It's a draft of woulda, coulda, shoulda for the Washington Football Team. There are so many players to covet and they'll nearly all be gone by the time Washington picks at No. 19 in the late hours of Thursday.
The price for winning the NFC East title at 7-9 meant falling from No. 10-12 where fellow division members select. Oh, everyone wanted to make the playoffs and worry about the draft later. And, that was the right mindset.
But now comes the price for that short-lived postseason. At No. 10, Washington could have taken an elite offensive tackle or linebacker, maybe grabbed one of the quarterbacks. Now, it will need a lot of luck and more dominos falling than should be expected.
Or, maybe Washington trades up. Carolina's No. 8 is looking pretty inviting right now. The Panthers don't seem to have a big playmaker targeted and surely former coach Ron Rivera can get a friends-and-family discount for Washington.
There are so many unknowns once the draft reaches San Francisco at No. 3 that could resonate down to Washington. If the 49ers really take quarterback Mac Jones, then there's a land rush for Atlanta's No. 4 for quarterback, Trey Lance. That lets tight end Kyle Pitts slip to Detroit at No. 7.
If No. 5 Cincinnati passes on offensive tackle Penei Sewell to take receiver Ja'Marr Chase, that trickles down on three other teams wanting left tackles. Sewell would be there at No. 8 for Washington to trade up with Carolina. It causes Rashawn Slater to fall to the Los Angeles Chargers at No. 13 and then Christian Darrisaw moves to Minnesota at 14.
Related
If Pitts is still available at No. 7, then Dallas makes a big move on Denver for the tight end and doesn't take cornerback Patrick Surtain II, who then goes to Arizona at No. 16 and lets cornerback Jaycee Horn be there for Washington.
Micah Parsons was supposed to go in the top 10, but the board is moving and he'll likely be there for Philadelphia at No. 12. If not, he falls to No. 17 Las Vegas before Washington can get him.
So many possibilities are gone for Washington if not trading up, but there's still one playmaker on the board who can help – Notre Dame linebacker Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah.
Washington would like a passer, but the price may be too much. A left tackle would be nice, but getting the fifth best one helps nobody. An outside linebacker could complete the defense, though. Owusu-Koramoah would finally solve the defense's biggest problems for years – covering a tight end on a short pass. Those five-yard dumps became 12-yard gains because Washington's linebackers were too slow. Owusu-Koramoah could finally seal that gap and that would be a good pick.
Rivera seems too conservative to make a big move by trading a lot of picks to move up, so maybe he just waits and still gets a needed player. The draft board will be moving with the intensity of a craps table, but Rivera won't grab the dice. He'll play the safe betting lines and wait for others to make a mistake.
And, maybe Washington comes away a winner.
Rick Snider has covered Washington sports since 1978. Follow him on Twitter: @Snide_Remarks.