Commanders To Let DT Daron Payne Play Out Contract

According to ESPN’s John Keim, the Commanders still plan to let veteran DT Daron Payne play out the 2026 season with a contract extension. 

Keim says the team wants to see how Payne fits in new DC Daronte Jones‘ scheme. 

Washington elected not to make Payne a cap casualty despite an exorbitant cap hit for this upcoming season, but his long-term future with the team remains up in the air. 

Payne, 29, is the former 13th overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft out of Alabama. He signed a four-year $14.418 million dollar rookie contract with the Washington Football Team that included an $8.566 million dollar signing bonus.

Washington exercised his fifth-year option for the 2022 season which is worth $8.53 million. He re-signed a four-year, $90 million contract through 2026 and made a base salary of $16,400,000 last year. 

In 2025, Payne appeared in 15 games for the Commanders and recorded 46 total tackles, seven tackles for loss, three sacks, one forced fumble and five passes defended.

We’ll have more on Payne as the news is available.