To most fans, it appeared that Scot McCloughan abandoned best player available when he bypassed DL Leonard Williams to select OT Brandon Scherff.
Williams ranked higher on mock drafts by the likes of Mike Mayock and Mel Kiper, Jr.; but then, not one NFL GM participates in those things.
@Russellmania980 99% of Redskins fans had no idea who Williams was about a month ago. Now they are all experts.
— Kevin (@kegroppe) May 1, 2015
Sports talk radio 106.7 reported that DE Dante Fowler, Jr., WR Amari Cooper and Scherff were the top three players on the Redskins Draft Board. Local writers linked Fowler to the Redskins in the hours before the Draft. Fowler and Cooper were gone when the ‘Skins picked at the five spot, so GM Scot McCloughan would not have seen Scherff as a reach at all.
Hog Heaven favors the pick because we are weary of Washington feeding the offensive line with low round picks (Morgan Moses) and NFL cast offs (Tyler Polumbus).
He's already got #HTTR down! pic.twitter.com/znbT2Yk0zh
— Washington Commanders (@Commanders) May 1, 2015
This guy McCloughan builds football teams from the inside out.
I find that prayers work best when you have big players. ~ Knute Rockne
It’s all about the lines
Those people who harp on Joe Gibbs winning three Super Bowls with three different quarterbacks miss the point. He always had the Hogs and they got better every year. Gibbs made his mark in the NFL as an offensive line coach before he was the Chargers OC.
Chris Samuels would have been a Hog. So would Trent Williams. Scherff might fit that mold.
Those who are not NFL GMs remain skeptical of teams that do not conform to their opinion. NFL.com’s Bryan Fisher admitted surprise at Scherff over Willams. He graded the pick a C+ because of it.
Others read that Scherff projects as a guard rather than a tackle. Nobody picks guards in the first round.
Some fans were disappointed that the Redskins did not trade down for more picks. Scherff might still have fallen to us in that scenario.
It takes two to trade
Somebody has to want your spot enough to offer a comparable value. After hinting that he would draft Marcus Mariota or Williams and finding no suckers takers, McCloughan “furiously worked the phones” to finds a trade partner.
Tennessee turning aside trade inquiries from San Diego, Cleveland and Philadelphia (and what a deal) set the tone for the evening. We will likely see more trades tonight in the second and third rounds, but it was rare in Round One.
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How do you like the Redskins selection of OT Brandon Scherff in the first-round of the 2015 NFL Draft?
Perhaps Scherff won’t work out, but we applaud McCloughan for changing Washington’s approach to the Draft, first by keeping the picks, then by investing his first Redskins’ Draft pick on an offensive lineman.
This team is behaving like a professional football organization.
Showing some love to Lizzuendo
When the Redskins selected Scherff, my Twitter acquaintance Lizzuendo punned “A new Scherff is in town.” It was funny and it was retweeted. That just what you want your tweeps to do, but commercial companies are trading on the phrase too.
A new Scherff is in town #HTTR
— Strictly 4 My X’ers (@Lizzs_Lockeroom) May 1, 2015
I just want everyone to know who originated it.
Point after
Link: Brandon Scherff NFL.com Draft Analysis.
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