Carnell Tate says Commanders WR Terry McLaurin looks out for him

The Washington Commanders have the No. 7 overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft, which takes place in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in only six days.

There is a ton of speculation over which player the Commanders will select in the first round, or if they'll trade back to gain draft capital, since they are limited on picks in 2026. The Commanders still have plenty of needs to fill, and they are absolutely open for business during the draft. However, if Ohio State wide receiver Carnell Tate is still on the board, the Commanders may be hard-pressed to drop out of that spot.

Tate recently spoke with Rich Eisen on "The Rich Eisen Show," and his Ohio State connection to Terry McLaurin was broached.

First, Eisen asks Tate where he's going next. It's the New York Giants and the Commanders as his final two top 30 visits in 2026.

"McLaurin's not gonna let you out of the building," Eisen tells Tate.

Tate laughs and says, "No, that's my guy whenever I need things. He's there for me, saying 'we welcome you with open arms.'"

"What do you mean?" Eisen asks.

"Like all Ohio State receivers, we all look out for each other," Tate said. "So, that's their way of giving back to us, to help us get to where they are in their process. So he just said whatever I need, if there's any questions or anything I need, just hit his line, he got me. He'll take care of it."

McLaurin can use the Ohio State connection to help another receiver from his alma mater, but we'd all be delusional if we didn't admit that McLaurin would love to have a Buckeye lining up opposite him on game day. Tate fills the Commanders' need to draw attention away from McLaurin, especially with his downfield ability. Some of that ability was overshadowed by the arrival of Jeremiah Smith at Ohio State, but make no mistake, Tate has what it takes to be the next Buckeye superstar wide receiver.

Luke McCaffrey, Jaylin Lane, and Treylon Burks all still have upside, but are unproven. Dyami Brown and Van Jefferson were added in free agency. But none of them have the star power to attract the attention of opposing defenses like Tate.

It will be interesting to see what GM Adam Peters does in the first round next week.