Looks Like Someone Has a Sixpack of the Mondays

1. When the Redskins drafted David Amerson on Friday night, I was sitting between Fred Smoot and Shawn Springs. In case you wonder if former players pay attention or care when the NFL Draft is going on--they do, and they do. As you may know, Smoot was banging the table for the Honey Badger. He likened Tyrann Mathieu to Antoine Winfield as far as frame and athleticism are concerned. Both Fred and Shawn agreed that the Redskins had gotten a physical player with the ability to go and get the ball. Considering that I believed Amerson would be gone by the time we chose in the second round, I was pretty happy to see the selection. My immediate reaction was, "There's one of our starting safeties in 2013."

2. So much for immediate reactions. By the time the Redskins had finished taking both Phillip Thomas and Bacarri Rambo, our defensive secondary had three new players I would swear could start for us next year. I heard a couple of comments over the weekend about how we used too many resources on the back of our defense, even comparing this draft to the one where Vinny triple-dipped on receivers in the second round (Malcolm Kelly, Devin Thomas and Fred Davis) in 2008. Slow down...this is not even close. If you liked Rambo more than Thomas--as many did coming into the weekend--you might have been upset when they took the Fresno State product ahead of the Georgia player. Fair enough, but that could only make you happier about getting Rambo in the sixth round with the 191st pick. I found this draft to be a rather responsible exercise in getting players that can likely contribute in the near-term in our secondary, while still adding players at other positions of need throughout. Linebacker, tight end--and yes, even running back--are spots that the Redskins needed to at least try and add value to in this draft. In order to get an athletic enough player to fill the 'Joker' tight end role in the upcoming season, you have to really get him during the first two days. Teams won't let a guy like Jordan Reed slip too far because NFL offenses are relying so heavily on guys like him. We'll see about Brandon Jenkins, the linebacker out of Florida State, but the fact that he didn't cause us to miss out on Bacarri Rambo is already a feather in his cap. I fear UK and Shoup may have had heart attacks if Rambo was drafted between picks 163 and 190 on Saturday.

3. I am not even going to try and project how running backs Chris Thompson and Jawan Jamison will fare on the 2013 Redskins. There's probably as good a chance that one leads the league in rushing as there is that both make the opening day roster. I know that Evan Royster and Roy Helu are both working a little harder today in preparation for training camp. I thought that last week's press conference from Shanahan offered a tiny glimpse into the possibility of Helu turning into the playmaker in the backfield that Kyle could partner with Alfred Morris and Robert Griffin III. His recovery is coming along nicely--finally--and if he is healthy this summer, I would give him the edge to start the season as the complement to Alf.

4. Friday night's taping of The Fred Smoot Show went great. In addition to Fred, Shawn and myself, we were joined by Josh Morgan and Jordan Bernstine to talk about the draft and a hist of other Redskins topics. I want to thank Harrison Weinhold and his production team for doing an awesome job getting everything arranged and for lining up an AMAZING go-go brass band, Brass Connection. I also want to thank Fred and Shawn for making the conversation easy, and for sharing their stories and experiences. (SPOILER ALERT--Springs brought up the Love Boat, NOT ME!)

5. I won't give away the whole show, but other teasers include: Josh Morgan talking about his on-field incident with Cortland Finnegan last year, Fred and Shawn giving each other business whenever possible, and the First Annual Fred Smoot Show Rapper Draft. When you see my roster, you will likely join me in shock that I did not win for best draft class.

6. I would like to give my award this season for best draft pundit to Mike Mayock. Throughout the weekend, I flipped back and forth between ESPN and NFL Network, listening to them predict selections and critique the decisions made by each team. Time and time again, I was pretty amazed at Mayock's ability to take all the crap he had to listen to over the last few months, and fairly accurately predict the direction the team on the clock would go in with the next pick. He got tripped up pretty good by Philly's selection of Matt Barkley, but overall, I found his analysis to be more interesting and engaging. Sorry Keely--I still love Mel Kiper!