Overall
Brandon Washington is a very special talent at guard. He is big, athletic, and very strong. Had he played inside at his natural position of left guard, we could have seen Washington go in the first round of this year’s draft. While Washington struggled at left tackle at times this season, it may have been better for him in the long run. Washington improved immensely over the course of the season in his pass blocking and his ability to pull and block to the outside. Talent-wise, Washington is a day one starter for an NFL team, however, which ever team drafts him is going to have to work with him on his conditioning and cutting down his mental errors. Washington failed to pick up blitzes at times this season, leaving his quarterback out to dry. While Washington is a great run blocker, he does show a tendency to get lazy and stand up. This seems to be more of an issue with conditioning than anything else. If an NFL team can help Washington improve on those two things, they could have themselves a very special player, and maybe a future pro-bowler. Washington will need to make the transition from Tackle to Guard, but that shouldn't be an issue really. Look for Washington to go sometime in the second round this April.
