By taking down the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 18, the Washington Commanders have officially secured the seventh overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft.
Now granted, would the Commanders be better off in the draft order had they lost to the Birds in a game with nothing but pride on the line? Technically speaking, yes, they would have been picking sixth instead of seventh, and would have one more player on the board come April in Pittsburgh. And yet, at No. 7, the Browns should still have plenty of quality players to pick from, especially if quarterbacks start coming off the board early.
But who should the Commanders target specifically? Well, in his exit interview at the end of the regular season, Washington GM Adam Peters commented on just that, telling Commanders fans to keep an eye on pass rushers during the pre-draft process.
“A lot of spots we can look at… certainly another pass rusher,” Peters said via ESPN's John Keim. “That's something we're looking for, whether that's the draft or free agency, we have a lot of good options in both areas.”
While the 2026 NFL Draft doesn't have a Chase Young-level talent at the top for general managers to fight over, there are multiple interesting edge rushers who could still be on the board when the Commanders are picking, including Reuben Bain Jr. out of Miami and David Bailey from Texas Tech. Factor in defensive tackle Peter Woods from Clemson and Ohio State's Arvell Reese, who may fall because he's a stand-up inside linebacker, and Washington should be very well positioned to add some top-tier talent to their roster heading into 2026, when Jayden Daniels will hopefully be fully healthy once more.
