2023 Road to the Draft – Part 12
April 4, 2023
By Noonefromtampa
Two bids for the sale are allegedly in. Everyone is waiting for the Jeff Bezos shoe to drop. If it doesn’t, the sale may be announced before the draft. It would be good PR timing to introduce the new prospective owner to the sporting world.
Let’s Talk About the Commanders Draft
The Commanders will have some flexibility in the draft, which was the strategy they pursued in free agency. The idea is that are not forced into drafting any specific position, which will allow them to draft a top player at any position. Team needs include cornerback, offensive line, linebacker, and running back. Depending on which players fall in the draft, tight end may also be a possibility early in the draft, which would make Logan Thomas expendable, thereby saving the team $5 million in salary cap. On the front side of the draft, I expect the Commanders to draft some combination of cornerback, offensive line, and linebacker. On the back side of the draft, I expect the Commanders to take a quarterback and a running back.
Mock Draft Data
The number of mock drafts is up 17 this week to 252. The Commanders will have the 16th overall pick in the first round. The position picked by descending frequency is:
| Position | Picked Count | Picked % | Last Week % | % Change |
| CB | 139 | 55.16% | 55.74% | -0.59% |
| OT | 33 | 13.10% | 13.62% | -0.52% |
| QB | 24 | 9.52% | 10.21% | -0.69% |
| IOL | 17 | 6.75% | 7.66% | -0.91% |
| TE | 15 | 5.95% | 5.11% | 0.85% |
| LB | 10 | 3.97% | 3.83% | 0.14% |
| DL | 6 | 2.38% | 2.55% | -0.17% |
| RB | 5 | 1.98% | 0.85% | 1.13% |
| WR | 2 | 0.79% | 0.43% | 0.37% |
| Edge | 1 | 0.40% | 0.00% | 0.40% |
| S | 0 | 0.00% | 0.00% | 0.00% |
| Grand Total | 252 | 100% |
The big gainer this week was a head scratcher: running back was up 1.13% while tight end was up 0.85%. The biggest drop was in interior offensive line, which was down 0.91%.
The players mock picked to the Commanders at the 16th pick are in descending frequency:
| Player | Position | School | Picked Count | Picked % |
| Devon Witherspoon | CB | Illinois | 43 | 17.06% |
| Joey Porter Jr | CB | Penn State | 38 | 15.08% |
| Christian Gonzalez | CB | Oregon | 20 | 7.94% |
| O’Cyrus Torrence | IOL | Florida | 15 | 5.95% |
| Broderick Jones | OT | Georgia | 12 | 4.76% |
| Anthony Richardson | QB | Florida | 11 | 4.37% |
| Deonte Banks | CB | Maryland | 11 | 4.37% |
| Kelee Ringo | CB | Georgia | 10 | 3.97% |
| Will Levis | QB | Kentucky | 10 | 3.97% |
| Michael Mayer | TE | Notre Dame | 9 | 3.57% |
| Darnell Wright | OT | Tennessee | 9 | 3.57% |
| Brian Branch | CB | Alabama | 8 | 3.17% |
| Cam Smith | CB | South Carolina | 7 | 2.78% |
| Dalton Kincaid | TE | Utah | 5 | 1.98% |
| Bijan Robinson | RB | Texas | 5 | 1.98% |
| Drew Sanders | LB | Arkansas | 5 | 1.98% |
| Peter Skoronski | OT | Northwestern | 4 | 1.59% |
| Bryan Bresee | DL | Clemson | 4 | 1.59% |
| Hendon Hooker | QB | Tennessee | 3 | 1.19% |
| Dawand Jones | OT | Ohio State | 3 | 1.19% |
| Anton Harrison | OT | Oklahoma | 3 | 1.19% |
| Trenton Simpson | LB | Clemson | 3 | 1.19% |
| Paris Johnson Jr | OT | Ohio State | 2 | 0.79% |
| Nolan Smith | LB | Georgia | 2 | 0.79% |
| John Michael Schmitz | IOL | Minnesota | 2 | 0.79% |
| Emmanuel Forbes | CB | Mississippi State | 2 | 0.79% |
| Mike Morris | DL | Michigan | 1 | 0.40% |
| Isaiah Foskey | Edge | Notre Dame | 1 | 0.40% |
| Quintin Johnston | WR | TCU | 1 | 0.40% |
| Darnell Washington | TE | Georgia | 1 | 0.40% |
| Jalin Hyatt | WR | Tennessee | 1 | 0.40% |
| Calijah Kancry | DL | Pittsburgh | 1 | 0.40% |
| Grand Total | 252 | 100.00% |
Devon Witherspoon maintained his lead over Joey Porter Jr. this week. Anthony Richardson passed back over Will Levis this week to become the top quarterback choice being mocked to Washington.
Mock Freshness
| Age | Age % |
| New | 20.24% |
| 1 Week Old | 20.24% |
| 2 Weeks Old | 10.71% |
| 3 Weeks Old | 15.87% |
| 4 Weeks Old | 5.56% |
| 5 Weeks Old | 4.76% |
| 6 Weeks Old | 7.94% |
| 7 Weeks Old | 2.78% |
| 8 Weeks Old | 1.98% |
| 9 Weeks Old | 2.78% |
| 10 Weeks Old | 0.79% |
| 11 Weeks Old | 1.59% |
| 12 Weeks Old | 1.98% |
| 13+Weeks Old | 2.78% |
Trades
Four new trades this week with three being trade downs. Two selections for O’Cyrus Torrence and one for Deonte Banks. The crazier scenario is a double trade up to the number 3 pick for Anthony Richardson. This entails six picks over two years for one player, which is shades of 2012 and Robert Griffin III.
| Notes | Trade Direction | Trade Position | Trade Team | Player |
| No details | Down | 18 | TB | O’Cyrus Torrence |
| No details | Down | 24 | JAX | O’Cyrus Torrence |
| Double Trade LVR receive WSH 1st, 2nd, and 5th round picks and 2024 3rd round pick for LVR 1st round pick; AZ receives WSH 1st round pick via LVR and 2024 1st and 2nd round picks |
Up | 3 | AZ | Anthony Richardson |
| No details | Down | 21 | LAC | Deonte Banks |
Sources: nflmockdraftdatabase.com, grindingthemocks.com, nfldraftbuzz.com, overthcap.com, spotrac.com, pro-football-reference.com
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