As we inch towards the 2020 NFL Draft with less than a week to go until the clock starts ticking down on the first pick, anticipation has started to grow as the Washington Redskins anticipate to draft Ohio State defensive end Chase Young at No. 2 overall. Beyond the expected selection of Young, Washington will look to continue a growing trend that has been established over the past couple of years — one in which they have been able to identify significant value in the middle and later rounds of the draft, finding productive players who are able to put up numbers on a cheap contract.
Over the past five years, though, in which round have the Redskins been the most successful at identifying talent? That’s a question we set to figure out. Before we get started, however, it seems smart to set down a few basic rules for how to determine a winning round. Of course, finding a productive player in the first round is a heck of a lot easier than finding one in say, the sixth or seventh round; this leads us to add more value to a late-round pick who performs well — say Cole Holcomb — rather than a player who everyone thought would succeed — Montez Sweat. With that being said, here are the groups we are working with.
1st Round:
- Dwayne Haskins (2019)
- Montez Sweat (2019)
- Daron Payne (2018)
- Jonathan Allen (2017)
- Josh Doctson (2016)
- Brandon Scherff (2015)
2nd Round:
- Derrius Guice (2018)
- Ryan Anderson (2017)
- Su’a Cravens (2016)
- Preston Smith (2015)
3rd Round:
- Terry McLaurin (2019)
- Geron Christian (2018)
- Fabian Moreau (2017)
- Kendall Fuller (2016)
- Matt Jones (2015)
4th Round:
- Bryce Love (2019)
- Wes Martin (2019)
- Troy Apke (2018)
- Samaje Perine (2017)
- Montae Nicholson (2017)
- Jamison Crowder (2015)
- Arie Kouandjio (2015)
5th Round:
- Ross Pierschbacher (2019)
- Cole Holcomb (2019)
- Tim Settle (2018)
- Jeremy Sprinkle (2017)
- Matt Ioannidis (2016)
- Martrell Spaight (2015)
6th Round:
- Kelvin Harmon (2019)
- Shaun Dion Hamilton (2018)
- Chase Roullier (2017)
- Robert Davis (2017)
- Nate Sudfeld (2016)
- Kyshoen Jarrett (2015)
- Tevin Mitchell (2015)
- Evan Spencer (2015)
7th Round:
- Jimmy Moreland (2019)
- Jordan Brailford (2019)
- Greg Stroman (2018)
- Trey Quinn (2018)
- Josh Harvey-Clemons (2017)
- Joshua Holsey (2017)
- Steven Daniels (2016)
- Keith Marshalls (2016)
- Austin Reiter (2015)
Now that all of the cards are on the table, where does each round rank in respect to one another? Let’s break that down, starting with No. 7 — surprisingly, the first round of the draft.
No. 7 — Round One
You wouldn’t think that the first round of the draft is where the Redskins might struggle to find the most value, but I think it may be true. That isn’t to say that they’ve failed to draft any meaningful players in the first round; there are several first-rounders still on the roster who produce year-in and year-out. However, the problem here is that Washington has failed to find a complete game-changer in the first round during the past half-decade — someone who can completely change the outlook of your team. Allen, and Payne, and Scherff are all great pieces, but not one of them is a superstar. We’re still waiting to see just what Haskins and Sweat can become a couple of years down the road, but the selection of Doctson in 2016 set the team back a couple of years. The Redskins are fairly set when it comes to young talent on the roster, but most of the players came somewhere after the first round. Hopefully, Washington can turn this narrative around with the selection of Chase Young this year.