Aug. 17--Michigan State wide receiver Devin Thomas expected to be a first-round selection in the 2008 NFL draft. So did Oklahoma wide receiver Malcolm Kelly, as did Southern Cal tight end Fred Davis.
All were stunned to slide into the second round -- and all were as surprised to wind up on the same team. Washington built its receiving corps of the future in one round of one draft last April when the Redskins selected Thomas with the 34th overall pick, Davis the 48th pick and Kelly at 51.
"It was just one of those years where everything fell right for us," Redskins director of personnel Vinny Cerrato said.
Wide receiver was atop Washington's wish list heading into the draft, and the Redskins figured to get the best one on the board with the 21st overall pick in Thomas.
But when Atlanta called offering two second-rounders and a fourth for the right to move up, the Redskins relinquished the 21st pick.
"When we traded back, we knew we were giving up Devin Thomas," Cerrato said.
But the wide receivers were sliding as a group and, despite a perceived lack of speed, the Redskins did like Kelly. More importantly, quarterback Jason Campbell liked Kelly. The Redskins brought Campbell to a private workout on the Oklahoma campus to throw to Kelly.
"He covers a lot of ground," Campbell told Cerrato on the flight back home. "He doesn't seem like he's slow."
But when the Redskins went on the clock with the 34th overall pick, lo and behold, Thomas was still there.
"We were shocked," Cerrato said.
There was no longer a need to consider Kelly. Thomas was faster (4.43 clocking in the 40) and more productive (30 more catches for 400 more yards) than Kelly in 2007 plus he's an elite return specialist.
When the Redskins went on the clock again at 48, the No. 1 tight end on their draft board was still available. New head coach and offensive guru Jim Zorn wanted to stockpile offensive weapons, so the Redskins selected Davis, the Mackey Award winner as the best tight end in college football.
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