Coming of an NFC East title in 2020, the Washington Football Team is in a good spot with a bright future. The 19th pick in the draft provides them a lot of options. Those options come from being able to operate from a position of strength, and not one of desperation.
Washington could target their quarterback of the future with that first-round pick. Or fortify an area that could use an injection of talent. Taking the proverbial “best player available” is definitely on the radar.
With that top-20 pick in next month’s draft, here are three intriguing options for the Washington Football Team.
3. Trade Up
If there’s a quarterback who falls out of the top-10, Washington could move up to get him. It seems unlikely to be Mac Jones, but it’s possible. Trey Lance may be set to fall some as the buzz around others grows, so maybe he ends up being the apple of Washington’s eye. If another player they like starts to fall, regardless of position or strict need, trading up becomes increasingly possible.
2. Teven Jenkins, OT, Oklahoma State
With the top tackles likely off the board by then, some updated mocks have Washington taking Jenkins at 19. A massive man (6-foot-6, 320 pounds) with athleticism, he could fit at either tackle spot at the next level. Before opting out late in the 2020 season, he started 34 straight games for Mike Gundy’s Cowboys. Jon Berger of CBS Sports has compared Jenkins to Marcus Cannon. As they look for their next Trent Williams to lock down left tackle for awhile, Jenkins is an intriguing option for Washington at No. 19.
1. Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah, LB, Notre Dame
Owusu-Koramoah is tabbed as a linebacker, but at 6-foot-1 and 221 pounds (Pro Day measurements) he’s undersized for that spot in the NFL. That said, he can cover like a defensive back and he’s the kind of versatile defender who would never have to come off the field. In two years at Notre Dame he totaled 142 tackles (24.5 tackles for loss) with seven sacks (5.5 in 2019), seven pass breakups, five forced fumbles and four fumble recoveries.
The comps to Isaiah Simmons (Arizona Cardinals) and Jeremy Chinn (Carolina Panthers) are as obvious as they are apt.
With one of the best defensive lines in the NFL, Washington can target a difference maker at linebacker as they build out a formidable front-seven. “JOK” looks like an ideal and incredibly intriguing fit.
