1. He's probably going to play on the right side.
Here's what we know about how the Commanders' offensive line will look in 2025: Laremy Tunsil is going to play left tackle. General manager Adam Peters didn't say this specifically, but it's safe to assume that Tyler Biadasz will be the starting center.
After that, it's anyone's guess on who will start at the other positions. But if Conerly does end up playing as a rookie, there's a good chance it will be on the right side.
Peters said that Conerly can play either guard or tackle, but the Oregon product has all the metrics NFL teams want out of the latter. He's 6-foot-5, which makes him just as tall as Tunsil, with 33.5-inch arms. He played exclusively at tackle for Oregon and was a top high school recruit for what he did at the position.
And thanks to the flexibility of other players at the position, the Commanders can still get the best five offensive linemen on the field if Conerly does play as a rookie. Andrew Wylie and Brandon Coleman both have experience at guard, and both are expected to get snaps at that position until Sam Cosmi fully recovers from his ACL injury.
But don't expect Conerly to be handed a job; the Commanders' culture is built on competition, and they expect Conerly to earn his role.
"What's cool about our team and our program and how DQ coaches is [that] it's competition, and iron sharpens iron," Peters said. "
2. He's one of the most explosive offensive linemen in the draft.
Conerly is only 21 years old, so he has years of room to grow as an NFL player. That said, he's already an athletic freak.
Aside from his prototypical size for an NFL tackle, Conerly is also uniquely athletic for his position. His 5.05 40-yard dash at the combine won't impress many people, but his 10-yard split of 1.71 second was the fastest among the entire class of offensive linemen. That number would also be among the fastest among defensive tackles who ran in Indianapolis.
Then there's his vertical jump to consider. He ranked third among all offensive linemen and second among tackles by jumping 34.5 inches. Once again, we'll look at how that compares to other positions; he would have ranked sixth among tight ends, 10th among defensive ends and third among defensive tackles.
All of that contributed to him putting together a Relative Athletic Score (RAS) of 8.84 out of a possible 10, which ranks in the top 11% of all tackle prospects over the last 38 years.
"You look at the tape and you see what an incredible athlete he is for his size, which is backed up by a lot of his testing numbers, too," Peters said. "But just really the way he moves. Just great feet, great lower body structure, great bend, and just super talented for a big man."
3. He's held his own against Abdul Carter.
Peters said the Commanders' research and development department keeps a close eye on how prospects perform against high draftable players, and their assessment plays a pivotal role in their decisions.
Last year, Conerly went against Penn State defensive end Abdul Carter, who many considered to be the best player in the draft. Carter was an exceptional college player, but against Conerly, he was rendered ineffective.
In a highly anticipated matchup between Penn State and Oregon in the Big Ten Championship, Carter was limited to zero sacks on six true pass rush snaps against Conerly. The Oregon tackle had one of his best days in the conference championship game, which resulted in a victory for the Ducks, as he allowed zero pressures on 35 pass block snaps.
That performance tracks with how Conerly played throughout his college career. He allowed only one sack last season, according to Pro Football Focus, and only one in 2023. What's more, pass-rushers blocked by Conerly hardly ever got close to getting a sack, as he only allowed just five pressures in 2024.
The New York Giants took Carter off the board earlier in the evening, so he and Conerly are going to see a lot more of each other in the future.
4. He was named the top offensive lineman at the Senior Bowl.
It's one thing to get recognized by your coaches; it's another to get praised by your opponents. That's what happened to Conerly at the Senior Bowl, where he was voted as the top offensive lineman at the college all-star event by defensive linemen and linebackers.
Throughout the week of practice in Mobile, Alabama, Conerly held his own against some of the top defensive linemen in the class with his quick feet and power. He did a good job of mirroring players in pass protection and cutting off would-be tacklers in the run game.
Those moments of playing against top-tier competition matter to Peters, who has drafted several players who participated in the Senior Bowl. Events like that are opportunities for Peters to see prospects in person, and that played a role in the Commanders falling in love with Conerly.
"You're able to get more conviction on a player if you see them in person and you're around them more and you kind of understand and it could be conviction either way, conviction that you do really like them, or conviction that you don't like them as much for your team," Peters said. "So I do think that helps a lot and all the touch points you have. I believe in that. Not every team believes in that, and you know, to each their own. But for me personally, that helps quite a bit."
5. Jayden Daniels can sleep a little easier.
The Commanders had to wake quarterback Jayden Daniels up to tell him that they had given him more protection. It wasn't a long conversation -- Daniels is an early riser and is already hard at work preparing for his second season -- but he was happy about the move.
Daniels can sleep a little bit easier now that Conerly is on the team.
Although the Commanders have made several moves besides drafting Daniels with the No. 2 overall pick over the last two offseasons, the quarterback remains their most important asset for the future. He was the catalyst for the Commanders' success in 2024 and elevated the players around him to produce a team that went 12-5 and was one game away from appearing in Super Bowl.
So, perhaps the Commanders could have addressed other needs on defense with their 29th overall pick. They could have also traded back, and Peters said they had multiple offers. However, the Commanders knew before the draft that if Conerly was available when they were on the clock, it wasn't worth the risk of him potentially being taken by another team.
That's what happens when you have a franchise quarterback; every move is made with him in mind.
"Every move we make, we're trying to maximize him [Daniels] and really the whole team," Peters said. "He [Conerly] was the highest player on our board, [and that] is really what it ended up being. It wasn't really so much we needed to get an O-Lineman or anything like that, but he was clearly the highest player on our board."
