Devin Thomas and the 2008 Draft Class:

A Guest Blog By Fanspeak Contributing Writer Basheer Zada

I can remember the 2008 draft like it was yesterday. The Redskins and good old Vinny Cerrato drafted 3 pass catchers in the 2nd round while ignoring every other position. I remember how Devin Thomas and Malcolm Kelly were going to be the future star receivers of the Washington Redskins.

Lets revisit that same topic today. Betty White can be more durable on the football field than Malcolm Kelly. The Redskins knew that he had injury problems, but I guess Vinny thought that if we prayed hard enough, Kelly would remain healthy. So where does Kelly stand right now? He found a spot on Injured Reserve for the season.

Devin Thomas had his breakout game last season when he had 7 catches for 100 yards and 2 touchdowns against the Saints. Since then, he failed to impress the new coaching staff and made himself believe that he was a special teams guy and that was his spot on the team. Its sad that the 34th overall pick of the 2008 draft was surpassed on the depth chart by Joey “grandpa” Galloway, and fellow no names Anthony Armstrong and Roydell Williams. I still cant figure out how he plummeted so far down the depth chart. Where does Thomas stand right now? He was released after Washington couldn’t find a trade partner for him. What does that mean for the Redskins? Well, the roster just got a bit older, and the young talent at WR decreased drastically. And the worst part is that some team will pick up Devin Thomas (probably the Patriots, Vikings, or Seahawks) and he will become the type of player we expected him to be.

As for the other pass catcher, his role is yet to be determined in this offense. Tight end Fred Davis proved last year that he can be a huge weapon on the field when Chris Cooley went down. We heard during the off season how Kyle Shannahan planned to use both tight ends to create match up nightmares for opponents. Where does he stand now? Through 4 games, Davis has 3 catches for 73 yards; and if you take away the 62 yard pass and run, he has 2 catches for 11 yards. He needs to be more involved in this offense. Davis is too talented, especially on a team with absolutely no talent at any pass catching position with the exception of Moss and Cooley. But since this offense is brand new and still coming together, Ill give Davis the benefit of the doubt and hope for more production sooner than later.

Now lets look at the 2008 draft class and what has happened to them. Gone are Devin Thomas (2nd rounder), Chad Rinehart (3rd rounder), Justin Tryon (4th rounder), and Durant Brooks (5th rounder), Colt Brennan (6th rounder). Malcolm Kelly is on injured reserve so I wont really count him as part of the team. Who does that leave us with? Kareem Moore (6th round) , Chris Horton (Mister Irrelevant), and Fred Davis (2nd round) and Rob Jackson (7th round). Only true contributing members? Moore and Davis. Horton began his career with a very promising rookie season only to find himself on a downhill slope in the depth chart due to coverage struggles (see Houston game).

I originally intended this post to be about Devin Thomas, but i guess my frustration only grew and I ended up writing about this failure of a draft class. Go figure. 10 draft selections in the draft, and the Redskins decided to part ways with 5 out of the first 7 picks for absolutely no compensation with the exception of the conditional draft pick they received from the Colts for Tryon.

I think thats enough negativity for the day before the game. Let’s get the win tomorrow.

Hail