May 05, 2015
Now that we've had a chance to digest what the Eagles did in the 2015 NFL Draft, let's take a peek at the other teams in the NFC East and see what new presents they got, starting with the Redskins.
| Player | Position | School | Round | Overall |
| Brandon Scherff | OG | Iowa | 1 | 5 |
| Preston Smith | DE | Mississippi | 2 | 38 |
| Matt Jones | RB | Florida | 3 | 95 |
| Jamison Crowder | WR | Duke | 4 | 105 |
| Arie Kouandjio | OG | Alabama | 4 | 112 |
| Martrell Spaight | OLB | Arkansas | 5 | 141 |
| Kyshoen Jarrett | SS | Virginia Tech | 6 | 181 |
| Tevin Mitchell | CB | Arkansas | 6 | 182 |
| Evan Spencer | WR | Ohio State | 6 | 187 |
| Austin Reiter | C | South Florida | 7 | 222 |
• Somehow, arguably the most talented player in the draft, Leonard Williams, fell to the Redskins at pick number five, and they opted for Brandon Scherff instead. Scherff, or as I like to call him, the "ff bomb," is an absolute stud and could be a very good player in the NFL for a long time, as you expect any player to be who is picked fifth overall. In the past, you could always count on the Redskins having a terrible right tackle. Not anymore. If Scherff pans out, the Skins may have one of the best bookend tandems in the NFL, with Trent Williams at LT. Still, it'll be hard for Redskins fans not to keep an eye on Leonard Williams' career and wonder what might have been.
• I liked the Preston Smith pick, and even had him as a trade-back option for the Eagles. Smith is an extremely versatile player who can stand up and play OLB in a 3-4 front, as well as at DE. At Mississippi State, the Bulldogs also lined him up at NT on obvious passing downs. Smith can give the Redskins some depth at multiple positions, and could eventually be a player that never comes off the field, while helping allow the Skins to disguise what they're doing defensively.
• Jones is a bigger back (6'1, 231) who I thought could be had in the later rounds. His numbers aren't impressive, but he was a player who looked good whenever I happened to catch him on TV. He fits the mold of a one-cut, north-south runner in the mold of Alfred Morris. I like the player, but the third round was a reach.
• Crowder was very impressive at times during the Senior Bowl. This is a guy who is almost certain to be over-hyped during training camp, as he's uncoverable in shells and shorts in 1-on-1 and 7-on-7 drills. At 5'8, 185, he's small, but he's extremely quick and runs good routes. The question is, can he be effective against more physical defensive backs, or is he just a guy who will wow at camp? At a minimum, he gives the Skins another option at punt returner.
• The Arie Kouandjio pick was interesting. The Redskins have invested heavily on their OL the last few years. Since 2012, they've spent third round picks on OT Morgan Moses, OG Spencer Long, and OG Josh LeRibeus. With the addition of Scherff in the first, will the Skins move Moses inside, or is his role going forward now as a backup swing tackle? On the inside, is this indicative of what they think of Long or LeRibeus, or did they simply think this was good value for Kouandjio in the fourth round? Could starting RG Chris Chester's days be numbered? We'll see.
• The Redskins made what seemed like a great trade with the Seahawks. They were able to turn their third round pick, 69th overall, into four picks: 95th, 112th, 167th, and 181st. I'm not so sure that was the right move. There were a lot of quality players on the board at the beginning of the third round, and by the time they picked at 95th overall, they reached for Jones. Obviously, the Redskins either weren't overly compelled by what was available at 69, or they didn't think they could pass up four picks for one.
• The strengths of this draft were considered to be WR, CB, OL, and edge rushers. Those positions were exactly what the Skins attacked.
While you can certainly bemoan where they got some of the guys they drafted, I thought the Redskins had a solid draft overall, and the addition of Scherff should fix what has long been among their most glaring holes on the roster.
Follow Jimmy on Twitter: @JimmyKempski
