Of all the changes the Redskins made in the front office this offseason, Washington opted to keep the man responsible for crafting its draft board over the past two seasons. And this year, he’ll get to have even more of a say.
Enter Kyle Smith.
Smith, promoted to vice president of play personnel last month, has had a solid track record of helping the Redskins pick players, finding everything from first-round contributors like Daron Payne, Dwayne Haskins and Montez Sweat to late-round prospects like Cole Holcomb and Jimmy Moreland.
After spending the last few months scouting, Smith and the Redskins will have their chance to meet the prospects this week at the NFL scouting combine in Indianapolis. In addition to drills, teams are allowed to meet players for formal and informal interviews. Star pass-rusher Chase Young is sure to garner most of the attention, but the Redskins have a long list of needs.
Here are positions Smith and his staff will likely have to address in the draft:
Tight end
The Redskins missed out on free agent Greg Olsen, released Jordan Reed and saw Vernon Davis retire. As of now, Jeremy Sprinkle and Hale Hentges are the only two tight ends on the roster — leaving the Redskins with a major need. While Washington could address tight end in free agency, this year’s crop of tight ends has some intriguing players, even if it’s not as deep as last year’s class.
NFL Network’s Daniel Jeremiah views the top options as FAU’s Harrison Bryant, Notre Dame’s Cole Kmet and Dayton’s Adam Trautman. All three are expected to be Day 2 prospects, Jeremiah said.
Jeremiah described Bryant as a “Dennis Pitta type,” an athletic player who can catch the ball up high and move around easily. “He’s in the mix to be the first overall (tight end),” Jeremiah said.
Cornerback
Quinton Dunbar remains in a standoff with the Redskins after demanding a trade earlier this month over a contract impasse. That situation complicates an already weak position for Washington, which released Josh Norman earlier this month.
Luckily for Washington and other cornerback-needy teams, this is the draft to address those concerns.
“In terms of the depth and the talent in this draft, wide receivers and corners, especially in the wide receiver group, (are) as deep as I’ve seen,” Jeremiah said.
Bleacher Report draft expert Matt Miller has 14 cornerbacks ranked in his top 100. By comparison, 11 cornerbacks were drafted last year through the first 100 picks.
Wide receiver
Steven Sims and Kelvin Harmon were nice surprises for Washington last year, but the team’s true standout was third-rounder Terry McLaurin. The 24-year-old was just eight yards away from breaking the team’s rookie receiving record, but still finished with 919 yards on 54 catches in 14 games.
Now, the Redskins will have to find a reliable starter across from him.
Dwayne Haskins has already advocated for his former Ohio State teammate K.J. Hill, tweeting “need em” in reply to one of Hill’s highlight catches at the Senior Bowl last month.
“I don’t think they necessarily need as a complementary receiver or someone different or opposite of (McLaurin),” The Athletic’s Dane Brugler told The Washington Times in December. “As long as you have guys who can create space and catch the football, that’s someone that’s going to help the offense.”
Safety
Safety has been a rotating door for Washington the past few seasons, and in 2019, the Redskins lacked a true force opposite Landon Collins. Starter Montae Nicholson proved to be unreliable, both on and off the field.
The Redskins need to find someone who can play deep as Collins’ talent best shines around the line of scrimmage. They’ll also need someone who can clearly communicate pre-snap checks in time and make sure everyone is on the same page — a huge problem for Washington last year.
“Coach (Bill) Belichick would always preach to (his scouts), you cannot win with a dumb safety,” Jeremiah said of the New England Patriots coach. “You’ve got to have an intelligent and good communicative safety.”
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