Assessing Washington Redskins first-round options: EDGE Brian Burns
By Ian Cummings
Should the Redskins draft Brian Burns?
I’ll save the anticipation. Put simply, if Preston Smith is not re-signed, and Brian Burns falls to No. 15, then the Redskins should draft him.
Burns shouldn’t fall to No. 15, and if he has a good enough combine performance, he won’t. If he weighs in closer to 250, it’ll be a done deal. But with the sheer amount of high-end defensive line prospects, and other possible risers at other positions, Burns could indeed drop a bit because of his weight.
The Redskins have been the beneficiaries of elite prospects dropping before. In 2017, Jonathan Allen, widely regarded as the best interior lineman in his class, fell to No. 17, and the Redskins ran to the podium. If Burns falls to No. 15, Washington will have to use the same pace. He’s a must-add on a cheap rookie deal, with several plus developmental traits and an already-heightened polish to his game.
Next. Redskins first-round options: QB Daniel Jones. dark
The Redskins have favored size in the past at edge rusher, so perhaps they wouldn’t even use their pick on Burns if he looms around his current 231 figure. But Burns shouldn’t be passed over just because of his weight, because his tape shows that his weight did little to hold him back in college. He has the perfect blend of traits to be a productive edge rusher in the NFL for a long time, and that might be just what the Redskins need.