Washington Redskins: 2 Draft Picks That Could Have Changed Their Fortunes

I have been doing significant research for the upcoming draft and looking at past drafts of the Washington Redskins. It is easy to look back at the players teams choose and the ones they don't, and have hindsight bias.

From the recent past drafts involving the Redskins you can look at 2005 when they drafted Carlos Rogers. At the time it appeared to be a position of need and the correct pick for many. Rogers has performed fairly well while with the Skins and could become great if he learns how to catch the football.

If you look directly after that pick the Dallas Cowboys selected DeMarcus Ware and the San Diego Chargers selected Maryland product Shawne Merriman. Looking back, those guys would sure look great in the Redskins 3-4 defense today, especially Ware. That being said you cannot go back and change those picks.

There are two picks that I found that are legitimate debates that could have changed the fortunes of the Redskins. These are picks that were made shortly before the Redskins were about to choose. The reason these picks are so intriguing is that the Redskins picked a player at the same position less than four picks later.

If only the Skins could have gotten lucky and had someone fall a few more picks. Just imagine the possibilities if the Redskins could have drafted either of these players and how the history of two other franchises would also have been dramatically changed.

The most recent of these bad luck scenarios was in the 2005 draft. The Redskins traded multiple draft picks to Denver and Mike Shanahan to get the 25th pick in the first round. With that pick the Skins selected Quarterback Jason Campbell out of Auburn. Campbell was here until the 2010 season and the arrival of new Redskins Head Coach Mike Shanahan.

Could that be just a coincidence? He didn't think enough of Campbell to draft him in 2005 before he drafted Jay Cutler in the 2006 draft and he shipped him to Oakland before he threw a pass for him in Washington. Campbell never produced results in Washington and the drafting of him proved to be a huge mistake.

If the Skins had traded up to obtain the 23rd pick they would have been ahead of the Green Bay Packers and could have drafted Aaron Rodgers out of California. All Rodgers has done is become the best young quarterback in the league, the future league leader at the position, and won a Super Bowl title and a Super Bowl MVP award.Redskins fans can only imagine what life with Rodgers behind center since 2005 would have been like and how bright the future would be. The Redskins liked Campbell enough to make that trade. I only hope they would have had the sense to pick Rodgers had the Packers not gambled on getting their replacement for Brett Favre at that time.

The other scenario is less known and even more sickening to think about for Redskins fans. Let us all contact our inner Sophia Petrillo from the Golden Girls. Picture it, New York City, April 2000. The Washington Redskins are about to use their sixth round pick to draft a quarterback.

This pick is probably not to get a guy to play right away because the Skins had Brad Johnson and Jeff George on the roster. They were probably hoping to take a chance of finding that rare diamond in the rough in the late rounds. They were hoping to get someone that could learn behind the vets for a few years and then take over if they found a gem. They used that pick on Todd Husak from Stanford. He never amounted to anything and threw only two passes in his NFL career.

By the second week of the 2001 season, Johnson, George and Husak were all gone from the roster. We were left with Tony Banks, Kent Graham and Sage Rosenfels. What a disaster this situation was.If the Redskins had any lucky at all, they could have had their franchise quarterback and he could still be playing for them today. He could be a superstar in the league. He could be a multiple Super Bowl Champion and most certainly would have added to the Redskins total of Super Bowl rings.

The Redskins quarterback could have been a fixture at the Pro Bowl and a face on the Mount Rushmore of the current NFL. The Redskins could have regained the momentum they lost in the mid to late '90s and taken back their spot at the big boy table with the Steelers, Colts and Packers. Dan Snyder would be viewed as one of the best owners in the league with his willingness to spend money to get the Skins what they need. Coaching changes would have been limited to retirements not firings. 

The 2000 NFL Draft would have brought about the Dawn of a new era of greatness for the Washington Redskins had one player fallen just three more picks to the Redskins at selection 202 overall. If he would have dropped and the Redskins picked him, Tom Brady would still be the Washington Redskins quarterback today. Happy days would be here again if only Tom Terrific had fallen three more spots. Redskins fans can only dream. Let's hope we find our Tom Brady in the 2011 draft.