Hogs Haven
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He arrived at UCLA as a wide receiver before converting to defense. At 6-foot-3, 222 pounds, Medrano looks more like a big safety than a traditional linebacker, but that body type does very much fit the profile of safety/linebacker hybrids that Dan Quinn and Joe Whitt Jr. love. It’s almost the same frame as Jeremy Chinn, who the Commanders signed in 2024 but let walk in free agency this year.
While Medrano is listed as a linebacker, that frame comparison to Chinn should tell you more about what his role will likely be in Washington. As a linebacker, he’s undersized, but as a safety/big nickel/dime linebacker hybrid, his body type fits exactly what the Commanders are looking for. To go along with his frame, Medrano is an outstanding athlete. He ran a 4.46 40-yard dash, fastest of any linebacker at the combine and would have ranked seventh fastest among safeties. He also had great explosive and agility testing numbers, showing he’s a very well-rounded athlete.
What that means for the Commanders is that they have a very fluid athlete with plenty of upside in a role they like to use plenty within their system. In his press conference after being drafted, Medrano explained he has experience playing as a Will (weak side) linebacker and as a big nickel. I think it’s that big nickel role that intrigues me most about him. His huge upside is his coverage ability. Because of his fluidity for a guy of his size, Medrano is capable of covering a variety of different players in a variety of different schemes.
Medrano shows good instincts in zone coverage, feeling routes working behind him and sinking underneath them to squeeze throwing windows shut. But he’s also capable of playing man coverage too.
Medrano’s athletic ability means he can be a flexible coverage piece for the Commanders defense. He can make up a lot of ground in a short period of time, enabling the defense to show some disguised looks and still trust him to get to his coverage assignment.
It had been a while since Croskey-Merritt had competed in any semblance of an actual game when he was invited to the East-West Shrine Bowl. Despite that time off, he handled himself well in the all-star game by rushing for 97 yards and two touchdowns.
For his performance, Croskey-Merritt was named the Offensive MVP.
“It’s a blessing just to be up here,” Croskey-Merritt said after the game.
It was proof to the NFL, and Croskey-Merritt himself, that he still has much to offer to...
