The Redskins have been tied to quarterbacks in the lead-up to the 2019 NFL Draft, but they don’t have to select one in Round 1.
With another Patriots Lombardi Trophy in the books, the league officially set its sight towards the NFL Draft on the not so distant horizon. There is plenty on the Redskins wish list, and it all begins at the quarterback position. But when the commissioner comes to the stage at pick 15 for Washington, do they really have to go with a quarterback? My answer is no.
As the Redskins took the field against Arizona in the 2018 season opener, the expectations were far from high. We knew they needed some more defensive secondary help, and the receiver corps on the outside was far from an All-Pro level. The left guard position was a question mark, and who really knew how Adrian Peterson would pan out at the age of 33?
Outside of Peterson, the Redskins enter 2019 with a very similar set of needs and questions. But, it was the injury to Alex Smith on Nov. 18 that changes the direction of the franchise and its needs for the next few years.
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It is all about who is behind center for the burgundy and gold moving forward.
In recent years, the Redskins have worked to rebuild the team from the inside out. In 2015, the Redskins took right guard Brandon Scherff with the fifth overall pick. In 2017 and 2018, it was the defensive pair of Jonathan Allen and Daron Payne from Alabama who, since arriving, continue to reshape the Redskins defensive line. The idea was based in the correct belief that the Redskins had to rebuild their identity and take the best players available through the draft.
But what do they do this year?
Alex Smith is out for the foreseeable future. That we know for sure. Do the Redskins pull the trigger on Drew Lock from Missouri? Or maybe Oklahoma’s Kyler Murray if he falls? Maybe. But the Redskins cannot go into the war room with the attitude that a quarterback at 15 is the best and only way to go.
The Redskins are not one player away.
To be fair, it’s not the NBA, so who knows if there is a team that is truly one player away. But would taking a player like Daniel Jones from Duke in the first round really make 2019 that much different? I sure don’t think so.
Need for a quarterback shouldn’t outweigh taking the best player available. While the quarterback is the most important position on a team, if you’re spending a first round pick on one, you better make sure that he is the guy for the future. Dwayne Haskins look to be the best name for the job, but the chances of him falling to 15 are about the same as the chances of me getting my name called in this year draft at any point in time.
The NFL has an amazing way of showing us that no one really knows anything for sure. For all I know, Jones and Lock could become Hall of Famers, and Haskins could be a bust.
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What I can tell you for sure is that the Redskins have more needs than just at the quarterback position. The best thing they can do is surround their future guy with the tools he needs to succeed, whoever that ends up being. They need to find the counterpart to Ryan Kerrigan in the linebacking crew. They have to fill the gap that the departure of D.J. Swearinger is leaving behind. It is imperative to fix the left guard position, and those are only a few of the questions that need answers.
After those holes are fixed, that is when you go get your quarterback. Taking someone like Will Grier as a project piece in the later parts of the draft gives you two good things. First, it gives you a new fresh face that has some potential and can learn in the film room with Alex Smith. The second thing it gives you is a low-cost investment that eliminates the threat of pulling another 2012 draft and mortgaging away the teams future if that player doesn’t pan out. With Smith’s contract digging a chunk out of the Redskins cap room, the front office have to move their chess pieces carefully, and now is clearly not the time to take risks.
However, there is some good news.
This draft is stacked with talent in so many positions that the Redskins need. Receivers, edge rushers, secondary pieces, and defensive line monsters are going to be available when the clock starts for the Redskins. The best thing they can do is get the best player available, especially if someone good happens to fall into their lap. The worst thing they can do is box themselves into an idea that getting a quarterback in the first round is the only and best option they have.
If they think that their guy is at 15, and someone like Murray or Lock has proven to be worthy of the spot, they should go get him. But for the first time in a while, the Redskins enter the draft with one key thing:
Options.
They need to make the most of the options they have and continue to build from the foundation that currently is in place. They aren’t in full rebuild mode, and they are not dealing with a major roster overhaul. They have key pieces to build from and that is a good thing.
They need to keep building their wall of talent brick by brick, and yes it will take time.
But, assuming you are a D.C. sports fan, time shouldn’t be much of a worry, we are much too used to waiting for good things.
(Seriously, thank you Washington Capitals.)