B-
Washington Commanders
A sensible, unshowy class lands the Commanders a B-.
by bshea ·
2024 NFL Draft
· 18 picks
· 4 steals
· 4 reaches
Call it a hunch or call it a gamble, but the Commanders spent slot 153 on Joe Milton III, a name most had 45 spots down the list.
The Harden value carries more weight than any single miss elsewhere. The interior defensive lineman hole is the one line item this class does not answer. Adding Charles Cross by trade rounds out the weekend beyond the rookies.
The hoard sets up next April more than it helps this September.
Good work on the whole, with interior defensive lineman the one box left unchecked.
Pick-by-Pick
In the 16th overall pick they get a plug-and-play piece up front. Exactly the need they had to hit.
Quinyon Mitchell slid further than he should have, and Round 2, Pick 4 is lovely value for the cornerback. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
Kris Jenkins in pick No. 50 is fine work, a shade of surplus and no downside. It shores up a spot that genuinely needed the help.
Junior Colson at slot 51 is neither steal nor reach, just the going rate. A quiet depth add at a thin-ish spot.
Jonathon Brooks in the Round 3 slot is the kind of fall that makes a whole class. The roster fit checks out.
The board had cheaper options than Cooper Beebe at pick 67, and it noticed. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.
Xavier Legette at Round 3, Pick 9 is right where the board had him, plain and simple. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
A straight-up fair deal on Khyree Jackson at No. 78, value and slot in agreement. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
By-the-book stuff, Zak Zinter at slot 95 squarely in line with his ranking. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
They took Braelon Allen at par in the 103rd overall pick, which is nothing to complain about. One more legitimate question on the roster, answered.
James Williams in pick No. 105 is early enough to raise a brow, if not a full objection. It thickens a room that could stand to be thicker.
A premium they did not need to pay, Johnny Wilson a notch or two before his time. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.
Nelson Ceaser in pick 135 is exactly on the number, no argument either way. It patches a soft spot without any drama.
Joe Milton III in the 153rd pick is a bet on their own eyes over everyone else's grade. It plugs a real leak on the depth chart.
They robbed the room for Kitan Oladapo here, a fall nobody at the table saw coming. They doubled down on a strength rather than a need.
Tyrice Knight at Round 6, Pick 44 nudges the ledger their way without any fuss. Insurance at a position that did not really ask for it.
You do not let a cornerback like Myles Harden reach slot 220 and blink. They did not. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
No drama and no debate, Trey Knox went about where he belonged in pick 228. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.