In the days leading up to Thursday’s first round of the NFL draft, there were reports that the Redskins were considering trading up to select quarterback Dwayne Haskins. Such a move, the rumors suggested, would’ve been led by owner Daniel Snyder and team president Bruce Allen, despite the preferences of others in the front office, including Coach Jay Gruden.
This pre-draft speculation sparked mockery from some members of the media and consternation within a fan base that watched Washington mortgage its future to draft quarterback Robert Griffin III with the second pick in 2012.
Then a funny thing happened. The Redskins stood pat at No. 15 and watched Haskins, who threw 50 touchdowns at Ohio State last season, fall into their lap. That selection, coupled with Washington’s trading the 46th overall pick and a 2020 second-round pick to the Colts to draft Mississippi State pass rusher Montez Sweat at No. 26 overall, led many pundits to shower the Redskins with praise.
“I take back the mean things I said about the Redskins before the draft,” SiriusXM NFL Radio host and former lineman Geoff Schwartz tweeted late Thursday. “Haskins and Sweat drafted at 15 and [26] is outstanding value.”
Montez Sweat went 26th to the Redskins. I had him as my 5th-ranked player, a +21 differential, the largest positive differential of the night:
— Gil Brandt (@Gil_Brandt) April 26, 2019
Montez Sweat +21
Josh Jacobs +12
Andre Dillard +11
Marquise Brown + 6
Ed Oliver +5
Josh Allen +4
Deandre Baker +4#NFLDraft
“The Washington Redskins and Daniel Snyder nailed it,” CBS Sports Network’s Adam Schein said. “This is not a drill.”
Schwartz and Schein weren’t alone. Here’s a roundup of what some other draft experts had to say about Washington’s eventful Thursday.
“Though I don’t always love these kinds of trades, this isn’t too much to give up for a prospect like Sweat,” wrote Kiper, who had the pass rusher ranked No. 12 on his list of prospects and said the board “fell perfectly” for Washington. “I like what Washington did on Day 1.”
“I love Haskins’s long-term potential under head coach and play-caller Jay Gruden, and I love it even more that Washington didn’t have to move up to get him,” wrote Kelly, who gave that pick an A-plus grade. He gave the Sweat pick an A-minus, calling him another potential franchise pillar and writing that “Sweat ranked no. 12 on my board, so landing him at no. 26 helps cancel out the cost of the trade.”
“Given the murky future of Alex Smith, finding Haskins waiting for them at No. 15 could prove to be franchise-changing,” wrote Reuter, who gave the Redskins an A-minus grade for their first-round picks.
“If Haskins is a long-term gambit, trading back into the first round to draft edge rusher Montez Sweat was the sign of a team wanting to get better now,” wrote Rosenthal, who named Washington one of his Day 1 winners. “ . . . For a franchise needing an infusion of energy and optimism after Alex Smith’s leg injury — which threw his future in doubt — and a rough offseason, Haskins and Sweat provide hope.”
“I think he’s the best quarterback in this draft and it’s a great pick for the Redskins,” Prisco said of Haskins. “Getting a cheap quarterback to come in and push to start right away is a great move. Love this pick by the Redskins. Like Kyler Murray he’s a one-year wonder, but there’s a lot of potential here.”
Prisco graded the Haskins and Sweat picks an A and B, respectively.
“Haskins looks like a Snyder or Allen pick, not a Jay Gruden pick,” Tanier wrote. “Grudens like their quarterbacks quick and pesky, not big and pocket-y. So the Skins get credit for selecting a much-needed starting quarterback without trading up. But with better planning and organizational vision, they also could have done a lot better.”
Tanier graded the Haskins pick a B and the Sweat selection an A-minus, adding “it’s a move with the potential to pay off in the long run.”
“Washington fans freaked out early when it was leaked [that] owner Daniel Snyder would take control of the draft and likely trade up in a bad way,” wrote Iyer, who listed the Redskins among his winners. “Then they saw their team get its desired franchise quarterback prospect by doing nothing and staying at No. 15 and follow it up with a more calculated move to jump back in to get a scheme-ideal edge pass rusher who should have gone in the top 10 at way down at No. 26. Hail to the Redskins’ resourcefulness.”
“Washington owner Daniel Snyder got the player he wanted,” wrote Kadar, who graded the Haskins pick an A-plus and the Sweat pick an A. “And he did the right thing? That’s weird to say about Snyder.”
“The Redskins are killing the draft, and I have no idea what’s real anymore,” wrote Ruiz, who gave the Haskins (A) and Sweat (A-minus) picks high marks.
“The Redskins didn’t need to trade up to get the quarterback they wanted,” Clayton wrote. “Haskins fell to them at 15th overall, as the team read the draft board perfectly, knowing there would be a run on defensive linemen early. Washington should also get credit for moving back into the first round to get an impact edge rusher in Mississippi State’s Montez Sweat at 26th overall.”
Benoit didn’t like the Redskins’ moves as much as most of his colleagues, assigning the Haskins pick a C-plus grade and the Sweat pick a B-plus.
“The question now becomes, How soon will Haskins play?” Benoit wrote. “Having such a small sample size from college, he’s expected to be a work-in-progress. Can he be consistently accurate and poised from the pocket?”
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