Mueller cleverly loaded the bases today

...Manafort and Gates indictments, although unrelated directly to the Trump campaign, provide top level officials in that election effort (charges including period of their involvement w/ the campaign), engaged in stunningly egregious criminal behavior, for public consumption.

At the same time, the Papadopolous guilty plea, very likely unveiled today to coincide with the indictments, provides a standard prosecution effort, much like an organized crime prosecution, working the case from the bottom to the top, turning defendants into witnesses for the prosecution along the way.

Mueller has brilliantly covered all bases today, effectively refuting any speculation or spin that he's only ensnaring small fish in his dragnet (strongly signaling that he's fully engaged in prosecuting collusion with Russia, and Russian interference in the election).