Let’s take a look at the Commanders 2025 draft.
Having helped build a great team that took us on a great run last year, the question remains whether General Manager Adam Peters can do it again this year. Based on this year’s offseason and draft, the signs are positive.
Unlike in previous decades, the mood among fans seems to be one of general trust and faith that the team is in good hands. As a lifelong armchair critic this is one of the first years where I settled back to simply enjoy the process.
Day one of the draft was great. Even though many of us were hoping Peters would trade down and he did not. Once again, the view is that Peters knows best, so we all defer to him!
With the 29th pick Washington selected tackle Josh Conerly Jr from Oregon.
Although it was the pick I predicted, it remains something of a surprise given the very expensive offseason trade that brought in a high value left tackle Laremy Tunsil.
One thought is that Tunsil is there in part to mentor Conerly. Adam Peters seems to like matching young talent with talented veterans.
Another is that Tunsil with remain on the left while Conerly will shift to the right. He could then perhaps move back to the left once Tunsil’s contract ends.
With the 61st pick Washington selected cornerback Trey Amos from Ole Miss. While Conerly was ranked 30th on Pro Football Focus and we picked him 29th. Amos was ranked 28th and we got him with the 61st pick. Every pundit in the league thinks the Amos pick was a steal.
Getting great value
Commentators gave our day one picks two A grades, as we picked up two first rounders, using a first and second round pick. When was the last time we did that?!
Our third-round pick went to the Saints for defensive back Marshon Lattimore last season, but with the pick of Amos we have another veteran paired up with a rookie.
Also, potentially a legitimate pair of corners for the first time in decades.
While many of us consider signing Lattimore to be Adam Peters weakest move, Lattimore was injured last year. He also came into the team late in the season. The jury is out on that one, but we live in hope.
With the 128th pick in the fourth round we selected wide receiver Jaylin Lane from Virginia Tech.
Lane ran the 40-yard dash in 4.34 seconds, the third fastest in that position group. His speed will help free up other wide receivers’ underneath.
He can be used in a variety of ways, and the bit that sealed the deal was probably his punt return skills.
Washington have lacked a good returner for some time, to the point that many of them simply couldn’t even catch the ball.
Having someone who can light things up on special teams would be a great result. As such Lane appears to bring several talents to the team, which adds to his value.
That concludes the first part of this review of the Commanders draft for 2025. Check out Part Two coming soon, where we will look at the later round picks.
We will also review the teams offseason as a whole!
