The NFL's Top 50 Draft Classes of the Decade: No. 35 Washington Redskins, 2000

35. Washington Redskins, 2000
Team Achievements: 44-52 during Arrington's career, 66-78 during Samuel's career, 2 playoff berths, zero division championships.

The Redskins' 2000 Selections: LaVar Arrington, LB, Penn St. (No. 2)
Chris Samuels, OT, Alabama (No. 3)
Lloyd Harrison, CB, North Carolina State (No. 64)
Mookie Moore, G, Troy State (No. 129)
Quincy Sanders, UNLV (No. 155)
Todd Husak, QB, Stanford (No. 202)
Delbert Cowsette, DT, Maryland (No. 216)
Ethan Howell, WR, Oklahoma State (No. 250)
* Traded No. 12, No. 24, No. 118, and No. 148 picks to San Francisco for the No. 3 selection.

Class Accolades: LaVar Arrington -3 Pro Bowls, 22.5 sacks, 397 total tackles in 6 seasons with Redskins.
Chris Samuels - 6 Pro Bowls, 141 career starts with Washington, missed only 4 starts from 2000 to 2007.

Overall Draft Analysis: Undoubtedly, the Redskins' 2000 draft class epitomizes the team's recent feast or famine personnel history. Beyond Samuels and Arrington, Washington's draft was an utter failure. However, the No. 2 and No. 3 selections have surprisingly collected the most Pro Bowls of any draft duo, during the past decade, with nine. Samuels' sustained dominance at tackle paved the way for the Redskins' ground game resurgence, as the team placed amongst the NFL's top ten rushing teams three times from 2005 to 2008. Ultimately, Samuels likely ranks in the top five tackles drafted during the decade, as well as the best lineman of '00. The tackle's defensive counterpart, Arrington, unquestionably entered the draft with as much as hype as any defensive player of the decade. Although Arrington failed to fulfill such lofty expectations, the "Linebacker U" product garnered three Pro Bowls, as one of the league's most versatile "force" players in the NFC. The Redskins' defense respectably ranked three times in the top five in yards allowed, during Arrington's six seasons with the team. In retrospect, the team would have maximized value by not trading with the 49ers. The team could have selected Samuels with the No. 2 pick, a defensive star at No. 12 (John Abraham, Shaun Ellis, or Julian Peterson), and held onto the other two picks.

Now, the really bad news... the rest of the Redskins' draft class combined to start one game in Washington... one. Cowsette remains the only selection to have played more than one season as a Redskin, with two. Regardless, Samuels and Arrington proved tremendously valuable to the Washington franchise. Unfortunately, Samuels is set to retire this off-season, after a tremendous nine-year stint in the nation's capital.

The Redskins' "Perfect Draft" in Retrospect
(Keeping all trades, only players of same position are eligible)
No. 2 - LB Brian Urlacher, No. 3 - OT Chris Samuels, No. 64 - CB Hank Poteat, No. 129 - G Brian Waters (Undrafted), No. 155 - S Michael Green, No. 202 - QB Tim Rattay, No. 216 - DT Alfonso Boone, No. 250 - WR Bryan Gilmore (Undrafted).

References: All statistics and draft results as reflected on NFL.com and Pro-Football-Reference.com.