B+
Washington Commanders
Daniels is the plan now, and the Commanders grade out a B+.
by MM ·
2024 NFL Draft
· 15 picks
· 2 steals
· 3 reaches
The Commanders went off the board in a big way for Joe Milton III, 61 picks early. Conviction is one thing; this is another. The bottom line is a respectable B+.
Jayden Daniels is the bet, and the class will be judged on how it pays off. The Johnson pick is the one they will point to when this weekend is judged.
Every deal seemed to tilt their way, which is not luck. Leaving running back unaddressed is the roster risk they will have to answer for in the fall.
In short, they left a little better than they arrived, which is the whole idea.
Pick-by-Pick
In the Round 1 slot they get the arm they will build around at fair value. A clean fit for the roster.
A market-rate wide receiver, with the board and the slot shaking hands on Ladd McConkey. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
Jordan Morgan at pick 40 is a sound buy, the sort that quietly helps a class. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
Cooper Beebe in Round 2, Pick 15 is exactly on the number, no argument either way. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.
Good price on Bralen Trice in the 67th overall pick, a hair ahead of his grade with no real quibbles. It plugs a real leak on the depth chart.
No drama and no debate, Devontez Walker went about where he belonged in No. 70. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.
By-the-book stuff, Cade Stover at pick No. 71 squarely in line with his ranking. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
Michael Hall Jr. at slot 78 is right where the board had him, plain and simple. A real hole, addressed with a reasonable pick.
Max Melton slipping to pick 90 is the kind of luck good rooms make for themselves. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.
A tidy little value on Khyree Jackson in Round 3, Pick 37, a step better than break-even. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
The board screamed and they did not listen, reaching into the next round for Roger Rosengarten. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
They liked Mason McCormick enough to skip the value, taking him in No. 138. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.
Joe Milton III in the Round 5 slot is a reach so steep the board needed a second look to believe it. It fills a real need, too.
A reasonable price with a little left over, Tommy Eichenberg in the 152nd pick. Not urgent, but hardly pointless.
The board fumbled Cornelius Johnson all the way to the 222nd overall pick, and they scooped it up. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.