In keeping with the annual tradition, I’m giving out week-after draft grades, about three years before we can say anything intelligent about most of the players Adam Peters drafted last weekend. Snap draft grades are purely for entertainment purposes. But feel free to share strong opinions about our strong opinions. That’s part of the fun.
This year I am joined by the Bris Vegas Systems DraftBot, and my son Sam In Bris Vegas, the biggest Jayden Daniels fan in the Southern Hemisphere. Readers who are
new to the DraftBot can catch its backstory in the Last Minute Mock Draft I published on the morning of draft Day 1. There are some crucial plot elements in that one, in case you missed it.
Picking up where we left off on Tuesday, here are grades from the Bris Vegas crew on the Commanders’ final three selections in the 2026 draft. These players are all eligible for the 2026 Mason/Brennan Preseason Hype! Award, and two of the three are working their way into the lead pack already.
Round 6, Pick 187 – RB Kaytron Allen, Penn State
DraftBot
Allen was selected right where I had him on my board, so I feel he was good value at this pick. My personnel department had him rated over a round below consensus, so this pick is getting higher grades from other reviewers.
While the pick was good value, I had other players rated much higher, most notably Oregon WR Malik Benson, Duke OT/C Brian Parker II, and Florida Kicker Trey Smack. My personnel department is particularly high on Benson, and had him rated well above consensus. Parker was also a prioritized prospect, and had slid from his early 4th round consensus projection. And Smack was the top rated player at one of two positions I am hard-wired to draft, when the team is in need.
Allen is a potential upgrade over last year’s power back, Chris Rodriguez. His skillset complements what Bill Crosky-Merritt and Rachaad White bring to the position. Nevertheless, I feel that Benson and Parker had much greater potential impact. I would have been willing to gamble on Smack being available on my next pick.
Grade: B
MattInBrisVegas
I get what the DraftBot is saying. But we were a lot higher on Benson than NFL front offices were, and Parker has to learn a new position. So it’s unlikely he’ll be pushing for starting reps this year.
Allen, on the other hand is in a good position to be a heavy rotational contributor right out of the gate. He has a great skillset to gain chunk yards between the tackles (6.2 Y/A in 2025), and pairs with Bill Croskey-Merritt to give the Commanders a balanced Knuckles and Sonic rushing attack to set up play action.
Allen is a durable back, who is built for volume carries. And he is a secure ball carrier, with only 1 fumble in 210 rushing attempts in 2025 (0.48%), and a career fumble rate of just 0.65%.
We might have liked other players better. But I like what Allen brings to the Commanders’ rushing attack. Particularly in combination with the next pick.
Grade: A-
SamInBrisVegas
Allen looks like a bellcow back. He’s a great value in the sixth round. But I’d rather have Malik or J’Mari Taylor.
Grade: B+
Round 6, Pick 209 – C Matt Gulbin, Michigan State
DraftBot
He’s not a kicker. The team needs a kicker. Must draft a kicker in the 6th round!!!
Center Matt Gulbin is not on my draft board. 3.46 RAS, unathletic center…not a fit to a zone-heavy blocking scheme… PICK DOES NOT COMPUTE
Personnel team is malfunctioning. Sanitize and replace…
Grade: bzzzt pft szzztpf… F
MattInBrisVegas
OK folks, it looks like we broke the DraftBot. We might need to go into lockdown for a little bit.
[A few hours later] Sorry about that little mishap. I knew it was a bad idea to hardwire code into a self-aware biocybernetic processor. The DraftBot is in the shop for a few repairs. It should be back in action by training camp. And nobody was harmed too badly.
This pick raises questions that I can’t answer. Gulbin is a mauler, who wins with brute strength and an immovable anchor. But he is not an athletically gifted player. In fact, his 3.46 RAS is the lowest of any player picked by Adam Peters for the Commanders.
We were working under the impression that David Blough would be seeking offensive linemen to suit a zone-heavy blocking scheme, possibly mixed with gap concepts on inside runs. Gulbin did not seem to fit the spec, so we left him off the DraftBot’s board.
Gulbin is either a poor fit for Blough’s offense, which I doubt, or this pick signals a more extreme departure from last year’s running scheme than we expected. Gulbin suits a blocking scheme where the center is asked to be physical at the point of attack. If that’s the direction they want to go, it could explain why they parted ways with Tyler Biadasz. Pair Gulbin with Kaytron Allen and we could see a physical, between the tackles running game, which might bring back memories of the Redskins’ glory era.
If we can get past the scheme fit questions, then the Commanders just scored a very accomplished blocker near the end of the 6th round. In his first year playing the position, after switching from guard, he allowed just 5 pressures in 405 pass blocking snaps (1.23% Pressure Rate, 96th percentile in FBS). That included 0 pressure games against Boston College, Nebraska, UCLA, Michigan, and Penn State. Gulbin was also the highest rated run blocking center in the FBS in 2025, per PFF (81.9 Run Block Grade).
Did Adam Peters just draft a Hog? That’s what I’m going with. So I have to award this pick my highest possible grade.
Grade: A+
SamInBrisVegas
Gulbin is a good blocker, aside from the questions about how he fits the blocking scheme. He’s tough. My main concern is whether he has any upside to develop, or is he maxed out?
Grade: B
Round 7, Pick 223 – QB Athan Kaliakmanis, Rutgers
DraftBot
Out of service
MattInBrisVegas
Nobody seems to know what Washington saw in Kaliakmanis. Whatever it was, they liked him enough to bring him in for a Top 30 visit.
He is a quick rhythm passer with above average arm strength, inconsistent ball placement and poor decision making under pressure. What’s not to love? I don’t want to harp too much on this pick, because players drafted in the seventh round have less than 10% chance of becoming starters. Most will be out of the league by the end of their rookie contracts.
Nevertheless, there were a lot of players I liked an awful lot better than Kaliakmanis. Starting with Navy triple threat Eli Heidenreich, followed closely by Virginia RB J’mari Taylor. If they wanted to draft a backup QB, which I generally think is a good thing to do every few years, why not Garrett Nussmeier? Indiana LB Aiden Fisher seemed like a steal at this point, as did Kansas State safety VJ Payne. I had both players in the fourth round. I also would have been very happy with Miami OH LB Jackson Kuwatch, Navy DT Landon Robinson, Toledo CB Andre Fuller, Texas Tech safety Cole Wisnewski, Michigan DT Rayshaun Benny or even Mr Irrelevant, Red Murdoch.
Obviously the Commanders know something I don’t about Kaliakmanis. He will be competing with Sam Hartman and Jeff Driskel for scout team reps, and hopefully never see the field in a game. So, I’m not going to lose any sleep over this pick. But I feel like they could have done better.
Grade: D
SamInBrisVegas
I would have drafted UTSA kicker Jaffer Murphy or New Mexico edge rusher Keyshawn James-Newby. But what do I know? I trust Adam Peters to know what he’s doing. Also, it’s a seventh rounder, so I don’t really care.
Grade: C
Final Grades for the Commanders’ 2026 Draft
DraftBot
MiBV: Unfortunately the DraftBot was unable to complete the exercise. It could have spared itself the pain and aggravation of a total system re-install by simply waiting until after the draft when most teams find their kickers. Since the DraftBot was out of action, we tallied its individual grades with heavier weighting for the earlier round picks. I think it’s fair to say that it felt let down by its personnel team, and we get the sense that it thinks it could draft better than Adam Peters.
Overall Grade: B
MattInBrisVegas
With a few days to digest the picks, and read up on the players, and re-evaluate what I thought I knew about the new offense, I have really come to like this draft. We got an impact defender to kickstart a new hyper-aggressive attacking defense. We got an NFL-ready receiving option for a quick rhythm passing offense. We might have got a steal at edge in the fifth round. And what has got me most excited is thinking about what the selections of RB Kaytron Allen and C Matt Gulbin could mean for the rushing attack. I can’t wait to see how it all comes together in camp.
I want to give this my highest grade, but I have to deduct half a point for the missing 2nd and 4th round picks which were traded for Laremy Tunsil, even with the 6th rounder we got back for Brian Robinson. I like Tunsil, but this team can’t keep giving away draft picks.
Overall Grade: A
SamInBrisVegas
Foolish old man, I’m including Tunsil in my grade for this draft class.
Overall Grade: A-
