Draft season is upon us, and the Washington Commanders have a chance to grab one of the best playmakers in this year's class.

The Commanders' 2025 season did not go as planned following their NFC Championship performance in 2024. A mixture of injuries and overall performance resulted in them finishing with a 5-12 record, including an eight-game losing streak from Weeks 6-14. Head coach Dan Quinn and general manager Adam Peters promised that changes would be coming, and so far, they have restructured their coaching staff with David Blough and Daronte Jones in as the new offensive and defensive coordinators, respectively. Their next task is to retool the roster, with changes likely coming on both sides of the ball.

The Commanders' first-round pick, which is the No. 7 overall selection this year, will play a critical role in that. There are several positions they could address with the pick, from pass rusher to receiver, but regardless of who they take, there's a good chance that player will be an immediate contributor.

Over the next few months, Commanders.com will highlight one mock draft from a draft expert each week to delve into how that player would fit with Washington. This week, we're heading to the ACC to break down one of the conference's best defenders.

Rueben Bain, EDGE, Miami

There was a lot of chatter throughout the week at the NFL Scouting Combine about Bain's arm length, and in fairness, they are shorter than normal for a top pick at his position. At 30 7/8 inches, they're the third shortest in the draft, and no All-Pro has ever been selected in the first round with that arm length.

But, according to Bain, the teams that interviewed him weren't focused on his arms. They wanted to talk more about what he did on the field, and fortunately for him, there's plenty on tape that shows he's worth a first-round pick. That's why NFL.com's Bucky Brooks has the Commanders, who are in need of a pass rusher, adding Bain to their defensive front.

"The high-motor defender is a relentless pass rusher with a power-based game that could remind Dan Quinn of a young Dante Fowler Jr," Brooks wrote. "Bain's disruptive potential exceeds his production, making him the perfect complement to a more traditional edge rusher."

Anyone interested in Bain as a prospect will have to settle for him not fitting the traditional frame for an NFL pass rusher. Along with his arm length, he's 6-foot-2 and 263 pounds, both of which received mixed to poor results in his Relative Athletic Score (RAS). Bain also didn't test at the combine, so for now, there's not much in terms of how he compares with his fellow edge players.

But it's not about traits with Bain; it's all about the results, and there was plenty of that during his time with Miami. He recorded 20.5 sacks in three seasons, including a career-high of 9.5 in 2025. He generated 67 total pressures -- second only to David Bailey -- and had more hurries than anyone among FBS defenders.

And despite his arm length and size, Bain has shown multiple times that he can impact games. Perhaps the best example of that in 2025 came during Miami's matchup with Texas A&M in the College Football Playoff. Not only did he block a field goal, but he also recorded three fourth-quarter sacks, two of which came on the same drive.

While that game, which resulted in a 10-3 Miami win, might have been Bain's standout moment, it wasn't the only good game he had in the college postseason. Pro Football Focus gave him the second-best grade in the playoffs, and he tied with Indiana's Daniel Ndukwe for the most pressures among playoff defenders.

So, the metrics might not be ideal, but everything else matches up with what to expect from an NFL player.

"He can bend and flip his hips at the top of the rush, swipe away punches and generate a strong bull rush," wrote NFL.com's Lance Zierlein. "His playoff run showed an ability to generate quick wins if tackles are passive in setting to him. He can rush off the edge or mismatch guards as a sub-package rusher. Bain's explosive power and toughness should translate, giving him a high floor as an NFL starter."

There's also Bain's versatility to consider. He spent most of his college career lined up as a traditional edge rusher, getting 1,302 snaps at that spot on the field. However, Miami's coaches also moved him around; he lined up as a nose guard and a defensive tackle at times so he could use his quickness to crash the pocket against guards and centers.

But the thing that stands out to Kiper more than anything: Bain hustles on every play.

"He never takes a play off and fires at the ball on every play," Kiper wrote of Bain on his big board. "His arms are shorter than most scouts prefer, but there's so much to like with his game. Opponents have to account for him in their game plans, and he can keep them guessing even then with his inside-outside flexibility."

Although the Commanders' sack numbers and pressure rate don't look as bad as other teams, it was clear the defense needed help and depth on the edge to affect quarterbacks. Granted, some of that was expected when the Commanders' top three edge players suffered significant injuries, but Peters said at the end of the season that he wants to get younger and specifically mentioned the desire to get a pass rusher.

It's true that Bain might not be as physically gifted as players like Bailey or Arvell Reese -- two other edge rushers expected to be top 10 picks -- but there's a reason why he is still mentioned in the same conversation as them. Bain has the results to back up his belief that he is one of the best players in his class, and sometimes, that's all that really matters.

"He routinely gets the best of some very good offensive tackles, often with his dominant rip move, and he knows every trick in the book in getting home to the QB," Kiper wrote. "Bain also shows speed and bend off the edge, and he takes good angles. Plus, he can hold the edge against the run and get off blocks to chase down ball carriers. His tape is just filled with disruption."