The Washington Redskins selected Bullis-grad Dwayne Haskins and traded up to get edge rusher Montez Sweat in the first round of the NFL draft Thursday night. Here's every one of their 2019 draft selections.
The Washington Redskins selected Bullis-grad Dwayne Haskins with their first round selection in the 2019 NFL draft Thursday night.
Haskins, considered by many as the top QB in the draft, was selected with the 15th overall pick. He was the third QB taken; Arizona made Kyler Murray the first overall pick and the New York Giants surprisingly took Daniel Jones with the sixth overall pick.
The Redskins then dealt their 2019 second round pick (46th overall) and 2020 second rounder to Indianapolis in exchange for the 26th overall pick, which they used to select Mississippi State edge rusher Montez Sweat.
Sweat had been rated as a potential top-10 pick before reports of a heart condition found during the NFL combine in February. He originally had committed to attend the NFL draft in Nashville before deciding last weekend to celebrate with his family in Stone Mountain, Georgia.
On Day 2, the Redskins were without a second round pick but selected Ohio State wide receiver Terry McLaurin with the 76th overall pick in Round 3. McLaurin, who played with Haskins, caught 35 passes for 701 yards and 11 touchdowns during his senior season with the Buckeyes.
In Round 5, the Redskins added more depth to their interior offensive line by selecting Ross Pierschbacher 153rd overall, making this the third straight season an Alabama player has been drafted to play in Washington. With the 173rd overall pick, the ‘Skins selected UNC linebacker Cole Holcomb.
The Redskins’ lone pick in the sixth round was North Carolina State receiver Kelvin Harmon.
In Round 7, the Redskins took JMU cornerback Jimmy Moreland 227th overall and ended their 2019 draft by selecting Oklahoma State edge rusher Jordan Brailford with the 253rd overall pick.
Meet the Redskins’ draft class of 2019.
1st Round (15th overall): Dwayne Haskins — QB, Ohio State
This pick is everything the Redskins could have dreamed. The team addressed perhaps its biggest need with a big name talent with local ties — and didn’t have to mortgage their future by trading up to do it. The Bullis-grad stays home and the ‘Skins can try and seduce an apathetic fan base into coming back to FedEx Field to see if he can develop into one of the NFL’s bright young stars.
(AP Photo/Darron Cummings)
AP Photo/Darron Cummings
1st Round (26th overall): Montez Sweat — edge rusher, Mississippi State
The Redskins traded their 2019 second round pick (46th overall) and their 2020 second rounder to move up to 26th overall to get Sweat, whose draft stock dropped because of a heart condition. However, word spread the morning of the draft that the condition was misdiagnosed so the Redskins may have managed to get one of the draft’s top edge rushers at a relative discount.
After his redshirt sophomore season at Michigan State, Sweat eventually went on to register 23.5 sacks in two seasons as a Bulldog. He set a modern day combine record for a defensive lineman by running a 4.41 40-yard dash, so the ‘Skins are hoping they finally have a speed rusher to complement Ryan Kerrigan.
(Getty Images/Joe Robbins)
Getty Images/Joe Robbins
Round 3 (76th overall): Terry McLaurin — WR, Ohio State
As they did with their first two picks, the Redskins opted to address one of their biggest holes with the first of their two third-rounders. The speedy McLaurin — he ran a 4.35 40-yard dash at the NFL Combine — played with Haskins at Ohio State, and though his numbers weren’t eye-popping, he demonstrated the strong hands, route running and big play ability (20 yards per catch and 11 touchdowns in 2018) that could make him a natural replacement for the departed Jamison Crowder. ESPN’s Todd McShay called McLaurin the best special teamer in this year’s draft, so this is the kind of pick that could help the ‘Skins in multiple avenues.
(AP Photo/Michael Conroy)
AP Photo/Michael Conroy
4th round (112th overall): Bryce Love — RB, Stanford
Love had a monster 2017 season as a junior, racking up 2,118 rushing yards and 19 TDs and was considered a possible Heisman Trophy candidate entering last season. But a slow start and a torn ACL marred his 2018 campaign, making this a low risk/high reward pick for an already crowded Redskins backfield that features future Hall of Famer Adrian Peterson and 2018 second-round pick Derrius Guice.
(Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images)
Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images
4th round (131st overall): Wes Martin — G, Indiana
It took awhile, but the Redskins finally addressed the gaping hole at left guard. Ironically, Martin’s closest comparison is to outgoing LG Shawn Lauvao, so the ‘Skins are banking on this high character, hard working player developing into a solid option to replace him.
(AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)
AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar
5th round (153rd overall): Ross Pierschbacher — G/C, Alabama
If you’ll allow me to strut for a bit … I totally called this. The Burgundy and Gold’s love for the Crimson remains intact; this is the third straight year and fourth time in the last five drafts the ‘Skins have selected a player from Alabama, and this time they grabbed a mid-round interior lineman to legitimately compete for the starting LG spot.
(AP Photo/Butch Dill)
AP Photo/Butch Dill
5th round (173rd overall): Cole Holcomb — LB, North Carolina
The Redskins added a college tackling machine to their inside linebacking corps. Holcomb topped 100 tackles as a sophomore and senior at UNC, and forced four fumbles in 2018. This may be a pick for special teams depth more than anything.
(AP Photo/Gerry Broome)
AP Photo/Gerry Broome
6th round (206th overall): Kelvin Harmon — WR, NC State
Considered a Day 2 pick, Harmon falling all the way to the sixth round is a surprise. The Redskins get a big possession receiver with swagger, coming off back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons to close out his college career. Considering the ‘Skins’ love for throwing fade routes in the red zone, this may be their new favorite target.
(Photo by Lance King/Getty Images)
Photo by Lance King/Getty Images
7th round (227th overall): Jimmy Moreland — CB, James Madison
Moreland, pictured diving for future teammate Kelvin Harmon, is the first Dukes player to be drafted since 2013 and you can see why: Moreland returned six of his 18 collegiate interceptions for touchdowns, showing a penchant for big plays. If he can make the leap from FCS school to the NFL, the Redskins’ secondary might be in great shape.
(AP Photo/Gerry Broome)
AP Photo/Gerry Broome
7th round (253rd overall): Jordan Brailford — edge rusher, Oklahoma State
Brailford is a tad undersized for an NFL edge rusher (250 pounds) but with good coaching, he could blossom into a solid situational pass rusher and special teamer. For the second-to-last pick in the draft, that would be terrific.
(Photo by Julio Aguilar/Getty Images)
Rob Woodfork is WTOP's Senior Sports Content Producer, which includes duties as producer and host of the DC Sports Huddle, nightside sports anchor and sports columnist on WTOP.com.
