[Dirtbag59]

Redskins draft ideas
4:26
PM ET
Washington Redskins | Interested: Broncos?
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UPDATE: Despite the Washington Redskins' lack of draft picks and what Mike Shanahan said in his press conference today, some insist that the Redskins plan on trading up in the draft and selecting a quarterback.

"There are general managers convinced that this will go down," writes Jason La Canfora of the NFL Network. "There are evaluators in Redskins Park who believe Blaine Gabbert has the potential to be a franchise quarterback, a great fit in their system and the best player in this draft. Washington has concerns about him being there 10th overall. Denver, among others, is immensely receptive to this possibility of trading down, and Mike Shanahan's ties to John Elway and Brian Xanders in Denver's front office could help facilitate a deal."

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Washington Redskins speculation runs rampant on the eve of the NFL draft. Multiple sources are scratching their heads trying to figure out what this team is trying to do, with no clear consensus standing out so far.

Redskins coach Mike Shanahan gave a press conference this morning that made things slightly more clear: It's not likely that the Redskins will be trading up in the draft. Almost anything else, though, is on the table.

Three different D.C. reporters covered Shanahan's conference, and their Twitter feeds tell the story, starting with Mike Jones of the Washington Post. He says Shanahan talked about his history of trading up in the draft with limited picks, but adds that the coach admitted "not having 3rd and 4th round picks could make it harder to move up." On quarterbacks, Shanahan said, "A lot of time you have to adjust your system to a quarterback because you might not have that perfect guy there." Jones also says the Redskins have "about three players" they could take with the tenth pick, "but sounds like desire is to trade down."

Ryan O'Halloran of CSNWashington.com quotes Shanahan as saying the Redskins are comfortable with their safeties and tight ends, but after that, "we're pretty open. We can in a lot of different directions with the needs of our football team." He also says Shanahan is a fan of Cam Newton: "Whoever does pick him will run a system he's comfortable with because he's one heckuva athlete."

Rich Campbell of the Fredericksburg (Va.) Free Lance-Star says Shanahan admitted it was not "realistic" that the Redskins would trade up, citing the shortage of picks. "Obviously it's a little bit tougher when you don't have multiple picks," Shanahan said, "especially in the 3rd or 4th round." Shanahan also said that the 2011 quarterback class was "much deeper than what I'm accustomed to."