In an ideal world, the Washington Redskins would hold the 34th pick in the 2020 NFL draft.
But new Redskins coach Ron Rivera won’t enjoy that luxury after a trade before his arrival removed the pick from his stockpile of assets.
“I think that’s going to be a burden, just because of where that second round pick was too,” Rivera said, according to JP Finlay of NBC Sports. “That’s the hard part, you wish you had all your picks.”
That second-round pick was packaged in a deal during the 2019 draft while moving up back into the first round to get Montez Sweat.
And while the move was praised at the time — and Sweat projects to be a fun piece in the new 4-3 look — it doesn’t feel good right now to miss out on a top-34 prospect.
Given the nature of the conversation here, it’s safe to expect the Redskins to compensate for this missing piece via aggressiveness in free agency as Rivera looks to rebuild the roster.
Something it doesn’t do? Change the plan at second overall. Maybe Rivera and Co. decide to trade down and get some picks back. But if they stay put, the plan is likely still Chase Young regardless.
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