In a move everybody saw coming, the Washington Redskins selected Ohio State edge rusher Chase Young with the No. 2 overall pick in the 2020 NFL draft.
The consensus top defender and the best overall prospect on many boards, Young was as easy of a selection as Washington could have made with the second pick.
Young had as good of a season as any player in college football in 2019. In 12 games, the fourth-place Heisman finisher tallied a nation-best 16.5 sacks and 21 tackles for a loss, as well as seven forced fumbles. The man dubbed ‘The Predator’ was a force to be reckoned with in the Big Ten, and his tools should translate well to the next level.
A lengthy, muscular, athletic and polished pass-rusher who has very few flaws in his game, Young has an imposing frame, dangerous first-step quickness and the hands to consistently shed blocks and knock opposing offensive linemen off balance. Though Ohio State has recently produced two stars off the edge in Joey and Nick Bosa, Young is arguably better than both of them were coming out of college.
The Redskins used a first-round pick in 2019 to select Montez Sweat, and it didn’t take long for them to find his long-term running mate off the edge. Washington has invested heavily in their front-seven in recent drafts, and with a potential franchise cornerstone like Young in the fold, they should have one of the best pass-rushing units in the league. Young, Sweat, Jonathan Allen, Da’Ron Payne, Matt Ioannidis and Ryan Kerrigan form a truly lethal unit that should give opposing offenses fits in 2020.
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