Three Day Two Receiver Prospects Washington Commanders Should Circle

Veteran Terry McLaurin is still the alpha. But at 30, coming off an injury-hampered 2025 season, the Commanders can't afford to enter another year with question marks at every WR spot behind him. While there may be free agents who could address other positions, Washington's most important offseason decision at receiver may not happen in free agency — it might just happen at pick No. 71 in Pittsburgh. The 2026 WR class runs deep, and the third round is where real contributors get overlooked. Here are three prospects Adam Peters should have circled on his board.

If David Blough's offense is going to weaponize Jayden Daniels in the short-to-intermediate game the way Detroit did with Jared Goff, then Washington needs a receiver who can turn a five-yard catch into a 20-yard gain. That is Zachariah Branch .

Branch came in as the top-rated receiver in the 2023 class and never quite lived up to the billing at USC. Two years, flashes of brilliance, not much else. Then he transferred to Georgia and put up 81 catches for 811 yards and six touchdowns — a single-season program record. The production doesn't stop at the catch point: Branch ranked fourth among all FBS receivers with 634 yards after the catch last season, averaging a staggering 8.0 yards after the catch per reception. In a Blough-driven offense featuring quick-hit throws, screens, and RPOs designed to put athletes in space, that number is lethal.

At 5-foot-10, 180 pounds, Branch is undersized — scouts will note the limitations on contested balls and boundary routes. But his NFL role is clearly defined. He is a slot specialist and returner, the kind of player who stretches nickel defenders horizontally and wins with change-of-direction quickness that doesn't show up on a 40-yard dash time. He also ran a 4.35 at the combine. That combination of elite YAC ability, special teams value, and proven SEC production against top competition makes him a legitimate Day 2 value at 71. 

Bell is the kind of sleeper who tends to make GMs look foolish for waiting too long. In 2025, he posted 101 receptions, 1,278 yards, and 13 touchdowns — becoming UConn's first-ever consensus All-American and a Biletnikoff Award finalist. He did it despite playing at a non-Power Four program and being a relative unknown entering the season. The tape backs up the production.

Bell's combine numbers weren't a surprise to anyone who'd watched the tape — 4.40, 41-inch vertical, explosive in every drill. PFF ranked him third among all WR prospects in yards per route run. None of it was a fluke. The quickness you see at the top of his routes, the way he snaps out of breaks before corners can recover — that's why man coverage doesn't scare him. He recorded 835 yards after the catch in 2025 — second in the nation among receivers — and averaged 8.2 yards after the catch per reception, up from 6.5 the prior season. That upward trajectory matters.

The small-school concern is fair, and there's no overcoming that. Don't let it completely bury him, either. At pick 71, nobody's handing you a finished product. You're betting on a skillset, and Bell is worth the gamble. His combination of route versatility (he lines up outside, in the slot, and occasionally in the backfield), separation ability, and YAC production profiles as an ideal complement to McLaurin in Blough's motion-heavy scheme. If Bell translates even 70% of his college efficiency to the NFL, Washington has found a legitimate WR2. 

Here's what makes Benson interesting beyond the stats: the Commanders were at his pro day. Washington met with Benson in Eugene — alongside the Cardinals and Panthers — signaling real organizational interest. That kind of pre-draft contact at a pro day means Adam Peters' staff has already done the homework.

Benson's 2025 line at Oregon was modest in volume — 43 catches, 719 yards, six touchdowns — but the efficiency screams danger. His 16.7 yards per reception ranked among the best in the country, and he ran a 4.37 at the combine with a 1.55-second 10-yard split that suggests elite burst rather than just straight-line speed. He averaged 17.9 yards per punt return, adding a return touchdown last season. Daniel Jeremiah specifically identified Benson as a third-round name to know before the combine.

Benson started his collegiate career at the JUCO Hutchinson, then transferred to Alabama, then Florida State, then Oregon. When Oregon lost two of its top receivers to injury last November, Benson stepped up as the team's go-to downfield option in the playoff push. Washington's receiver room doesn't have a true vertical threat outside of McLaurin. Benson changes that. At 6-foot, 189 pounds with legitimate 4.3-range speed and special teams upside, he's a late-round investment with starter-level ceiling if he lands in the right environment. Given Daniels' ability to extend plays and manipulate coverage, Benson's game-breaking speed down the seam could be one of the most undervalued additions Washington makes this spring.

Pick 71 won't make headlines on draft night. But it might matter more than any decision Washington makes between now and kickoff.