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Most believe that Washington will either trade out of the second overall pick, or use it to select Chase Young. But, what if they take Tua instead?

As soon as they locked up the number two overall pick in the 2020 NFL draft, pundits everywhere began mocking Chase Young to Washington. It makes sense, too. He’s not only the best defensive player in the draft, he’s also the best player in the class and could be the best edge rushing prospect in five years or better.

Couple that with the fact that Washington has invested significant capital in the quarterback position (a second round pick in 2019 in Alex Smith, a first round pick just last year in Dwayne Haskins, and a fifth round pick this year for Kyle Allen) and has a new defensive-minded head coach in Ron Rivera – and the writing is on the wall for what happens at No. 2 overall, right?

But what if we’re all wrong? What if Rivera understands and knows that Kyle Allen is a serviceable backup who knows what he wants to accomplish on offense, but also recognizes that the 17-to-16 touchdown to interception ratio and 6-7 career record owned by Allen are not flukey numbers, and are not good enough to get the job down in the nations capitol? What if the team decides to swing big for quarterback Tua Tagovailoa?

Well, the reality is that it would set off a massive chain reaction in the 2020 draft. The list of implications includes:

Alex Smith still has a place as a mentor in Washington

Once cleared to play, veteran Alex Smith would be on the trading block (and may be already). He could be a great quarterback option for places hoping to groom a young rookie like the New England Patriots, LA Chargers, Las Vegas Raiders or Miami Dolphins. Just look at what Smith did for Patrick Mahomes’ career. If Smith is healthy, he’s a great bridge quarterback for teams to consider, and drafting Tua ensures he’s on the move.

An uncertain future for Dwayne Haskins 

Dwayne Haskins would make it two years in a row when a 1st round quarterback is traded just one year later for a newer, flashier rookie. The Arizona Cardinals and their first year head coach Kliff Kingsbury set the precedent last year of a head coach taking their pick at quarterback with the number one overall selection of Kyler Murray and subsequent trade of 2018 first rounder Josh Rosen to Miami. Washington selected Tua makes it almost certain the same fate awaits Haskins, likely to a team that is too late in the first round to nab one of the four first round quarterbacks this year. Think teams like New England, Las Vegas, Miami or Minnesota here.

Detroit Lions all of a sudden have extreme trade value at No. 3 overall

Detroit opens bidding for the rights to select Chase Young. The Lions are assured of being in a great spot with No. 3 overall, but a terrific place would be for the draft’s best player to still be on the board when the clock starts. Potential trade partners for the Lions with Young on the board Jacksonville, Arizona, and Carolina.

Obviously there are a lot of other implications involved here, too.

If quarterbacks go 1, 2, does someone get trigger-happy and trade up to No. 3 to take Justin Herbert?

Maybe so, but it seems unlikely. It does not seem to be on the radar for Miami; the Chargers likely think they can stand pat at No. 6 and take him and the cost is simply too high for the Raiders or Patriots to make that leap for what they perceive as a massive drop-off for the third best pick in the draft.

What kind of return does Washington get for their quarterbacks on the trade block?

The bar was set here last year with Miami giving up a second round pick for Josh Rosen when the Cardinals took Murray number one. It seems likely that Washington could look for similar compensation.

The Alex Smith question is a little puzzling. Certainly COVID-19 putting the kibosh on all physicals for the moment complicates a trade for the former number one overall pick who is 18 months removed from his last game action. But, it feels like a Bill Belichick type move to give up something like a 5th round pick on the savvy veteran and turn him in to a Pro Bowler en route to another AFC East championship.

Time will tell what ultimately happens when Washington goes on the clock. The most likely scenario continues to be that they trade back with someone else who wants to draft Tua. But, if Rivera and Washington decide to take the gamble, the rest of the draft gets very, very interesting.

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The 2020 NFL Scouting Combine is officially in the books. Here are the biggest winners and losers at the tight end position from last week.

The 2020 NFL Scouting Combine has come and gone.

Although generally a bit overrated, the Underwear Olympics do provide valuable information to talent evaluators. It can help confirm what scouts are seeing on tape or force a re-evaluation.

After a long week of interviews, measurements, and position drills, we are no closer to determining who is the top tight end in this class, but we do know who is on the rise and who is falling.

Here are the three winners and losers from the Combine.

Winner – Albert Okwuegbunam, Missouri

Albert Okwuegbunam’s performance was terrific, running the second-fastest 40-yard dash in Combine for a guy standing at least 6-foot-5 and weighing 250 pounds or more. That’s going to put you on the map.

Talent has never been an issue with the Missouri tight end, btu injuries and a dip in performance have been the main concerns. With a 4.49 40-yard dash, however, this could be the boost he needed to jump in the back-end of the first round or, at the very least, the second.

Winner – Josiah Deguara, Cincinnati

Not a lot of people had Josiah Deguara on their radar heading into the Combine, but they do now. Considered a day-three prospect, Deguara had an outstanding Combine performance performing wonderfully in the position drills and posting the best bench press reps (25), the fourth-best vertical (35.5”) and the sixth-best 40-yard dash time (4.72).

Winner – Cole Kmet, Notre Dame

Heading into the Combine, Cole Kmet was considered one of the top prospects in the 2020 class, and his combine performance only helped his stock. At 6-foot-6 and 260 pounds, the Notre Dame product managed to run a 4.7 40-yard dash (which is faster than top-10 tight end pick T.J. Hockenson last year), and he posted the best vertical jump (37”) of his position group. Kmet also had a top-three broad jump.

The only issue with Kmet’s performance was his poor three-cone drill, which at 7.44 was the second-slowest of the group. Still, Kmet has never been considered the quickest prospect so it remains to be seen how much that actually impacts his draft stock.

Loser – Thaddeus Moss, LSU

Moss might be the biggest boom-or-bust prospect of this tight end class, and those questions didn’t get answered in Indy.

After coming in with small measurements, Moss did not participate in any of the on-field drills due to a stress fracture found during his physical. At this time, it’s looking unlikely that he will be able to participate at LSU’s Pro Day, which means teams will have just one year of film to look at.

Loser – Harrison Bryant, FAU

This year’s Mackey Award winner, Harrison Bryant, needed to have a good showing at the Combine to show he had the physical traits to go with the superb production. Unfortunately for the former Florida Atlantic Owl, that wasn’t the case. His vertical (32.5”) was the third-lowest of his position group, and he put up just 13 reps on the bench (easily the worst of his group).

Moreover, his broad jump was second-worst, and his 3-cone drill time was a slow 7.41 seconds, which was the third-worst among tight ends. That’s not ideal for a small-school guy trying to show he belongs.

Loser – Jared Pinkney, Vanderbilt

Pinkney may have had the worst Combine of all prospects and not only because he ran a slower 40-yard dash time than Iowa’s 320-pound offensive lineman Tristan Wirfs (Wirfs ran a 4.86 and Pinkney ran a 4.96).

Pinkney had the unfortunate pleasure of being shamed by the New England Patriots in his team interview as they told the 6-foot-4, 257-pound tight end that he had a “loser’s mentality.”

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