The Washington Redskins officially inked offensive tackle Brandon Scherff to his rookie contract on Tuesday.
Scherff was a surprise pick by the Redskins early in the first round of the NFL Draft. Washington general manager Scot McCloughan made Scherff the No. 5 overall selection, bypassing other talents -- such as defensive lineman Leonard Williams -- to nab the nastiest blocker in the draft.
The 6-foot-5, 319-pound road grader is slotted to start at right tackle from the jump. Pairing Scherff with three-time Pro Bowl left tackle Trent Williams will anchor the Redskins' line and could give them one of the best tackle pairings in the NFL.
Scherff described himself as a "mauler" following the draft, something that McCloughan and coach Jay Gruden wanted to add this season.
"When you have a guy that's this tough on film and it just echoes every time you watch him play, every play that he plays, you see the toughness and you're like, 'Man, we could use a little bit more toughness,'" Gruden said after the draft, via the team's official website.
"Not to say we weren't tough last year. We had some guys that competed and played very, very hard, no doubt about it, but when you add another guy of his caliber, his size, his strength, his tenacity, that only makes your football team better. It's going to help our defensive line, it's going to help our offensive line, it's going to help our running game, obviously, and it's going to help our passing game."
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