Washington Football Team: Shaka Toney a late-round gem

The Washington Football Team already has one of the best defensive fronts in the NFL. 2021 7th-round pick Shaka Toney adds to their embarrassment of riches.

If there is any team in the NFL with an enviable embarrassment of riches on the defensive front seven, it’s got to be the Washington Football Team.

Washington has used a ton of prime real estate in the NFL Draft in recent years on improving their defensive front from the inside out. Since 2017, the Washington Football Team has rebuilt its defense with a ton of players who can get after the quarterback either on the defensive line, off the edge, or from the second level.

In 2021, they used their top pick on Kentucky’s Jamin Davis, an absolute freak among freaks at his position group.

In 2020, they used their top pick on one of the best young defensive players in the league right now — former Ohio State star pass rusher Chase Young.

In 2019, they used one of their first-round picks on Mississippi State pass rusher Montez Sweat.

In 2018, it was Alabama defensive lineman Da’Ron Payne.

In 2017, it was Payne’s teammate at Alabama Jonathan Allen.

Along with a variety of other players, those top picks have mostly all hit really well or still project well, and the Washington Football Team is in business to get after the quarterback for the foreseeable future.

The back end of the 2021 NFL Draft may have provided Washington with a rotational piece off the edge that could end up looking like a steal sooner rather than later. The Washington Football Team was able to add former Penn State pass rusher Shaka Toney in the seventh round of the 2021 NFL Draft.

Although Toney’s teammate (Odafe Oweh) went in the first round of the 2021 NFL Draft based on his massive potential off the edge, it was Toney who really had the more outstanding statistical production in recent years.

Toney finished his career at Penn State with 20 sacks and 28.5 tackles for loss along with four forced fumbles.

In combination with his outstanding pro day workout, Toney looks like he should vastly outperform his underwhelming draft status.

Even if Toney is considered a little too undersized for the edge position than any scouts or executives could really handle, his other physical and athletic traits were certainly worth banking on, especially when his productivity as a pass rusher is factored in.

Washington’s embarrassment of riches off the edge is something other NFL teams will undoubtedly covet, and it’s players like Toney who could be the difference over the course of a long 17 game season.

Hopefully, the rookie can factor into the Washington Football Team rotation sooner rather than later, give them a legitimate weapon behind Young and Sweat, and carve out a role for himself.

Washington is riding pretty high after the success of 2020 seventh-round pick Kamren Curl. Can Toney keep the seventh-round momentum going?