2024 NFL Offseason Primer: Washington Commanders

Logan Ulrich

March 4, 2024

Washington Commanders

Projected Cap Space: $80.5 million

Draft Picks: 9

1st (No. 2)
2nd (No. 36)
2nd (No. 40, CHI)
3rd (No. 67)
3rd (No. 101, comp via SF)
4th (No. 103)
5th (No. 138)
6th (No. 181)
7th (No. 220)

Notable Free Agents:

Top Three Needs

1 – Defensive End

Quarterback is actually the top need, but Washington will address that with the No. 2 pick, so the only drama there is whether they take North Carolina’s Drake Maye, LSU’s Jayden Daniels or a wildcard option. The Commanders will spend the next several weeks figuring that out.

The discussion around the No. 2 pick and quarterback has actually overshadowed just how much work needs to be done on the rest of the roster for the Commanders, especially at some premium positions. Washington has an extra second and an extra third from trading DEs Montez Sweat and Chase Young at the deadline this past season. Those picks could very well go toward restocking the cupboard at the position, as besides those trades, the Commanders are set to lose nearly their entire rotation to free agency.

With a new coaching staff and front office, a total overhaul could be coming. Washington has enough draft capital and cap space to make a ton of moves, and something like double-dipping in both the draft and free agency seems very much in play.

2 – Offensive Line

It might be more accurate to call this need 1b instead of 2, especially with a rookie quarterback coming in. Washington has just one starter from last year who’s assured of a roster spot and a job in 2024: G Samuel Cosmi. The Commanders have already cut two starters in Charles Leno and Nick Gates, while key depth players/part-time starters like Lucas, Charles and Larsen are pending free agents.

That means Washington needs to completely overhaul the left side of the offensive line from left tackle to center. Upgrading from RT Andrew Wylie should also be on new GM Adam Peters‘ to-do list, but even with all the resources Washington has, some things will have to be put off for another year.

3 – Tight End

Teams that draft rookie quarterbacks often look to fortify the receiving group and add a young player who can grow alongside the signal caller. However, Washington is in an okay spot at wide receiver with Terry McLaurin and Jahan Dotson. If the No. 2 pick can play, McLaurin might remind the league just how good he is after toiling through years of subpar quarterbacks. Dotson is a former first-round pick who has flashed, though the raw numbers don’t look good.

Tight end is a different story. The team released veteran Logan Thomas and has a hodgepodge of players after him on the depth chart. John Bates is the classic “Y” tight end who’s more of an inline player and less of a dynamic receiving option. Cole Turner and Armani Rogers are athletic but have little production to bank on as receiving threats.

While this year’s tight end group pales in comparison to the crop of youngsters in 2023 who hit the league, there will still be some quality players to choose from for the Commanders on Day 2 of the draft. Even with other needs, whether it’s the premium positions discussed above or patching other spots like safety and linebacker, you could see Washington put a big emphasis on improving at tight end to try and ensure their rookie quarterback has a good enough support system to develop.

One Big Question

Does the new regime actually know what it’s doing?

There’s quite a bit of hope surrounding the Commanders this offseason. Former owner Dan Snyder was exorcised this past summer, and that’s huge. Organizations are often only as good as the people running them at the top, and Snyder had been running away with the race for the league’s worst owner for years. We don’t know much about how new owner Josh Harris will fare in the NFL but we do know he has one big thing going for him — he’s not Snyder.

Washington entered the offseason with a wealth of picks and cap space and then landed Peters who has been a coveted GM candidate for a few years now. He’d turned down interest from other teams to remain in San Francisco but saw a good enough situation with the Commanders to jump. For a while, the Commanders looked like they were about to hit another home run to start the offseason by hiring Lions OC Ben Johnson as their next head coach. But that went up in flames and a PR battle over who rejected who.

It also served as a reminder that there’s a learning curve to NFL ownership. Success in other industries or other sports is no guarantee of success in the NFL, and neither is mind-blowing wealth. Just ask Panthers owner Dave Tepper.

Harris might prove to be a good owner who knows what he’s doing, like when to get involved and when to let his football hires do their job. But there have been reminders in the past several months that just because he’s better than Snyder doesn’t guarantee he’ll actually be good, at least at first. It’s fair to be hopeful about the Commanders going forward, and the 2024 season will show just how much of that hope is realistic.