State of the Roster: Commanders Defense
Breaking down where things stand with the Commanders defense now Dan Quinn has officially been hired
With the Commanders now finally hiring head coach Dan Quinn, the team can begin to move onto other items on the to do list for the offseason. Obviously, the team is looking to fill out the coaching staff beyond offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury and defensive coordinator Joe Whitt Jr. but the main hires are in place. The first priority for new general manager Adam Peters, along with Quinn and his coaching staff, is to evaluate the talent on the roster and the impending free agents to get a better idea of where they stand going into free agency and the draft.
Quinn said in his introductory press conference that the defensive system would be similar to what he and Whitt ran in Dallas, so that gives us an idea of the style of play that Quinn wants to introduce and the scheme he wants to use. With that information, I thought I’d take a look at the current state of the Commanders roster on the defensive side of the ball to see where things stand and what needs Peters and Quinn will have to address this offseason.
Defensive end
Under Contract: K.J. Henry, Andre Jones Jr., Joshua Pryor, Jalen Harris.
Free Agents: James Smith-Williams, Casey Toohill, Efe Obada
Analysis: Going into the season, the defensive end position was always going to be one that the Commanders needed to look at in 2024. The only players under contract beyond the 2023 season were Henry and Jones, both later round rookies. After trading away both Montez Sweat and Chase Young during the season, the need jumped pretty high up on the priority list.
To run the aggressive style of defense that Quinn ran in Dallas, the Commanders will need good pass rushers on the edge. The Cowboys system was built upon Micah Parsons and a strong stable of rushers alongside him generating pressure on the quarterback and forcing the ball out quickly. That in turn allowed the cornerbacks to be aggressive and attack the ball by jumping routes and making plays. Yes, Quinn can manufacture some pressure by sending extra rushers and running plenty of stunts, but ultimately you still need a number of good pass rushers.
The Cowboys were deep on the defensive line from a pass rushing standpoint. Quinn often liked to get into some rush packages on third downs where he’d play three or even four edge rushers at the same time and move those guys around to create matchups. Right now, Washington simply doesn’t have the personnel to do that.
I would think Quinn would appreciate the likes of James Smith-Williams and Efe Obada for their versatility to kick inside and rush from different spots and with Washington’s lack of depth at the position, I wouldn’t be surprised if they looked to retain one or even both of them, but neither is a player I would think Quinn would see as a long-term starting defensive end. That means the Commanders are going to need to spend a significant portion of their large resources this offseason on finding some defensive ends.
There are two stand out edge rushers due to enter free agency this offseason: Josh Allen and Brian Burns. Burns is a strong technician that has allowed him to be very consistent as he averages about nine sacks a season. Allen has been a bit more up and down but is more explosive and had a breakout season with 17.5 sacks this year. Washington has plenty of cap space to go make a big splash for one of these two if Peters and Quinn want to, but it’s also possible that both players get franchise tagged and neither hit the open market.
One name to keep an eye on in free agency would be Dante Fowler Jr. Fowler hasn’t quite lived up to the hype of being taken third overall back in 2015, but he’s had a solid career and found his role as a rotational edge rusher. Fowler spent the last two years under Quinn and Whitt, so there’s an obvious connection, but Fowler’s connection to Quinn actually runs a lot deeper. Quinn actually recruited Fowler in college and coached him at Florida in 2012. Quinn then signed Fowler again when he was the head coach of the Falcons back in 2020 and obviously brought him to Dallas the past two years. Fowler is on record saying “I’m fine with just playing for him the rest of my life” when talking about Quinn. So don’t be shocked if Fowler ends up in Washington as part of the rotation on the edge, even if they spend big on someone else.
Similarly, Cowboys defensive end Dorance Armstrong is set to be a free agent and put up the best years of his career under Quinn. Armstrong was a fourth round pick back in 2018 and had just 2.5 sacks in his first three years in the league. In his first year under Quinn in 2021, he registered five sacks and in 2022 he put up a career high 8.5 sacks. This past season he had another 7.5 sacks, so he’s gone from 2.5 sacks in Dallas in three years before Quinn to 21 sacks in three years under Quinn. That’s some promising development, so it would make sense that he might look to follow Quinn to Washington.
Defensive Tackle
Under Contract: Jonathan Allen, Daron Payne, John Ridgeway, Phidarian Mathis
Free Agents: N/A
Analysis: The interior of the defensive line is undoubtedly the strongest position group on the Commanders defense as things stand. Allen and Payne have both shown their qualities for a long time now and both are on large contracts. Ridgeway, who was interestingly cut by the Cowboys in 2022 before the Commanders picked him up, has proven to be a strong back up option that is very stout against the run. For me, those three would be locks although there is a question to be asked about why the Cowboys cut Ridgeway while Quinn was the defensive coordinator. I suspect it was more of a numbers game thing with the roster than a reflection on Ridgeway’s ability and he’s proven since then he’s more than worthy of a spot.
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