Grading the Chase Young pick for the Washington Redskins
With the second pick in the 2020 NFL Draft, the Washington Redskins selected Ohio State edge rusher Chase Young. Here’s how the No. 2 pick grades out for the team.
At long last, the wait for the Washington Redskins’ No. 2 overall selection is over. And the frontrunner since the season’s end officially joined the Redskins with the pick.
Yes, the team did settle on Ohio State pass rusher Chase Young with the selection. After an offseason of wondering if the Redskins would target the draft’s most talented player though he didn’t fill a need, the team answered that question. Young was their guy and once again, Ron Rivera‘s strategy of valuing talent over need won out.
Young was a prolific pass rusher during his time at Ohio State. He recorded a whopping 16.5 sacks last year as the leader of a College Football Playoff-bound Buckeyes squad, and every team that the Buckeyes faced had trouble slowing down Young. The only way that Clemson was able to slow him down was by throwing double and triple teams in his direction. And even still, he put some pressure on Trevor Lawrence in the CFP.
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Young is a pro-ready pass-rushing prospect with quick get-off, strong hands, good technique, and a great combination of size, speed, strength, and athleticism. He is widely considered to be the best player in the draft and the only reason that he didn’t go No. 1 overall was because the Cincinnati Bengals needed a quarterback and had Joe Burrow available. The Redskins were lucky from that standpoint, and it shouldn’t take them long to get Young integrated into their defense.
The one qualm one might take with this pick is that Young doesn’t really fill a need. The team already has a stacked defensive line consisting of Ryan Kerrigan, Montez Sweat, Daron Payne, Jonathan Allen, and Matt Ioannidis. But with Young, they get that much better and will be able to effectively rotate their six best players to stay fresh and generate a lot of pressure on opposing quarterbacks.
Having at least one great unit on either side of the ball is key to building a winning team. And while the 2020 Redskins may still have too many holes to be a true playoff contender, they’ll at least have a big-time strength on the defensive side of the ball, provided that everyone stays healthy.
There wasn’t a better player that the Redskins could’ve landed with the No. 2 pick. You can debate the merits of a trade down to stockpile extra picks and add another defensive playmaker all you want, but if the offers weren’t up to Washington’s liking, going with Young was the best option for the squad. Take the talent. Figure out the rotation later.
Overall, this should be another good first-round pick under the watch of Rivera. It will be interesting to see what Young is able to do as a rookie, but Redskins fans should be excited about the impact he can make on the defense in his first season.
Next. A full scouting report on Chase Young. dark