A refresher: the Skins have only one pick in the top 100 (No. 4 overall). They have a pick in the 4th round (No. 5, 103 overall), in the 5th round (No. 4, 135 overall), and in the 7th round (No. 7, 211 overall). The Skins' four picks are the lowest of any team in the NFL; some teams have 3 times that number of picks. And some teams have more picks than that in the first 100 picks.
So the million dollar question is what will the Redskins do?
The smart money is that they draft Oklahoma State's Russell Okung at No. 4 overall. Any rumors of the Skins moving up in the draft to secure Okung or take someone else seem to be just that, rumors. From there, the picture is very murky.
Mike Shanahan and Bruce Allen seem unwilling to wait for things to fall into their lap, and Denver was always active in the draft trade market. Look for the Redskins to find a trading partner in the Buffalo Bills. The Bills are in need of a QB, but don't want to stick a rookie QB behind a decimated offensive line. The Redskins are trying to unload a QB with above average arm strength, one Jason Campbell. Hello 3rd round pick (The Bills own a pick in every round, and have two in both the sixth and seventh rounds).
Then there is the little (no, huge) matter of Albert Haynesworth. The Redskins recently paid Haynesworth a $21 million roster bonus, believed to be among the largest checks ever written by an NFL team to one player. He is reportedly unhappy with the new regime's decision to move him into the nose tackle position in a 3-4 defense and to show his displeasure, did not attend voluntary minicamp this weekend. There is almost no doubt the Skins tried to trade Haynesworth in the McNabb deal, foolish as that would've been. But there is a decent chance they'll move him soon. Shanahan recently said:
"...No, we're not going to trade him at all, unless someone gives us something we would have to consider -- that's pretty standard with any player on your roster. He's a pretty smart guy. He's really talented. I think I can get that out of him.''
As Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk points out, the key to unlocking Shanahan's comment is to notice he said "...unless someone gives us something we would have to consider..." This surely means the Redskins are all ears if the Tennessee Titans (who may not want to deal with the Redskins after submitting evidence they believed proved the Redskins tampered with Haynesworth) come calling on draft day. The Titans have 9 picks in this year's draft, including a 1st rounder (No. 16 overall), and two 3rd-rounders (Nos. 13 & 33, 77 and 97 overall). A possible, but unlikely deal: the Titans send the No. 16 pick (and probably another pick or two) to the Redskins in exchange for Haynesworth, with the Skins then looking at taking Tennessee's Dan Williams, regarded as the best nose tackle prospect in this year's draft.
It seems unlikely the Redskins would trade Haynesworth to Detroit. Detroit has the second overall pick in the draft and with that pick (with Sam Bradford likely off the board) looking to take a highly-regarded defensive tackle, either Nebraska's Ndamukong Suh or Oklahoma's Gerald McCoy. But, if the Redskins were to trade Haynesworth to Detroit and allow Haynesworth to reunite with his former position coach, Detroit head coach Jim Schwartz, that would fill their defensive tackle void and then allow the Lions to take Okung at No. 2. Surely that's an outcome the Skins don't want.
But overall, there are not a lot of firm rumors about the Redskins draft plans. They've brought in the usual number of high-profile prospects to work out, but it appears Redskins fans will have to exercise some patience in finding out what the Burgundy and Gold do this weekend.
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