Redskins decided on Sean Taylor night before draft

The NFL Draft is all about the future, even touting George Allen's infamous words, "The future is now" as the 2018 tagline.

But that doesn't mean that there isn't room for nostalgia.

Louis Riddick was a Pro Scout for the Washington Redskins in 2004 when the team selected Sean Taylor. The narrative telegraphed by the front office at the time was that everyone was comfortable with taking Taylor with the fifth overall pick.

According to Riddick, who now serves as an analyst for ESPN, that might not quite be true. In fact, until the 11th hour of the draft, the team was set on a different Miami Hurricane:

Louis Riddick just said @Redskins had decided to take Kellen Winslow until night before draft. Thought they’d settled on Sean Taylor earlier

That's a fun storyline to ponder, if the Redskins had stayed the course. Winslow was the nation's top tight end and an undeniable talent. He went one pick later to the Cleveland Browns, but had a career marred by injury, both on and off the gridiron.

He still finished with 5,236 and 25 touchdowns in 105 career games across nine seasons.

Obviously, Taylor's life ended in tragedy, but he holds a special place in Redskins lore. It would be interesting to know what changed everyone's mind so close to the draft.

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