D-
Washington Commanders
Bassa should have been long gone. The Commanders pounced, and earned a D-.
by All in ·
2025 NFL Draft
· 14 picks
· 9 steals
· 4 reaches
The Commanders bet big and early on Stone Handy, 67 picks ahead of the board. Bold does not always mean right. It grades a D-, and the process earned it.
The Bassa value carries more weight than any single miss elsewhere. The trades bled value they could not afford to lose. Leaving cornerback unaddressed is the roster risk they will have to answer for in the fall.
With cornerback, quarterback and other spots unsolved, spending premium capital on safety is the choice that costs them.
The verdict is not kind, and fairly so; this class has a hill to climb.
Pick-by-Pick
In the Round 1 slot they get a downhill hitter at safety at a price that makes it sweeter. More want than need.
They reached into another round for JT Tuimoloau, and the board is nowhere close to agreeing. The roster fit checks out.
The needs board was loud and they turned it down, spending No. 41 on Malaki Starks with cornerback, quarterback and other spots unsolved.
A top-tier tight end at a bargain, Harold Fannin Jr. in the 59th pick, plain and simple. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
Hollin Pierce at pick 72 is the pick scouts circle, and not in a good way. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
Tez Johnson in pick No. 79 is the kind of reach that only looks good if he outplays it. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
They will replay Jake Majors at the 146th pick for years; that is how good the value is. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.
Steal is underselling it; Cam Skattebo at Round 5, Pick 10 is a heist with the alarm still ringing. A sensible fit for a spot that needed help.
Taking Cody Simon in slot 197 is close to grand larceny; a linebacker that good had no business lasting this long. It adds depth where they could use a little.
A linebacker of that caliber at the Round 6 slot is the definition of value, full stop. They doubled down on a strength rather than a need.
Circle this one: Ollie Gordon II at No. 233 is a fall that decides a draft. It patches a soft spot without any drama.
Value said wait; Stone Handy in the 235th overall pick says they were not listening. A sensible fit that makes the depth chart a little sturdier.
They robbed the room for Jordan Hancock here, a fall nobody at the table saw coming. A luxury on a unit that was already in good shape.
Shilo Sanders at the Round 7 slot is a sound buy, the sort that quietly helps a class. A want dressed up as a pick, at a spot they had covered.