys to Jayden Daniels, and the whole operation now runs on his development. The sum of the weekend is a deserved A.
The dealing alone would carry a lesser class. They banked enough surplus on Puni to cover a lot of smaller sins.
The Williams pick is the one the value grade keeps tripping over. They covered a lot of ground and still skipped edge rusher, which is a strange place to end up.
Add it up and few war rooms did better this weekend, Jayden Daniels and all.
Pick-by-Pick
In the 12th overall pick they get the face of the franchise. A clean fit for the roster.
A slide stopped in Round 2, Pick 2, with Taliese Fuaga worth more than the price. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
A clean, defensible pick in the Round 2 slot with a little surplus value in Quinyon Mitchell. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.
Brian Thomas Jr. in slot 41 is a bargain the rest of the room will envy. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
They took Graham Barton at par in pick 52, which is nothing to complain about. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
Kingsley Suamataia at pick No. 57 is a sound buy, the sort that quietly helps a class. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.
Jeremiah Trotter Jr. at No. 68 nudges the ledger their way without any fuss. It adds depth where they could use a little.
Blake Corum slipping to the 88th pick is the kind of luck good rooms make for themselves. One more legitimate question on the roster, answered.
Steal is underselling it; Johnny Wilson at pick 100 is a heist with the alarm still ringing. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.
Khyree Jackson at Round 4, Pick 3 is right where the board had him, plain and simple. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
They reached a country mile for James Williams at slot 104, and the board is aghast. Depth more than a fix, but depth they can use.
Dominick Puni at the 133rd overall pick is daylight robbery; nobody expected him to last. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.
Braelon Allen at the Round 4 slot is the pick scouts circle, and not in a good way. A sensible fit that makes the depth chart a little sturdier.
The board had Cam Hart higher than the 147th pick, and the cornerback fell to them anyway. They walked in needing this and walked out with it.
Jaylen Wright at No. 182 is the steal of the weekend, a first-round talent at a bargain-bin price. A need, and now a little less of one.
You do not let a quarterback like Joe Milton III reach pick No. 187 and blink. They did not. The roster fit checks out.
De'Corian Clark in No. 219 should not have been possible, and that is the whole point. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
A tidy little value on Erick All in the 223rd pick, a step better than break-even. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.