One major concern with each Commanders 2024 NFL Draft pick

Commanders drafted Johnny Newton

• Defensive Line | Illinois Fighting Illi
• Round No. 2 | No. 36 overall

I am not the least bit concerned about Johnny Newton. I feel fairly certain he will be a very good pro. Maybe even a great one. Here’s what I am worried about: Emmanuel Forbes and Benjamin St-Juste.

Choosing Newton meant that Adam Peters passed on four highly-rated cornerbacks chosen in the next seven picks. At least three of them, and perhaps all four, will end up as perimeter corners. At least two will be excellent players.

Forbes and St-Juste are the projected boundary corners and neither has been consistent at the professional level. If they do not improve, while a player like Kool-Aid McKinstry or Kamari Lassiter thrives, there will be plenty of second-guessing on why Peters ignored an area of need and took Newton, who plays one of the few positions at which the Washington Commanders are well-stocked.

This will not diminish Newton’s play. But it could tarnish the impression fans have of him, which is never a positive.

Commanders drafted Jayden Daniels

• Quarterback | LSU Tigers
• Round No. 1 | No. 2 overall

If the past is indeed prologue, Jayden Daniels will be the Commanders' starting quarterback in Week 1 of the 2024 season. The thing most likely to derail him early on is expectation.

Daniels will make mistakes. He will look shaky at times. Fans and coaches alike have to remain patient in an arena that doesn’t lend itself toward taking the long view.

C.J. Stroud may be the worst thing that could have happened to Daniels. His rookie season was a huge outlier. Rookie quarterbacks, even very good ones, typically struggle. If the Heisman Trophy winner is not the starter in Week 1, or if he is the starter but benched later in the season, there will be a rush to judgment declaring him a failure.

That simply cannot happen. Not in Year 1, at least. Daniels needs time to fail, to learn, and to grow. He has a good set of coaches around him. Let him develop. We all have to resist the impulse to kill his entire career after a couple of bad picks three weeks into the campaign.

By the way, don’t feel too bad for Tom Flick. After his playing career, he became a highly successful motivational speaker, founding his own company and working with many of the world’s leading corporations and universities.

If you have $25,000 lying around, you could hire him to come talk to your group. I wish all the Commanders 2024 draft picks similar post-football success. Ideally, after long and highly productive NFL careers.