At this very moment, the Commanders own six picks in the 2022 NFL Draft: No. 11, No. 47, No. 113, No. 189, No. 230 and No. 240. That means the club is slated to select once in the first round, once in the second, once in the fourth, once in the sixth and twice in the seventh.
Of course, Washington's third-rounder is located in Indianapolis after the organization shipped that piece of capital to the Colts as part of the Carson Wentz trade. But where is the franchise's fifth-round choice?
The answer, which fans very well may need a refresher on, isn't a pleasant one.
During the third day of the 2021 NFL Draft, Ron Rivera's team completed a trade with the Eagles. In that deal, Philadelphia sent their rival picks No. 225 (a late sixth) and No. 240 (a mid-seventh) in exchange for the 2022 fifth-rounder that the Commanders are now missing.
With the first half of the assets acquired in that swap, Rivera and the front office proceeded to nab... long snapper Camaron Cheeseman. 15 spots later, meanwhile, Washington added pass rusher William Bradley-King.
So, the Commanders will be forced to sit out the fifth round this time around unless they complete another deal because they jumped the line to land Cheeseman.
Now, this is in no way meant to insult Cheeseman (whose birthday, conveniently, is the same day that this is being posted), a specialist who rebounded from a rocky start to his rookie campaign and could be entrenched at his position for years to come.
That said, the fact that Washington is down a pick in the fifth round (in a draft that the general manager believes could yield starters well into Day 3) because it felt the need to pursue Cheeseman with such vigor is not ideal.
Yes, once Rivera dismissed Nick Sundberg, there was a hole at long snapper that had to be filled.
No, a fifth-rounder isn't a mega-premium resource, as more often than not that area of the order is where backups and fringe pros are found.
It's also necessary to remember that Bradley-King is a part of this equation, meaning this isn't just about Cheeseman.
And again, Cheeseman might turn out to be Sundberg-like with his longevity (and he also seems like a swell guy off the field).
But still, spending any selection on a long snapper is questionable — Sundberg, it's worth pointing out, entered the NFL as a college free agent — and sacrificing future goods for one is worse than that.
Unfortunately, it's a decision that can't be reversed. At least you've been reminded of it, though, and surely are in a better mood because of the reminder.