Washington is scheduled to pick Friday in the second and third rounds (51st and 85th overall). The club's greatest needs are in the defensive secondary. We take a look at some players who could fill those needs Friday, according to top draft analysts.
Washington tried twice in free agency to sign a top cornerback but could not complete a deal with Aqib Talib, who re-signed with New England, or Antoine Winfield, who chose Seattle after visiting Redskins Park. On Friday, though, the Redskins can handpick their man.
Coach Mike Shanahan is hoping for improvement despite the club's inability to sign an elite free agent cornerback or draft a safety in the first round. That requires an improved pass rush and some young players to raise their level of play.
Redskins general manager Bruce Allen last week defiantly called the $36 million penalty a "travesty of fairness." Goodell on Monday said he had no reaction to Allen's characterization of the penalty.
Now that the sanction has handcuffed the Redskins through the first week of free agency this year, there figure to be some cold stares, awkward exchanges and general tension this week at the NFL annual meetings here at the posh Arizona Biltmore resort.
By the time the NFL season starts in September, DeAngelo Hall is likely to be a distant memory. It isn't like the Redskins released a future member of the Ring of Honor when they parted ways with Hall in a salary-cap move.
General manager Bruce Allen, in his first detailed comments about the penalty, called it a "travesty of fairness." Coach Mike Shanahan, meanwhile, expressed frustration but vowed to make the best of the team's financial limitations.
When Ray Lewis announced Wednesday that this will be his last NFL season, a discussion ensued in the Washington Redskins' locker room. The subject of the Baltimore Ravens legend's retirement led to talk about Redskins linebacker London Fletcher.
It's a recipe for what DeAngelo Hall called "pandemonium." It's Dallas Cowboys at the Washington Redskins at FedEx Field with the NFC East title on the line, in prime time and on national television.
