B+
Washington Commanders
Larceny in Round 7, Pick 19 lands the Commanders a B+, Sanders and all.
by bshea ·
2025 NFL Draft
· 8 picks
· 6 steals
· 2 reaches
The value of the weekend has a name and a slot: Raheim Sanders, pick No. 235, roughly 89 picks past where he belonged. A dependable weekend that grades out a B+.
If this class has a fault line, it runs straight through edge rusher. The Williams reach is the anchor dragging on the value grade.
On the needs board they went 5 of 8, with wide receiver the one that mattered most.
Bottom line, more hits than misses and a roster nudged the right way.
Pick-by-Pick
You do not let a linebacker like Jalon Walker reach pick 59 and blink. They did not. A minor need, but a need all the same.
Tyler Warren at the 76th pick is a first-round grade at a bargain-bin price, no notes. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
A reach on Savion Williams in pick No. 97; the board had better options right there. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.
Jordan James in the 135th overall pick should not have been possible, and that is the whole point. A need, and now a little less of one.
Circle this one: Daylen Everette at slot 146 is a fall that decides a draft. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.
Jared Wilson at No. 202 jumps the queue by a touch more than is comfortable. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.
They will replay Raheim Sanders at Round 7, Pick 19 for years; that is how good the value is. A sensible fit for a spot that needed help.
Xavier Nwankpa at the Round 7 slot is the steal of the weekend, a first-round talent at a bargain-bin price. It thickens a room that could stand to be thicker.