The Washington Commanders’ on-field offseason sessions begin Friday to start the three-day rookie minicamp headlined by first-round quarterback Jayden Daniels and many questions about what comes next.
Let’s tackle eight topics, some of which were overlooked over the past few weeks but are central to the Commanders’ future.
Reminder: Following rookie camp, the offseason program continues with veterans participating in three three-day voluntary OTA sessions followed by a mandatory minicamp June 11-13 and then roughly six weeks off until training camp.
Roster/role stock up
The strength of Chris Rodriguez Jr.’s grip on the third running back spot behind Brian Robinson Jr. and Austin Ekeler moved closer to Adrian Peterson territory after Washington passed on selecting another one. The 223-pound power back with 4.52 40-speed is the clear early-down backup to Robinson, whether that means 5-10 touches from scrimmage per game or a lower figure.
However, if the Commanders eye Rodriguez as part of what looks like a trend of teams seeking bigger-bodied kick returners, there is room for a more significant role. New rules prevent players from moving until a returner touches the ball or the ball hits the ground, but they also create a crowded space since the kicking team (sans the kicker) will line up at the receiving team’s 40-yard line.
Also, props to the holdovers since Washington has the largest roster churn in the league, per Over the Cap.
Yes the #Commanders have the fewest percent of players returning from 2023 at 57% pic.twitter.com/wuecjEyoLt
— Jason_OTC (@Jason_OTC) May 6, 2024
Roster/role stock down
Right tackle Andrew Wylie belongs in the previous category since Washington didn’t add direct competition this offseason. That’s not the case for wide receiver Dyami Brown, tight end Cole Turner and defensive tackle Phidarian Mathis.
Mathis, a second-round pick in 2022 as a Daron Payne free-agent hedge, missed 23 of 34 games due to injuries and was undistinguished when available. Now second-round pick Johnny Newton, already praised by Adam Peters and others as a draft steal, joins the rotation. This is the definition of getting drafted over.
Maybe not as cut and dried for Brown, a 2021 third-round pick with 29 receptions in three seasons. Two of his three career touchdowns came in one game. Brown offers a different player profile than two acquisitions made by the new regime, 5-foot-8 free-agent signing Olamide Zaccheaus and third-round slot threat Luke McCaffrey. Washington’s previous staff made Brown available at the 2023 trade deadline, multiple league sources told The Athletic then.
The other challenge for Brown or any other receiver is how often the Commanders use 12 personnel. Selecting tight end Ben Sinnott in the second round more than suggests the answer is frequent. Two tight ends and Ekeler’s pass-catching prowess likely cuts down the available snaps for Brown. Sinnott does the same for Turner (13 receptions in 22 games). The 2022 fifth-round selection’s roster spot is in jeopardy if Armani Rogers flashes the same potential shown before his season-ending Achilles tear last summer.
🎙️High energy and high honors
▪️ @Fsmoot21SeanT on Jayden Daniels; Mike Sainristill, DB fits, new coaches; O-line; roster-building
▪️ 1-on-1 w/ Hall of Famer @darrellgreen28 on his jersey retirement & career (and my cat?)
▪️ Ben with free-agent LT intelhttps://t.co/Iz1LCsJ47n— Ben Standig (@BenStandig) May 1, 2024
Front-office activity
Peters hired friend and longtime Detroit Lions executive Lance Newmark upon taking the GM job in January. He later retained and re-assigned Martin Mayhew, the executive he worked with in San Francisco, and replaced him in the position title here. Otherwise, it’s been a wait-and-see process with reshaping the front office. Such switches league-wide typically occur post-draft. The scouting department is generally kept through free agency and the draft since they’ve been eyes, ears and more during these highly classified projects. Peters, Newmark and coach Dan Quinn have taken mental notes over the years of candidates for various spots.
Rob Rogers, hired by Ron Rivera as senior vice president of football administration, played a central role in the Commanders’ hectic free-agency period, during which over two dozen free-agent contracts were executed.
Scouts received shout-outs from Peters following Day 1 of the draft. They are also the group that, under the circumstances, “will probably have the most turnover,” a high-ranking source with another team theorized. “Rob will be a little harder to replace. He’s solid at his job, and there aren’t a lot of experienced alternatives out there.”
Marty Hurney, the ex-Carolina Panthers GM and former senior personnel executive under Rivera, was re-assigned to essentially an inactive “adviser” role soon after Peters’ hiring.
The futures of two other executives hired by Rivera — senior director of player personnel Eric Stokes and director of pro personnel Chris Polian — have generated ample curiosity among league sources. Director of college scouting Tim Gribble, in his third decade with Washington’s scouting department, was promoted to his current title by Rivera in 2020. Washington’s 2024 draft class largely received strong marks from league and media sources.
Money, money, money
Right guard Sam Cosmi is a prominent building block following a breakthrough 2023 campaign. The 2021 second-round pick is also entering the final year of his rookie contract ($3.7 million salary). With Washington’s $43.4 million in salary-cap space, per Over the Cap, and interest going both ways, the only question is whether the sides find common ground. Only nine right guards enter 2024 with annual salaries averaging at least $9 million.
Drafting Newton moved the contract spotlight to Jonathan Allen. The remaining two years on the initial four-year, $72 million extension for the two-time Pro Bowl defensive tackle includes zero guaranteed dollars. Allen’s 2025 cap number rises to $23 million, but with $17 million in savings if released by June 1 of that summer. All that speaks to the need for new terms before the 2025 offseason or the likelihood of Allen’s release after his cap increases significantly.
Free agency, Phase 3
Fans recall Washington signing left tackle Charles Leno Jr. following the 2021 NFL Draft. Leno provided credible work as a three-year starter before his March 1 release, and with depth chart concerns, fans harbor hopes of a repeat acquisition. Here’s the difference.
The Chicago Bears released Leno after the draft once they secured a replacement in the second round. Washington soon after signed the tackle. Until others join the free-agency pool, the current names are of players who have been available on the open market for weeks. They might be comparable talents to Leno in 2021. Yet 32 teams decided, at a point when half the league has significant offensive line needs, that these players at a premium position were not worthy of signing in advance.
Maybe that’s salary terms or not wanting to clog the depth chart without seeing how the draft unfolded. Seven tackles were selected in the first 29 picks. Washington selected TCU left tackle Brandon Coleman at No. 67. The athletic freak, whom some teams prefer at guard, likely needs practice reps before competing with Cornelius Lucas. Peters re-signed the team’s swing tackle since 2020 to a one-year deal this offseason. The GM previously stated he felt comfortable with Lucas and Trent Scott, another veteran reserve. Upgrading Scott’s spot with a player considered more capable of starting might be a viable approach.
GO DEEPER
Adam Peters proud of Commanders’ draft process: ‘We got a lot better’
Former Cardinal D.J. Humphries, the left tackle starter under offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury in Arizona from 2019 to 2022, is available. Leno is recovering from hip surgery and has not said if he plans to continue his career, though returning to Washington is highly unlikely regardless.
Debate the requirement for talent upgrades at certain spots. Trimming the offseason roster to 91 players this week is mandatory, but it’s not an issue until the 2024 draft class signs contracts, per league rules. Washington can maintain one spot above the league’s mandatory 90 because defensive lineman Haggai Chisom Ndubuisi is exempt as a participant in the International Player Pathway Program.
Pain and gain
Injuries may influence other roster or participation factors. Allen, entering his eighth season, battled through foot and knee issues during the 2023 campaign. Linebacker Jamin Davis (shoulder), offensive lineman Ricky Stromberg (knee) and defensive end Efe Obada (leg) ended last season recovering from surgery. Darrick Forrest’s timetable from a Week 6 season-ending shoulder injury supposedly put the safety on track to join the offseason program.
Undrafted free-agent watch
Cornerback Chigozie Anusiem went from unwanted over seven rounds to the belle of the ball in the post-draft market. The $350,000 signing package, as did his superior athletic testing, stood out this cycle. Holdovers Christian Holmes and Tariq Castro-Fields aren’t on steady ground for the fifth and sixth spots.
Chigozie Anusiem is a CB prospect in the 2024 draft class. He scored a 8.88 #RAS out of a possible 10.00. This ranked 278 out of 2473 CB from 1987 to 2024. https://t.co/fLTVGFXdVH pic.twitter.com/TNyrAudXYg
— Kent Lee Platte (@MathBomb) April 23, 2024
Another bonus baby, quarterback Sam Hartman, should remove Jake Fromm from training camp, with Hartman and the more experienced Jeff Driskel occupying the remaining spring/summer practice sessions. The hope for Washington is that the quarterback with 134 college touchdown passes, Hartman, progresses enough for primary backup consideration in 2025.
Any running back roster battle — if the staff keeps four — is between undrafted free-agent signings Michael Wiley (28 receptions, eight total touchdowns in 2023 at Arizona), Austin Jones and career backup Jeremy McNichols. Jones’ five-season college career with 603 scrimmage touches overlapped with quarterbacks coach Tavita Pritchard (2019-21) at Stanford and Kingsbury at USC (2023).
Where art thou, Ricky Stromberg
Perhaps the Commanders skipped guard in the draft because they saw last year’s third-round pick becoming one full-time. Drafted as a center, Stromberg’s only 2023 snaps (four games) came at left guard. The knee injury cut short further experimentation. There’s no center opportunity with Tyler Biadasz signing a three-year deal. Rather than waiting for injury, making a committed effort for Stromberg to challenge former Kansas City Chiefs reserve/projected Week 1 starter Nick Allegretti is more than reasonable. Veteran free-agent signing Michael Deiter has experience at both inside offensive line positions.
(Photo of Dyami Brown: Rich Barnes / USA Today)
