Washington took a defensive tackle in the second round of the 2024 NFL Draft despite having a Pro Bowl pair from the Crimson Tide at the position.
Washington Commanders defensive tackles Daron Payne and Jonathan Allen celebrate after a sack during an NFL game against the Houston Texans on Nov. 20, 2022, at NRG Stadium in Houston.Before each NFL Draft, team general managers talk about following their board and picking the best player available. But sometimes positional need overrides those bromides.
But with the 36th selection in the NFL Draft, Adam Peters used his second pick as general manager of the Washington Commanders on Illinois defensive tackle Jer’Zhan “Johnny” Newton -- far from a positional need.available at defensive tackle. Both are former Pro Bowlers with lucrative contracts. Allen has two years remaining on a four-year, $72 million contract. Payne has three years remaining on a four-year, $90 million contract.
“I know , and that’s what I said to DQ, like, ‘Can we do this?’ And he said, ‘We’ll find a way to get them all on the field.’ I talked to Joe Whitt, and he was all about it because, really, Johnny was significantly – not significantly but certainly clearly higher than anybody else we had on the board there, so everybody was on board.
It wasn’t hard to find mock drafts that had Newton as a first-rounder. In 2023, he earned consensus All-American recognition and won the Big Ten’s Nagurski-Woodson Defensive Player of the Year and Smith-Brown Defensive Lineman of the Year awards. A fractured foot will slow Newton’s transition to the NFL and has limited Newton to learning from his coaches and veteran teammates off the field.“Like I said, I’ve been watching them since they’re in college, so I don’t want to say they’re old heads, but they’re like OGs in the league by now. Of course, my teammate from a few years back Quan Martin is on the team, so I’ve been watching games. I watch everybody on their defense, especially the defensive line.
Daron Payne NFL 2023 @Contributor
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