INDIANAPOLIS — Taking a guard in the NFL draft doesn’t generate much excitement. Just ask Jay Gruden, the former Washington coach who once summed up his team’s first two first-round picks as follows:
“One of them hasn’t played a down, or played one game,” Gruden said after the 2016 season, “and the other one is a guard.”
The last time Washington used a first-round pick on a guard, however, worked out just fine— Brandon Scherff is now a five-time Pro Bowler and a one-time All-Pro.
Maybe it’s time for the Commanders to take a swing on the position again.
With Scherff likely to leave in free agency this month, one possibility for the Commanders is to fill his void with the 11th overall pick in the draft. Using a first-rounder on the position can be more than debated, but The NFL Network’s Daniel Jeremiah penciled in Texas A&M guard Kenyon Green as a “plug-and-play replacement.”
Washington does have other needs — this week at the NFL scouting combine has centered around the quarterback position — though Green met with the Commanders for an interview.
If Green does get drafted to Washington, he would reunite with high school teammate Sam Cosmi — the Commanders’ starting right tackle. The two played together at Atascocita in Harris County, Texas.
“That would be great playing with Sammy,” Green said Thursday.
Green contains many of the same traits that coach Ron Rivera seeks in his offensive linemen. Specifically, Rivera values “position flex” — the ability to play multiple spots in the trenches. In 2019, Green played at right guard before swinging to left the following years. He even was slotted in at tackle here and there.
Green said he thinks his “quick, fast” feet separates him among the interior linemen. He’s able to combine speed with power to overwhelm opponents. Indeed, Green’s draft profile on NFL.com describes the 6-foot-4, 325-pound lineman as someone who can move “defenders from Point A to Point B against their will.”
Over the past few months, Rivera has touted the strength of Washington’s line — ranked as the league’s sixth-best offensive line by Pro Football Focus. Earlier this week, the coach expressed confidence in the unit even if Scherff leaves in large part because they’ve been able to get by without him in stretches. Scherff, who has a lengthy injury history, missed six games in 2021.
“You feel it’s a good group, you feel like they’re well-coached,” Rivera said Tuesday. “The things that we do offensively play to a lot of the skill sets that we have. So I think that that is going to be OK.”
Rivera’s comments may be an indication the team doesn’t view guard as a pressing need upon Scherff’s likely departure. Still, Scherff’s possible replacement — veteran Wes Schweitzer — is entering the last year of his contract and actually missed the same amount of games as Scherff last season. Former fourth-rounder Saahdiq Charles could be an in-house option, but he’d have to display more consistency to be a reliable starter.
For what it’s worth, Washington hasn’t completely shut the door on Scherff returning, either. General manager Martin Mayhew said Wednesday he probably went “too far” in January when he seemingly set the stage for Scherff’s departure by noting the team had already made an offer to make him the highest-paid guard in the league. Mayhew admitted he perhaps “crossed the line” with his earlier comment.
But the fact remains that Washington and Scherff have negotiated over the last few years — and over multiple regimes — and have been unable to strike a deal. Barring something unforeseen, it would be hard to imagine Scherff playing in Burgundy and Gold again.
That’s where the possibility of drafting his replacement comes in.
“I think he’s the best interior lineman in the draft who’s got some real power, some real strength,” Jeremiah said of Green. “He can anchor down in pass pro.”
• Matthew Paras can be reached at mparas@washingtontimes.com.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.