Washington Redskins 2013 NFL Draft Profile: Manti Te’o

Position: Linebacker
School: Notre Dame
Height: 6-1
Weight: 241
Projected round: 1-2

• Why he would be a good Redskin
A little undersized but a great motor. More instinctive than athletic. A concussive hitter who plays like a coach on the field. Sound like anyone we might need to replace in a year or so? Drafting Te’o now and giving him a season’s worth of on-the-job training would lessen the trauma considerably when London Fletcher moves into the broadcast booth for good.

• Why he won’t be drafted by the Redskins
If the team had its full complement of draft choices and enough cap room to fill its other holes via free agency, it might have the luxury of drafting Te’o and grooming him for the future. But as things stand now, the Redskins’ second-round pick is their most valuable asset, and they have to come away with a starter at either corner or safety. He'll likely be off the board come the 51st pick as well.

• Bottom Line: (final comments)
For the most part, teams don’t care about the business of Te’o’s fictitious girlfriend, although it doesn’t help that his first instinct was to lie when the story began to unravel. Nor does his poor showing at the combine hurt his stock much because he was never regarded as a workout warrior anyway. What does concern scouts is his disappearing act in the National Championship Game against Alabama. Great players are supposed to show up in big games, and he didn’t. Pundits like Mike Mayock say he’s still a first-round talent, but I see him slipping into the second, where he could be within the Redskins’ reach. I just can’t imagine them taking him.