Looking Back at the Commanders’ 2020 Draft Class
The year is 2020. The Redskins, after waves of backlash, have finally started the process of changing their team name by becoming the bland and generic Washington Football Team. Coming off a horrid 3-13 season, the Football Team fired their head coach Jay Gruden and hired Ron Rivera, a hiring that was praised at the time, but has become a joke within the Washington community years later.
The 2019 season was the famous “Tank for Tua” season, where teams hoped they lost enough to land Alabama QB Tua Tagovailoa first overall. This was also the same season Joe Burrow decided to become a demon, dominating college football and becoming the runaway favorite to go first overall. The Commanders sadly had the 2nd overall pick and missed out on a chance at drafting Burrow in what could’ve been a franchising altering pick. Instead the Commanders drafted Ohio State’s Chase Young, who hasn’t completely panned out in the NFL.
In this post, we’ll look back at Ron Rivera’s first draft as the Commander’s coach and give a grade to these players five years later. These grades don’t mean I hate the player, I’m just giving my honest assessment on the player.
Round 1, Pick 2 - Chase Young: C-
Chase Young was the 2nd overall pick in the 2020 draft and he was crowned as the best overall player in the draft. I was excited about this pick at the time, but if we were to have a redraft, it’s hard to pass up on a prospect like Justin Herbert. Young was amazing in his rookie season, a season that saw the Commanders make a playoff appearance. He also won DROY and was selected to the Pro Bowl, all in his rookie season. He recorded 7.5 sacks in 15 games, which made his future look bright. It’s sad to say that this was his best season as a pro.
Young had a poor 2021 before tearing his ACL in Week 10. He came back at the back end of 2022, but had very little impact. The Commanders declined his 5th year option, which is never a good sign for a former 2nd overall pick. He was then traded in heartbreaking fashion to the contending San Francisco 49ers. This trade, along with the Montez Sweat trade, is one of the main reasons I voice my opinions online, sharing my disgruntled thoughts about what was a failing franchise.
Chase had a short stint with the 49ers before signing a contract with the Saints. He just signed a 3 year/$51 million dollar deal with New Orleans and looks to return to his rookie season form. I wish him the best, but I can’t give a grade higher than a C-.
Round 3, Pick 66 - Antonio Gibson: C
Antonio Gibson was selected in the 3rd Round and put up a solid rookie season as the Commanders RB1. He rushed for 795 yards and 11 TDs along with 247 receiving yards. The first game that comes to mind when of I think of Gibson is his three touchdown performance against the Cowboys in a 41-16 win on Thanksgiving Day in his rookie season. For a 3rd round pick, he was paying dividends and his second season was even better.
In his sophomore season, Gibson rushed for 1,037 yards and 7 TDs with 294 receiving yards. He was turning into a solid dynamic RB, but Washington needed depth at RB and drafted Alabama’s Brian Robinson following this season. Robinson took a lot of snaps away from Gibson, leading to an underwhelming season that saw limited playing time. In his final season in Washington, he completely lost the starting role to Robinson and was limited to under 300 rushing yards, easily his worst season to date.
Following the 2023 season, Gibson signed a deal with the New England Patriots and rushed for just over 500 yards in his debut season. Only 26 years of age, Gibson is entering his prime and I hope he can return back to his sophomore form. Gibson was solid for the Commanders, but his short tenure and lack of production at the tail end of his time in Washington garners him a C grade.
Round 4, Pick 108 - Saahdiq Charles: F
Saahdiq Charles went to LSU and had just won the National Championship with their stacked roster before getting drafted in the 4th Round by the Washington Commanders. While this may be harsh, Charles gets an F grade for his lack of production with the Commanders in his short stint. Charles didn’t get consistent playing time until Year 4 in 2023, where he started 10 out of his 11 games that season. Charles would hit free agency in 2024, where he signed with the Tennessee Titans before immediately retiring. He has since come out of retirement and just signed a 1-year deal with the Dallas Cowboys, but based on his career through five years, it’s been underwhelming and I find it difficult to give a grade higher than F.
Round 4, Pick 142 - Antonio Gandy-Golden: F
Antonio Gandy-Golden was selected by Washington with their second 4th Round pick in the 2020 Draft and he gets the easiest F grade out of any player on this list. If I were to tell you he recorded only one catch for three yards in his entire career, you’d probably think I made that stat up. He was waived and brought back multiple times as a practice squad player before hanging the cleats up. He retired in 2022 and I wish he produced more in his time in DC.
Round 5, Pick 156 - Keith Ismael: D-
Keith Ismael was selected by Washington in the 5th Round and, similar to Gandy-Golden, he’s amassed to very little so far. He gets a D- only for having started five games and appearing in 10 games in his second season. There isn’t much to talk about with Ismael other than that as he’s bounced around the league to a few teams and his career is currently at a standstill as we speak due to his lack of a team. Hopefully, he figures it out as there’s always space for offensive lineman in the league.
Round 5, Pick 162 - Khaleke Hudson: D+
Khaleke Hudson was Washington’s second 5th Round pick and he gets a D+ grade. He played four seasons in Washington and was primarily used on Special Teams. In his third season, he saw some minutes on defense at the end of the season and the same thing can be said about he end to his 4th season. I can’t justify giving him a grade higher than D+, but he was much more valuable than a player like Ismael or Gandy-Golden. That being said, Ron Rivera’s run of poor drafting has led to our fourth straight player with a grade lower than a C-. That will change with this next pick, however.
Round 7, Pick 216 - Kamren Curl: A
In my opinion, Kam Curl was the best player from this class and it’s a shame we couldn’t extend him. He was given the backup safety position before claiming the position for himself by Year 2. He always did his job and was consistently viewed as underappreciated throughout the league and the team. At the end of his rookie deal, Commanders fans, including myself, wanted the Front Office to extend him as he was one of the few bright spots on the team. They decided to go a different route and he sadly signed with the Los Angeles Rams. I give this pick an A because of his production and the crazy value we got out a 7th Round Pick.
Round 7, Pick 229 - James Smith-Williams: C-
This grade might be confusing due to the limited production, but James Smith-Williams filled a hole at edge rusher when players like Montez Sweat and Chase Young were injured. He started a career high 14 games in 2022 due to Chase Young’s ACL tear and he racked up a career high 3 sacks across those 14 games. While those stats don’t pop off the screen, he played crucial minutes and I value that. He’s now playing for the Atlanta Falcons where he had an underwhelming 2024, but it seems he’s found his role in the league as a decent role player.
Final Thoughts
Ron Rivera’s first draft class hasn’t performed like we expected them to. When your best player from a class was selected in the 7th Round, that says a lot about your scouting and drafting strategy. 5 years later, a few of these players are struggling to find regular playing time, one is completely out of the league and the best player in this class now plays in LA. Rivera, as we all know, has been fired and his classes don’t improve much more over the next few years. I just hope the players drafted from 2021-2023 pan out a bit better than this bunch before I have to grade them.
This is Yonatan Daniel from DC Triple Play — until next time.