A-
Washington Commanders
The Commanders won the weekend at the trade table. Grade: A-.
by mwilliams ·
2024 NFL Draft
· 22 picks
· 6 steals
· 6 reaches
The Commanders bet big and early on Zion Logue, 56 picks ahead of the board. Bold does not always mean right. This is how you run a draft, and the A- reflects it.
The trade ledger is the best part of the whole weekend. Wiley at that cost is the sort of edge that compounds over a roster. The Commanders paired the rookies with proven help, Trey McBride leading the way.
Trust the process, because this time the process plainly worked.
Pick-by-Pick
Jordan Morgan at slot 19 is right where the board had him, plain and simple. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.
They liked Jackson Powers-Johnson enough to skip the value, taking him in pick 35. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
By-the-book stuff, Tyler Guyton at the 36th overall pick squarely in line with his ranking. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.
Fair-plus on Chop Robinson, a quiet win that adds up over a draft. It fills a real need, too.
T'Vondre Sweat at pick No. 40 is the kind of overdraft that needs everything to break right. It patches a soft spot without any drama.
A slide stopped in Round 2, Pick 14, with Kamren Kinchens worth more than the price. A quiet depth add at a thin-ish spot.
A reach for Cooper Beebe in Round 3, Pick 3; a little patience would have been rewarded. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
Value with a capital V on Ja'Lynn Polk in the 72nd pick, a genuine coup. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
No drama and no debate, Blake Corum went about where he belonged in pick 74. A sensible fit for a spot that needed help.
A market-rate offensive lineman, with the board and the slot shaking hands on Christian Mahogany. They walked in needing this and walked out with it.
A reasonable price with a little left over, Mike Sainristil in the Round 3 slot. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.
The board had Cade Stover higher than the 101st overall pick, and the TE-EDGE fell to them anyway. This was not a hole anyone had circled.
They barely believed it either: Josh Newton still on the board at slot 103. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.
The board screamed and they did not listen, reaching into the next round for Edefuan Ulofoshio. It adds depth where they could use a little.
James Williams at the 142nd overall pick nudges the ledger their way without any fuss. Depth on depth, at a spot that was hardly crying out.
Kamal Hadden at the 144th pick is a sensible buy, a touch better than market for the cornerback. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
Nothing to complain about; Grayson Murphy went a shade earlier than his grade, which is fine. One more legitimate question on the roster, answered.
A wild overpay on Jared Wiley in No. 191, the sort that defines a class for the wrong reasons. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.
They reached into another round for Zion Logue, and the board is nowhere close to agreeing. A need, and now a little less of one.
Michael Wiley in the Round 6 slot is a gift, value that borders on unfair. Another box on the needs board, quietly ticked.
Good things come to war rooms that wait, and Miyan Williams at Round 7, Pick 7 is the proof. A real hole, addressed with a reasonable pick.
Sam Hartman at pick No. 232 is neither steal nor reach, just the going rate. The roster fit checks out.