{"id":868274,"date":"2026-04-17T09:51:36","date_gmt":"2026-04-17T09:51:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/868274\/"},"modified":"2026-04-17T09:51:36","modified_gmt":"2026-04-17T09:51:36","slug":"to-trade-down-in-the-first-round-or-not-that-is-the-question-facing-adam-peters","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/868274\/","title":{"rendered":"To trade down in the first round or not, that is the question facing Adam Peters"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>Commanders GM Adam Peters (right) and AGM Lance Newmark spoke with the local media ahead of next week\u2019s NFL Draft. <\/p>\n

ASHBURN, Va. \u2014 Washington Commanders general manager Adam Peters met with the local media Thursday, along with assistant GM Lance Newmark. This annual pre-draft gathering is typically light on specifics, but heavy on eyebrow-raising clues.<\/p>\n

Peters fielded questions about the roster, draft strategy, and the potential for a trade down. As expected, his responses revealed little. Still, Washington\u2019s needs are clear enough to add context to the front office leader\u2019s intentionally vague answers.<\/p>\n

Among realistic options at No. 7: Notre Dame running back Jeremiyah Love, LSU cornerback Mansoor Delane and the Ohio State trio of linebacker Sonny Styles, safety Caleb Downs, and wide receiver Carnell Tate. In certain ways, they fit the profile of players who could debut in Washington\u2019s modernized throwback uniforms.<\/p>\n

From my seat, Washington\u2019s top need isn\u2019t wide receiver, cornerback, or the offensive line \u2014 it\u2019s more picks.<\/p>\n

Washington enters the seven-round draft with six selections, but only two inside the top 100. After Nos. 7 and 71, the Commanders are not scheduled to pick again until 147.<\/p>\n

Peters can do damage with those first two picks, whether that\u2019s giving quarterback Jayden Daniels needed playmakers, adding depth along the lines, or selecting a difference-maker for the defensive back seven.<\/p>\n

With only those two early selections, there is no margin for error.<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s my read on what Peters said \u2014 and what it could mean when the first round begins April 23.<\/p>\n

AP: \u201cIt\u2019s hard to really understand or figure out where everything\u2019s going to go, where everybody\u2019s going to go. Man, you hear something new every day, right? Really, everybody, nobody is telling the truth. But what we do is we trust our board, trust our evaluations, and be ready to pick or do whatever we need to do with that pick. And so, I do know this, like, if we\u2019re sitting there at seven and we do pick, I know we\u2019ll get a good player .\u201d<\/p>\n

Takeaway: Lying season is in full swing.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s not about Peters or Washington \u2014 it\u2019s the entire league. The subterfuge is real.<\/p>\n

This is a peculiar draft to project because the top options lack the usual blue-chip clarity. The uncertainty begins immediately after the Raiders\u2019 anticipated selection of quarterback Fernando Mendoza first overall. The Jets may choose between pass rushers David Bailey and Arvell Reese, a decision that could create a domino effect for the Cardinals at three, the Titans at four, and the Giants at five.<\/p>\n

Tennessee, New York, and Washington are popular mock draft landing spots for Love and Styles. There\u2019s a world where both are gone before seven, or one is waiting. That\u2019s not including possible trades ahead of Washington\u2019s pick.<\/p>\n

\"TheThe Commanders chase elite athletes. It\u2019s the clearest clue to pick No. 7<\/a><\/p>\n

AP: \u201cYeah, certainly have to be ready to do that. I would say more likely than not that would happen. But you never know. It\u2019ll depend on who\u2019s on the board, if a team wants to move up, and then we have to decide if we want to do that. But I would say more likely than not, we\u2019d stay and pick. I don\u2019t foresee us moving up, but moving back just depends on the circumstances.\u201d<\/p>\n

The GM continued.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t want to say we\u2019re not actively trying to move back. We\u2019re always assessing our options and making sure we\u2019re ready, and then understanding who\u2019s going to be there at certain positions and certain spots towards the middle to the later part of the first round. But just being prepared for that, but not really actively trying to get out of that at all.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

T<\/a>akeaway: Every year, the pre-draft cycle produces countless rumored trade scenarios \u2014 most never materialize. The odds still favor teams in the top 10 staying put.<\/p>\n

However, Peters\u2019 tone on trading down felt more intentional than perfunctory. This wasn\u2019t just due diligence \u2014 it sounded like a real consideration.<\/p>\n

Beyond the return, the key question is how far down Washington is willing to move. This draft is light on first-round grades. Some league sources put the number at 10\u201312 players \u2014 roughly half of a typical class.<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve run countless mock drafts. Every time, the top tier ends around Miami at 11.<\/p>\n

There\u2019s a reason Dallas, holding picks 12 and 20, is reportedly looking to move into the top 10 \u2014 it\u2019s not just about targeting Bailey or Styles. They see the drop-off coming \u2014 and want to get ahead of it.<\/p>\n

\"TheThe trade-down blueprint: Mapping Commanders’ targets through the early rounds<\/a><\/p>\n

AP: \u201cI think sometimes you overthink that, especially when you\u2019re picking a seven, (if) you\u2019re trying to worry about the next pick. Just kind of get that right and then see what comes next. It is a long wait. It really sucks because all these good players go off the board and you\u2019re like, come on. It takes forever, but we want to get that pick right, so I don\u2019t want to overthink it and try to play like 3D chess because you never know what\u2019s going to happen.\u201d<\/p>\n

Takeaway: Based on positional depth, wide receiver and safety are two spots where patience could pay off, given the expected options when Washington picks again early in the third round.<\/p>\n

\"NFLNFL mock draft 8.0: The board breaks two ways for Commanders, Cowboys, Chiefs<\/a><\/p>\n

AP: \u201cI think it makes you kind of do a little more work on the front end. So, talking to other GM\u2019s on the front end, if there is a deal, which you might not ever make, but at least getting the parameters so you\u2019re not hemming and hawing in those eight minutes trying to work out a deal. You kind of have the parameters ahead of time if that is something you would do, and then very well may say, no, we\u2019re not going to do it at that time. But at least you know, so you\u2019re not starting from scratch.\u201d<\/p>\n

Takeaway: Every team explores options. His point about increased pre-draft groundwork makes sense. More conversations early could mean more noise \u2014 and more rumors \u2014 leading up to draft night.<\/p>\n

AP: \u201cI\u2019m not really good at predicting those types of things, but I don\u2019t think there\u2019s going to be a ton right around where we pick. I would probably think there\u2019d be more towards the end of the first round, middle to the end. But it just kind of depends on how the board falls, but people start getting antsy and they want to do some things and so you just have to be ready for everything.\u201d<\/p>\n

Takeaway: See above: most trade buzz fizzles. Unless Peters is playing the long game with us. I kid\u2026 mostly.<\/p>\n

Give a gift subscription<\/a><\/p>\n

AP: \u201cI mean, you always try to pick the best athletes. I think that\u2019s a big part of it for sure. I think everybody\u2019s trying to do that. You don\u2019t want to get a bunch of guys like me running around there. But really that\u2019s part of it. But part of it\u2019s the fit, part of it\u2019s the fit in the building, the fit with the scheme, just how we talk about being Commanders and a lot of those guys. Obviously, the better players hopefully are better athletes, and they have some more upside, I think too.\u201d<\/p>\n

Last but not least \u2014 my question for Peters.<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve previously outlined Washington\u2019s draft trend: all 14 players selected under this regime have landed in the top athletic tier based on the \u201cRelative Athletic Score\u201d metric. Individually and collectively, those classes graded among the league\u2019s best.<\/p>\n

This matters at No. 7. For the trend to continue, Washington would have to choose from Bailey, Reese, Love, Styles, or Delane. I\u2019m excluding offensive linemen here, given the Commanders\u2019 current tackle situation.<\/p>\n

Some players did not receive a RAS due to limited or no Combine participation. Based on available data and game tape, Downs, Tate, and Miami DE Rueben Bain \u2014 despite their talent \u2014 likely fall outside that top athletic threshold.<\/p>\n

At some point, Washington will select a player outside that elite athletic tier.<\/p>\n

Maybe that moment comes at No. 7.<\/p>\n

We\u2019ll soon find out.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Commanders GM Adam Peters (right) and AGM Lance Newmark spoke with the local media ahead of next week\u2019s…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":868275,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2069],"tags":[427,7,6,855,111,2480],"class_list":{"0":"post-868274","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-washington-commanders","8":"tag-commanders","9":"tag-football","10":"tag-nfl","11":"tag-washington","12":"tag-washington-commanders","13":"tag-washingtoncommanders"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nfl\/116419434982839967","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/868274","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=868274"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/868274\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/868275"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=868274"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=868274"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=868274"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}