The New York Giants pick of star running back Saquon Barkley didn’t go unnoticed by the Washington Redskins. Coach Jay Gruden cited Barkley as a reason the Redskins wanted to take defensive tackle Da’Ron Payne with the 13th overall pick in last week’s draft.
“You see what’s going on in our division,” Gruden said.
The Redskins were pitiful against the NFC East in 2017, finishing 1-5 versus the division. Washington’s lone win came against the Giants on Thanksgiving, so they can at least be thankful for that.
But there’s a good chance the 3-13 Giants won’t be as bad in 2018 — thanks to Barkley, whose speed and vision have some analysts claiming he’s the best prospect in the entire draft.
Meanwhile, the Redskins still have to deal with the Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles and the always formidable Dallas Cowboys.
The Redskins have been praised for their draft, but they aren’t the only team that appeared to take a step forward. Here’s how the rest of the NFC East shook out.
New York Giants
Eli Manning has to be happy after the Giants took six players in the draft — and most notably, didn’t take a quarterback until Round 4. Apologies to Richmond’s Kyle Lauletta, but Manning’s seat would have been a lot warmer if the Giants took USC quarterback Sam Darnold at No. 2.
Instead, new general manager Dave Gettleman did everything to keep the 37-year-old Manning upright and on the field. Barkley will help — we’ve seen the impact rookie running backs can have. And oh yeah, star wideout Odell Beckham Jr. is returning from injury. Barkley and Beckham is a nasty combo, and there’s enough gold there that tabloid writers will have their back pages filled for months.
Elsewhere, the Giants got a reliable offensive lineman in the second round, taking UTEP guard Will Hernandez. They went defense in the third and the fifth, taking an edge rusher (Lorenzo Carter) and two defensive tackles (N.C. State’s B.J. Hill and Miami’s R.J. McIntosh).
Dallas Cowboys
For once, Jerry Jones went the quiet route. After the Cowboys owner made headlines this season feuding with commissioner Roger Goodell, Dallas chose not to make a splash while hosting this year’s draft at AT&T Stadium. Rather, the Cowboys focused on stocking up on depth — a good thing considering the Cowboys regressed in 2017 because of injuries.
Boise State linebacker Leighton Vander Esch was the Cowboys’ first-round selection at No. 19, and he figures to help the defense with his size (6-foot-4) and athleticism. He might also be an eventual Sean Lee replacement.
The team’s draft has received mixed praise, with ESPN’s Mel Kiper giving them a B- while NFL.com gave them an A. Dallas did not add a high-profile wide receiver to replace Dez Bryant, instead using a third-round pick (Colorado State’s Michael Gallup) and a sixth-round pick (Boise State’s Cedrick Wilson) to address the position.
Philadelphia Eagles
The Eagles faced two “problems” for this year’s draft: they were slotted to pick last in the first round because they won the Super Bowl and were missing three picks because they used them to acquire Carson Wentz, Ronald Darby and Jay Ajayi.
Of course, those are the kinds of problems franchises want.
Still, Philadelphia came away from the draft with pluses. They traded back in the first round, letting Baltimore come up and take quarterback Lamar Jackson. They moved back and netted a 2019 second-rounder in the process.
From a pettiness standpoint, the Eagles clearly won the day by jumping the Cowboys, via a trade with the Indianapolis Colts, to take South Dakota tight end Dallas Goedert amid reports Dallas’ Jason Witten was mulling retirement. Goedert is even named after the Cowboys.
The icing on the cake — because Philadelphia sports seems to be having a moment — former kicker David Akers trolled Dallas fans before announcing the Goedert pick. It was revenge for former Cowboys receiver Drew Pearson taunting fans last year in Philadelphia.
“Hey Dallas,” Akers said. “The last time you were in the Super Bowl, these draft picks weren’t born!”
Perfect.
• Matthew Paras can be reached at mparas@washingtontimes.com.
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