Redskins: Chase Young’s character played a part in his selection

There’s a unique set of expectations that comes with being a top pick in the NFL Draft. Some players haven’t been able to cope with it in the past. But the Redskins feel that Chase Young is different.

Character is an important part of every football program. Good character creates a good culture, and a good culture is the only kind of culture that wins in the NFL. The Washington Redskins know this well, as they’ve been at the other side of that spectrum for over a decade.

The hope is that things will change under Ron Rivera, who was hired by the team in early January specifically for that purpose. Rivera was instrumental in turning around a lowly Panthers franchise a decade ago, and now, he’ll be tasked with a similar reconstruction.

It won’t be easy, and it won’t happen overnight, but the Redskins have some valuable resources to expedite the process, one of which being the No. 2 overall pick. The Redskins used their No. 2 pick on Ohio State edge rusher Chase Young, and while his athleticism and production generates the most attention, his character is an element of his profile that often goes overlooked. Young isn’t soaking in the hype, and he isn’t shrinking against expectation, either.

“I don’t really expect to do anything, it’s how I prepare,” Young said in a Forbes article by Emily Iannaconi. “That’s what I feel gets me to be my best and that’s just what I’m doing now. I’m just preparing the hardest I can to make sure I have a pretty big impact that first game on the field. So expectations, I’m not really thinking about that. I’m just thinking about being the best player I can be and putting in the preparation to do so.”

Young was always near the top of Ron Rivera and Redskins Vice President of Player Personnel Kyle Smith’s draft board throughout the evaluation process, so naturally, they spent a good amount of time vetting not only the physical aspects of his game, but the mental aspects as well. Both came away with the clear indication that Young’s character fit what they were looking for.

“It’s how he’s wired, it’s his makeup, it’s how he was raised, all those things he checks all the boxes in,” Kyle Smith said in the same article mentioned above. “Talked and touched base with [Ohio State Head] Coach [Urban] Meyer and he was raving about the kid. He just continued to grow and mature since he stepped foot on that campus. He’s a perfectionist, he’s a self-starter, all the things you look for in a football player he’s got.”

“He’s an easy-going, soft-spoken young man,” Rivera added, “but then you watch him on tape and you see the energy level in which he plays with, you see the desire, the drive, the push. Then, you sit down and talk to him about those things and watch his eyes light up when he talks about being on the field.”

It didn’t take long for Young’s self-starter gene to show itself, as Young met up with Redskins defensive leader Jonathan Allen shortly after the draft, to touch base and get an introduction to the league as a rookie. Allen came away “really impressed” with Young, pleased that the Ohio State product showed the initiative to get started early with the relationship-building process.

There’s still a long way to go before the Redskins even hit the practice field, but Young isn’t letting that become an excuse to wait. The No. 2 overall pick won’t be able to resume his physical dominance on the field until September, but with a long offseason ahead, his character can ensure that he’ll be ahead of the curve when the time finally comes.