How do you grade the Redskins 2020 NFL Draft?

[e16bball]

Chase Young will be how this draft is remembered, for better or worse. If he becomes what we think he will, then the Redskins improved more this weekend than they have in a long time. Hopefully they found at least one other impact player.

Things I liked:

▪️ Doing the easy thing and taking Chase Young. No need to overcomplicate it, and they didn’t. The trade compensation some had been hoping for clearly never materialized, and they never gave any public indication they ever really considered Tua. They got the best player, and they didn’t make it too difficult.

▪️ Taking a chance on a potential weapon in Antonio Gibson. Sometimes you have to trust your gut and take a chance. They see Gibson as something of a cross between McCaffrey and Samuel, apparently. If that’s the case, they had to take him. If they’re right, he’s a total game changer, and a great complement to Guice and McLaurin.

▪️ I liked their thought process in the 4th round. They took some pretty big swings, even if I personally think it’s very unlikely that they’re going to find a decent starting LT that low. Charles and AGG both have big upside, and at least AGG will be able to contribute something with his size and vertical ability (floor seems to be something like Maurice Harris). 

Things I didn’t like:

▪️ Staying put in every single pick. There is no way that the “best value” spot just so happened to be right where our picks were located every single time. I believe they could have traded down and still gotten Gibson and Hudson, for example. Or perhaps they could have traded up with the two 5ths and gotten into position for someone like Reggie Robinson or Troy Dye or Amik Robertson. The specifics aren’t as important as the fact that it shows a lack of creativity and appreciation of value. Like the game on the field, the offseason can be a game of inches — extracting every little bit of value can make all the difference.

▪️ The last 3 rounds of picks. I said my piece on this one in the draft thread, but I think they needed to shoot for higher ceilings than they did. We have a crowded roster at the bottom; there’s basically a glut of guys who are only fit for spots 40-53 on an NFL roster. And instead of adding more guys who have low ceiling/high floor and will join that mix, I think they should have been looking to hit the jackpot, without concern for the greater risk that they might get nothing out of a pick.

[naptownskinsfan]

Great write up @e16bball.  Can't say I disagree with the thoughts at the very bottom.  At the very least, I wish we took some boom or bust talent in the seventh.  I also agree about the Gibson pick.  Project players like him never usually worked for us, but this coaching staff has experience with those style of players and get good results out of them.  

As far as trades, I do not have the numbers in front of me, but I thought there were a lot less trades this year.  Probably a lot of that had to do with the current off-season, but also this could have been their board, and not had a chance to really dive into some of the prospects.  

It's also pretty clear we are going towards a zone-blocking system.  I also love the height of AGG.  Someone mentioned that the NFL is trending away from that kind of WR, but they absolutely still have an important role to play and he's going to be a great foil to the speed and athleticism that McLaruin and Gibson bring.  

[naptownskinsfan]

1 hour ago, aceinthehouse said:

After settling down now, I've given them a grade of B.

Round 1 (2): EDGE Chase Young, Ohio State=A+

No-brainer pick & gonna be a stud.

Round 3 (66): RB Antonio Gibson, Memphis=A

I liked this pick more than others. Anybody than can score every 5 times they touch the football is a must have. I imagine he'll be our version of C. McCaffrey for Carolina who's basically unstoppable. Runs a 4.37 40 & gives us an immediate threat & someone to divert attention away from Scary Terry. The only reason it's not an A+ is because of the value & who was on the board at WR and other positions. I can't help but wonder if Gibson is there in the 4th Rd pick #2? Maybe & maybe not. But I'm glad we got him.

Round 4 (108): OT Saahdiq Charles, LSU=A+

Could there have been a better outcome for us when seconds before we had just traded Trent Williams to the Niners? Then snag this guy right after? I can't think of many. Easily projected to go in RD 2, but dropped cause he made a mistake. Not a pattern of mistakes, but 1 mistake. Comes from a huge Program in LSU & we got him. I had seen him in RD 1 in some mock drafts btw. We are blessed and fortunate he was there. Could we have actually gotten the best LT in the draft, since there was no consensus on what Tackle was #1 in this draft? Who knows? What I do know, is he'll be competing for the starting LT spot his rookie year & will probably earn it.  

Round 4 (142): WR Antonio Gandy-Golden, Liberty=B+

I actually like this pick, but not as much as others do. Maybe I can't get rid of the Anthony Mix is tall, so he must be good nightmares out of my head...lol I do like the fact that he could be a good red zone target & create mismatches on the outside. Hope he's fast enough to get open. The value here was pretty good, but I can't help if a FS or CB here wouldn't have been a better pick. Either way, Haskins now has targets & certainly no excuses.

Round 5 (156): IOL Keith Ismael, San Diego State=D+

No idea who the hell this guy is. You can't hate adding to your O-line, but good Lord...Were there not better value Centers or Players at this spot? Roullier will be a free agent, so I can understand the position pick & not wanting to pay Roullier 8M a year. But I'm not sure this dude makes the roster. I hope so...

Round 5 (162): LB Khaleke Hudson, Michigan=C

I like the film he has, but he could have been an UDFA signing probably. This guy is probably there in the 7th RD. But I love Defense & we needed LBer infusion & competition, so I'll be generous with my grade here. Lot of talent we passed even in this Rd, though.

Round 7 (216): S Kamren Curl, Arkansas=C+

Like the position pick here & his size, but know nothing about him. I'll just presume the coaches like his potential.

Round 7 (229): Edge James Smith-Williams, NC State=D-

Worst pick of our draft...Our D-Line is already overcrowded. We may need to trade Kerrigan cause we're running out of room. Lol

j/k...but still. It's our deepest position on the team. I would have been happier with Kicker than this. And we have a good kicker.

The only reason why I don't give a failing F grade here, is because maybe he can translate more to LBer cause if his size.  Maybe he's more suited as a MLB? I just don't understand this pick at all. But it is a 7th, so I'll just throw my hands up in the air on this one.

No matter what anyone tells you, even on a forum like this, no one that isn't in the business has seen all of these people.  My grades were based off viewing different scouting reports and grading systems during the draft as it progressed (and it's funny to see how different people value the pick for each team.).  I'm now watching highlights of the guys we took, as well as trying to find some game tape.  

To rate a guy a D+ because you don't know who he is, just look him up.  Also, I agree with @e16bball and the assessment that we are heading to the zone-blocking system, which explains their interest in Ismael, Charles to an extent and some of the FA signings they made.  

Also, as far as Smith-WIlliams is concerned, it's a seventh round rotational DL pick.  Not much to get mad about.  He's actually got decent athletic talent, but injuries are a big concern.  If not for the injuries, some of the measurables get him drafted a bit higher.  He's probably a boom or bust guy.  Unlike Curl or Hudson, who are experienced starters, but lack the athleticism to be any more than backups or situation players in the league.  

[Dutch DC Football Fan]

Draft week is the best week in the off-season. Great to read about the potential and hope everybody is half the guy the experts say they are.

I grade it a B. It was a lot of drafting for need (except Young and the center) and not BPA in my opinion. Drafting bpa gets the best draft classes in the long run. Grades per round:

 1 Pick 2: Chase Young, DE - A - fantastic player and best drafted player since 2000

Round 3 Pick 66: Antonio Gibson, RB/WR - A- What I saw after drafting him is fantastic!

Round 4 Pick 108: Saahdiq Charles - B-. Great value in 4th round.

Round 4 Pick 142: Antonio Gandy-Golden, WR - C. Looks a lot like Harmon to me. The one is taller, the other one has great hands.

Round 5 Pick 156: Keith Ismael, C/G - D. Don’t see him make the roster. We already drafted C the last couple of years.

Round 5 Pick 162: Khaleke Hudson, OLB/S - B. Good special teamer on small contract

Round 7 Pick 216 Kamren Curl, S - D- don’t see him make the roster. Which is also fine for a 7th rounder

Round 7 Pick 229 James Smith-Williams, DE -  D- don’t see him make the roster. Which is also fine for a 7th rounder 

[e16bball]

Individual pick grades:

Chase Young: A. Can’t give them better than an A on a pick that everyone would have made. Basically all they did right to get him was suck last year. But they did the right thing and they didn’t make it too difficult, and now they have the most talented player they’ve had in at least 15 years. 

Antonio Gibson: B. I like the player. I like the creativity shown in taking a positionless player to develop and build concepts for, it’s very much counter to most of the drab unoriginality you see from the Redskins usually. I just don’t like the value. Think they could have dropped down 10 picks and likely still gotten him. That could have brought 4th round value, which is nothing to sneeze at. Yes, they might have lost him, but you have to take risks to reap rewards. 

Saahdiq Charles: B. Almost went with a B+, because I think it was good value for the player and I like that they took a big swing. But I just can’t get there, because I don’t believe in LTs taken after the first couple rounds. By my count, 6 of the 31 other starting LTs this season will have been taken after round 2. And I just don’t see this guy being a great RT candidate if he fails to capture the LT job, but perhaps in a new blocking scheme it could work. 

Antonio Gandy-Golden: A-. Still a little bummed that all we were able to get out of this legendary WR draft was my #16 receiver, but AGG was a good pick. He gives us a downfield dimension that we lack in Sims/Harmon, and that will hopefully open some things up for the rest of the offense. I don’t think Haskins throws a very accurate deep ball, but AGG may make that less of a problem with his silly catch radius. 

Keith Ismael: B-. It was okay value, I guess, and he does remind me of Roullier in a lot of senses. It’s a little frustrating because we just took a backup center last year, but I guess that happens when you change regimes. I think he and Charles signal a change in blocking scheme, which is probably the most interesting thing about the pick.

Khaleke Hudson: C. The first pick I really didn’t get. Is it really a 5th round pick being used on a pure special teamer? I just can’t see where he fits on the defense. He’s not going to cover enough to play safety, and there’s no way he sees the field over the glut of WLB candidates on the roster. But he did play all over in college, so maybe they have a niche role he can play in the defense? Gotta think they could have dropped down and still gotten him, though.

Kamren Curl: B. I have to admit, I didn’t like this pick when it was made. But the metrics seem to speak pretty highly of his performance on a dreadful defense in the world’s best conference, so maybe he can play. He looks to be a pretty good athlete, must be very strong to put up 24 reps with those long arms. Played CB, so maybe he’s got a little Sean Davis in him. We’ll see. 

James Smith-Williams: B. Unlike some, I like that they went for a player of this type. They have a bunch of DEs on the roster currently, and not one of them is made to play on the strong side. This guy plays like a legit strong end, plays run to pass, and can hold up against the big boys. His tangibles and intangibles are both superb. I would have graded it higher if he didn’t have so much injury history. 

[e16bball]

Overall grade is a tough one for me, because Chase Young is a rising tide that would lift the rest of the boats.

I’d probably give the whole thing a B. The Young pick gets a solid A, and is by far the most important pick. The rest of the draft probably gets a B- from me, with some upside depending on how they end up utilizing Gibson. 

[HTTRDynasty]

 

[MKnight82]

So I was listening to the radio earlier and they said this draft was all about trying to add versatility to the roster.  Gruden tipped off to opposing defenses too much before the snap by what personnel we had on the field (granted he was using the players he was given, but its the same result).  Gibson will keep defenses from knowing exactly if we're running or passing.  Gandy Golden is so large that he's a good blocker, so again, if he's on the field we aren't tipping off if we're passing or running.  

[ARTMONK HOF]

3 hours ago, e16bball said:

Overall grade is a tough one for me, because Chase Young is a rising tide that would lift the rest of the boats.

I’d probably give the whole thing a B. The Young pick gets a solid A, and is by far the most important pick. The rest of the draft probably gets a B- from me, with some upside depending on how they end up utilizing Gibson. 

Exactly! Gibson is the wildcard of the whole draft. Maximizing Gibson gives the whole draft another 1/2 grade, B to B+

[turtle28]

[naptownskinsfan]

1 hour ago, MKnight82 said:

So I was listening to the radio earlier and they said this draft was all about trying to add versatility to the roster.  Gruden tipped off to opposing defenses too much before the snap by what personnel we had on the field (granted he was using the players he was given, but its the same result).  Gibson will keep defenses from knowing exactly if we're running or passing.  Gandy Golden is so large that he's a good blocker, so again, if he's on the field we aren't tipping off if we're passing or running.  

Position versatility also helps the depth chart across the board.  No more going to the 10th string FA signing to play guard.  But yeah, we absolutely telegraphed what was happening with how specialized the Redskins offense became.  Part of that was his refusal to part with his favorite guys too.  

Also, more athleticism and movement before the snap is all designed to cause confusion and try to get the best matchups possible.  

Lots of things needed to be addressed from a roster perspective.  It's going to take another off-season too, maybe more.  

[naptownskinsfan]

 

[PARROTHEAD]

For me. The Vikings and Ravens crushed it to the point they can be the only A's.

So were in the 2nd tier mix with a B.

[Skins212689]

2 hours ago, ARTMONK HOF said:

Exactly! Gibson is the wildcard of the whole draft. Maximizing Gibson gives the whole draft another 1/2 grade, B to B+

If Gibson and Charles along with Young contribute to the improvement of the Team, Smith nailed another draft. 

Gibson is a bigger Thompson and can contribute on KicK/Punt returns. If he could secure the 3rd down RB spot, the offense could be dangerous. You could have Gibson, Guice, Sims Jr, McLaruin, Harmon, and possibly Moss as target's for Haskins. Plus a guy who can take it to the house on Special Teams.

Charles replacing William's would be a HUGE step in the TEAM heading in the right direction. You have SECURED the blindside of Haskins with this pick. 

Young we already know how his addition should help improve the rest of the guys around him. 

5-7 wins is possible IMO with this Talent. 

[naptownskinsfan]

17 minutes ago, PARROTHEAD said:

For me. The Vikings and Ravens crushed it to the point they can be the only A's.

So were in the 2nd tier mix with a B.

Look at Chad Reuter, over half with A or A minus.  28 with B+ or better.  Only one with C+, and no one below.