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Redskins should strongly consider defensive prospect in Round 1 of 2019 NFL Draft

By Jacob Camenker

COLUMBIA, SC - NOVEMBER 25: Clelin Ferrell #99 of the Clemson Tigers reacts after a play against the South Carolina Gamecocks during their game at Williams-Brice Stadium on November 25, 2017 in Columbia, South Carolina. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images)
COLUMBIA, SC - NOVEMBER 25: Clelin Ferrell #99 of the Clemson Tigers reacts after a play against the South Carolina Gamecocks during their game at Williams-Brice Stadium on November 25, 2017 in Columbia, South Carolina. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images) /
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The Washington Redskins are armed with the No. 15 pick in the 2019 NFL Draft. While they may be tempted to take a quarterback there, they should strongly consider focusing on other options, particularly on the defensive side of the ball.

The Redskins are in an interesting phase of team building at the moment. Actually, interesting probably isn’t the best way to put it. It’s more of an “unclear” phase, as Alex Smith‘s injury is having a massive impact on their quarterback group. And given that quarterback is the most important position on the field, having questions there is always an issue.

Washington is going to have a choice to make. They will need to add a low-cost option at the position, as teams that invest heavily in quarterbacks tend to struggle to fill out the rest of their roster. As such, the Redskins may not be able to acquire Ryan Tannehill or Joe Flacco. They may have to settle for a rookie to pair with Colt McCoy, and they could opt for a first rounder to fill the void.

In a recent mock draft, I had the team selecting Kyler Murray. I’m not a fan of the selection — Murray is a risky pick due to his size and the potential for him to pursue a baseball career — but it is something that could happen. However, the team would be better off avoiding the quarterback position in the first round and instead focusing on continuing to add talent to the defense.

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With the 15th pick, the Redskins will have a plethora of options for their defense. They need to add some talent on the edge rush, at safety, at corner, and probably at middle linebacker, too. They will be in position to add a number of different impactful players at each position.

On the edge, both Clelin Ferrell and Jachai Polite could be available. Ferrell is a consistent, physical, and athletic player that could function as a nice successor to Ryan Kerrigan while Polite is more of a speed-based rusher that would add a new element to the Redskins’ defense. Either way, they would function well with the team’s excellent, young interior defensive line.

At cornerback, it’s possible that DeAndre Baker, Greedy Williams, and/or Byron Murphy end up available with the 15th selection. In my latest mock, I have Baker and Williams as options but passed on the position due to the young talent the team already possesses. Still, the team could explore adding a future No. 1 corner to take over for Josh Norman or just add one if they believe either is the best available player.

The safety and linebacker options are a bit sparser for the ‘Skins, but they could consider guys like Mack Wilson or Devin Bush at linebacker. If they wanted a safety, a trade down would make more sense. And truthfully, the same can be said for either linebacker as well.

Next. Full two-round mock with Redskins taking QB. dark

In short, the point here is that the Redskins shouldn’t pigeonhole themselves into selecting a passer or offensive player in the first round. They could, and should, spend 2019 strengthening their defense and making it an elite unit. For that reason, investing another first-round pick on that side of the ball could make sense, and then the squad could target a quarterback and receiver combo on Day 2 of the draft.

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