Hogs Haven
A collection of articles, podcasts & tweets from around the web to keep you in touch with the Commanders, the NFC East and the NFL in general
Rome wasn’t built in a day, and the Washington Commanders weren’t trying to rebuild their fallen empire over three days of the NFL Draft.
“I don’t think that the work is done by any means,” Commanders managing partner Josh Harris said on Friday before Day 2 of the draft commenced.
Grading any draft before 3-4 years pass isn’t a fair timeframe, but quickly assessing the process (pun intended) is reasonable. However, “quickly” means after we see the training camp roster.
Peters, the coveted talent evaluator Harris convinced to run Washington’s front office after previous inquiries from competitors, is known for his drafting chops. The ex-49ers assistant GM didn’t arrive trying to showboat or reinvent the roster-building wheel. Instead, Peters brought the processes that turned San Francisco into an annual Super Bowl challenger.
Peters leaned into the best player available approach over seven rounds rather than reaching for needs. Using three second-round picks on a defensive tackle (Johnny Newton), nickel cornerback (Mike Sainristil) and tight end (Ben Sinnott) in conjunction with the pre-draft roster isn’t the work of a short-term thinker. Peters isn’t that dude anyway, especially not at this stage of the fixer-upper project.
The Commanders have a ways to go before challenging for the NFL crown. Their steps have been more reasonable than reckless, no matter what the angry fans scream. Daniels’ development may accelerate the timeline. But NFL rosters aren’t fixed in a day, even if factions demand it. The work isn’t done by any means. Nobody reasonable would think otherwise.
5. He’s healthy and ready to contribute.
Newton was noticeably absent from the on-field work at the combine in February. He suffered a Jones fracture in his foot, and the surgery prevented him from participating in Indianapolis.
The injury was a key topic of discussion when the Commanders first drafted him, but he brought some positive news to his Zoom press conference. He’s fully healed and ready to go.
“The injury happened midseason, got surgery on it in January, healed up, fully healed, then I did a Pro Day back in Illinois and ever since then I’ve been ready to go,” Newton said.
We’ll never get any real answer as to whether Newton’s injury caused him to slip out of the first round, although that is a common occurrence for talented prospects. Obviously, Newton is happy that he was drafted, but falling to Day 2 will “1,000%” is going to give him motivation in his career.
“A lot of people don’t have this opportunity. Definitely [adds] fuel to my fire and a chip on my shoulder. But I mean, that was always [there].”
