Takeaways from Commanders combine press conferences

Adam Peters and Dan Quinn both spoke to the media at the combine, here's my main takeaways from those press conferences

Commanders general manager Adam Peters and head coach Dan Quinn both spoke to the media at the NFL Scouting Combine on Tuesday. It’s the first time we’ve heard from Peters this offseason since the end of season press conference he held with Quinn in January. Generally speaking, the pair kept things relatively close to their chests, not giving away too much information about their offseason plans, which is of course to be expected. But there were a few interesting points brought up, so I thought I’d share the things that stood out and interested me.

Contract Updates

There were two main players that were asked about with regards to contract updates. The first was star left tackle Laremy Tunsil. The team acquired Tunsil in a trade with the Texans just before free agency last year. Tunsil played to an excellent level as one of the top left tackles in the league and now he’s entering the final year of his contract. At the end of the season, Peters said he was in communication with Tunsil and his people and he wanted to get a deal done.

When asked for an update, Peters emphasized that Tunsil is still a priority, but he refused to be drawn on any sort of timeline.

“I don’t want to put a timeline on it, but it is really important for us.” Peters explained. “We’ve been having talks and we’ve been having good and productive talks with Laremy and his team. We’re as motivated as ever to get that done, but I don’t want to put a timeline on it. Obviously, I don’t think either side wants to drag it on, but I don’t think the league year is anything that’s going to be a deadline of sorts.”

So it’s good again to hear Peters is intent on getting a deal done with Tunsil. Like in January, he referenced learning a lesson from allowing the Terry McLaurin negotiations to drag on too long last year. I was hopeful that they might get Tunsil’s deal sorted before free agency, when the price could go up, but Peters doesn’t seem to be too concerned about that. It’s still better to do a deal early, in my opinion, but I’ll take Peters at his word for now that he’s not looking for a repeat of the McLaurin situation.

The other big contract update was that of Daron Payne. Payne is in a similar situation to Tunsil in that he’s entering the final year of his contract, but while Tunsil is a priority to extend, Payne is not in the same boat. Payne has long been considered a potential cut candidate, with the Commanders able to save $16.75 million in cap space by moving on.

But Ben Standig reported a few weeks ago that the team had actually decided that they were going to hang onto Payne, rather than cut him and create yet another hole on the defense to fill. Peters effectively confirmed that decision today. He was asked if there had been any talks with Payne on a new deal.

“No, we haven’t begun that and I don’t think we’re going to explore that at this time. Really excited to have Daron with us next year and we can probably address that at a later time, maybe after the year. And I’ve talked with his agent about that… But right now I think Laremy, at this point, is the only one we’re talking to.”

That effectively confirms what Standig reported. While Payne has a high cap number, to move on from him would create another hole to fill. They are already projected to be in the top five in terms of cap space and will jump even higher when they eventually cut Marshon Lattimore. There’s plenty of other moves they can do to create cap space too, like getting a new deal sorted with Tunsil. So with plenty of cap space available, it does make some sense to keep Payne and let him play out the final year of his deal.

New Coaches Impact

Peters has spoken at length during his time in Washington that he views building a successful organisation as a big collaborative effort. It’s not just one guy dictating to everyone else, it’s not the GM and the scouts giving the coaching staff a set of players and telling them to just figure it out. It’s about the coaches working together with the scouting staff to build profiles of players that they’re looking for within their system and then it’s up to the scouts to go and find people that fit those profiles.

So naturally, when the Commanders overhaul their staff, replacing both the offensive and defensive coordinators, there’s going to be some changes in the profiles of players that Peters and his staff need to look for. Peters explained how recently, both new coordinators gave presentations to the scouting staff detailing what they were looking for in specific positions.

“A couple weeks ago, after we hired Daronte [Jones], both him and David [Blough] did an incredible job for us. They presented to the whole football staff, you know, their vision for offense and defense. So David went first and talked about offense, our vision, our scheme, and then got into the particular players and what we’re looking for in those particular players. They painted a great picture for us. And Daronte did the same. It was really super impressive. First of all, those guys are both really, really smart and [I’m] really, really excited about them.”

So how exactly are those profiles changing? Obviously Peters wouldn’t give too much away, but he did admit that some things would be different than before.

”It’s going to be a little bit different in terms of the players we’re looking at and what we’re looking for in those players… Daronte did a great job of painting the picture of what we’re looking at in this and how the front’s multiple so it doesn’t have to be just super specific, but if a guy can do multiple things, then the versatility is probably more of a premium now.”

That last line is an important one. Jones spoke in his introductory press conference about valuing versatile players that can do multiple things. Previously, the Commanders had a very clear vision on what they wanted the defense to be. They wanted to be blitzing, playing man coverage and trying to take the ball away. That style of defense requires very specific skill sets, like cornerbacks that can play man coverage, linebackers that can blitz etc.

But now under Jones, the focus will shift from very specific skill sets to perhaps guys that can do multiple things. That will now become a priority for Peters and his staff to target in free agency and the draft. Could that change how we see things with the seventh overall pick? An edge rusher like Texas Tech’s David Bailey has great potential as a pass rusher, but he’s not particularly strong against the run. Meanwhile, Ohio State’s Caleb Downs is a safety that personifies versatility and being able to play in multiple spots. Could that premium on versatility change those evaluations?

Perhaps, but don’t get too carried away with it. Peters was asked about how he evaluates pass rushers in particular. He explained that you have to find “guys that you know fit your scheme and your profile and we have new scheme this year with Daronte” However, Peters also said that there’s plenty of carry over. “I think a lot of that stuff carries over. If you’re a really good pass rusher, you’re always going to, you know, pass rush is going to weigh more than run defense, especially the way this league is.”

Peters went on to describe the obvious traits that everyone is looking for in an edge rusher. “I mean, ideally, you want Myles Garrett, you know, that’s who you want, but there’s only one of those guys walking on the face of the earth. But a lot of those same traits, right? Long, fast, explosive, can turn the corner, can finish, all those things.”

That’s nothing ground-breaking of course. Everyone would obviously want a Myles Garrett clone on their defense. But what was a little more informative was the follow up to that answer, where Peters was asked his opinion on pass rushers with shorter arms. This is particularly relevant given one of the top edge rushers in this class, Rueben Bain, is believed to have much shorter arms than the league average.

“In terms of guys with shorter arms, and there’s a few in this draft that are really, really good players. Arm length is, I mean, I can go into days on this arm length thing because every time you measure somebody’s arm, it could be 30, 31, 32, 33, just depending on who measures it. So, you get a pretty good idea of how long their arms are with that. But really [it’s about] how well they play with whatever length they have. Some guys have shorter arms that play with great length and extension all the time. Some guys have really long arms that don’t use their length as well. So it’s great to have that length, but it’s also how they use it and how it comes out on the tape. Some guys can excel with shorter arms by doing things differently, but ideally, you always want to have err on the side of a longer person.”

So I don’t think Bain is out of the equation in Washington because of his shorter arms, judging by that question. I do, however, think he might be lower down on the list because of his fit within the new defensive system. Daronte Jones is coming from a Vikings defense where they ran a 3-4 base front a lot. Jones does have a background in multiple schemes where he’s coached a 4-3, a 3-4 and everything in between. But I’ve felt that Jones will likely want to try and implement a defense as similar as possible to the Vikings scheme that got him hired in the first place. That would mean a shift to a 3-4 front.

Jones and the Commanders have been tight-lipped about their intentions with their defense, just stating that they will be multiple, which I’m sure they will be. Jones does have the ability to coach either front and at the end of the day, they’re both, as Jones said, “seven-man spacing”. But given the heightened priority on versatility, a switch to a 3-4 makes more sense because it offers more flexibility to the defense.

In his press conference, Dan Quinn hinted that Jones may well be switching to a 3-4 front. He was asked about Daron Payne’s fit with Jones.

“I think the versatility will help in some of that.” Quinn explained. “What’s so much fun about coaching Daron… He’s big enough to be a 3-4 end, you guys saw some of that here early on. He’s got the strength that can play inside at nose tackle and quickness to move.”

That’s the biggest clue yet that Jones is likely running a 3-4 front. Quinn specifically mentioned Payne’s ability to play as a 3-4 end and as a nose tackle, but he also went on to explain how he’s excited to see all three defensive tackles - Daron Payne, Javon Kinlaw and Johnny Newton - on the field together at the same time.

”So to see JK [Kinlaw] and [Payne] and Johnny [Newton] and how do we feature them on the field together some. Having the three of those together that excites me honestly. These are guys that really love to battle and compete and so because they’re versatile, it gives Daronte even more options of how to deploy and how to match up guys. So it’s a big deal for us.”

Circling this back to the draft and specifically Bain, I think there’s definitely a role for Bain in a 3-4 defense. But he’s reportedly around about 270-275 pounds. At that size, he’s very much a 4-3 defensive end. He’d be considered too heavy to play 3-4 outside linebacker and have to drop into coverage occasionally. Now, if they drafted him, they could easily get into some four-man fronts and still use him as a 4-3 defensive end, and I think he’d be excellent at bulking up and shifting inside to 3-4 defensive end too. But I’m not sure that would be anyone’s first choice.

Free Agency

There were a few smaller, individual notes when it came to the upcoming free agency period. Obviously, the Commanders have a lot of their own players scheduled to become free agents. Peters and Quinn were separately asked about quite a few of those individuals.

First, it was Zach Ertz. The veteran tight end is coming off a torn ACL and it was reported on Tuesday that he intends to play in 2026. Peters was asked about Ertz and suggested the door is still open, but he didn’t exactly sound like he was counting on Ertz to be a major piece for them in 2026.

“I think starting with Zach, it’s hard to really quantify how good he is. His ability to get open and be a great target on a third down or any passing down, being a quarterback friendly person and getting the confidence of whatever quarterback he’s playing with is something that you can’t really see on a 40 time or anything like that. He’s just, he’s always open, and he makes big plays, and he’s an incredible guy in the locker room. So that was a big loss when he went down. We’ll keep the door open for him for sure. We’ve had a lot of talks with him personally and his agent in terms of just keeping that door open and seeing how he progresses with his injury, but you can’t count on anything.”

Then Dan Quinn was asked about impending free agent guard Chris Paul, who started the 2025 season as a back up but quickly won the starting job over Brandon Coleman.

“Yeah, super proud of Chris. I thought the development that he made and playing alongside Laremy, I thought a couple things that jump out to me. I thought the combination blocks with the two of them, these are strong people that could move people off the line of scrimmage. And then I thought because of Chris’s athleticism, the thing that showed up the most to me is pass protection. Having the ability to mirror somebody, to stay in front, those were the things that I saw week after week from Chris.”

But while Quinn was quick to praise Paul for his performances and his work ethic, he stopped short of committing to trying to bring Paul back. When asked about how much of a priority it was, Quinn sidestepped the question.

“We’re going through the whole process, everybody counts in that, you know, not the same, but everybody’s part of it. But yeah, definitely somebody that, like, obviously we’re keeping close tabs on as Adam and his team are going through that.”

That’s a far cry from last year when Quinn and Peters both spoke about how they wanted guys like Zach Ertz and Bobby Wagner back. Neither were shy about saying that then. So for Quinn to be so non-committal is of note to me. “Keeping close tabs on” is very different to “We want him back”. Don’t get me wrong, I think the team would have Paul back at the right price, but I’m not sure that they have the same value for him that other teams might have.

Offensive lineman get paid a premium in free agency. Just last year, the Packers paid guard Aaron Banks nearly $20 million per year on average despite him being widely considered a bust in San Francisco. I’m not saying Paul will get that type of deal, but he could get a significant contract. The Commanders already have a lot invested in the offensive line. Tunsil is in line for a new deal, Sam Cosmi is already on a big contract. Tyler Biadasz got a decent free agent contract and Josh Conerly was a first round pick. There’s only so much you can invest in an individual unit.

Besides that, the Commanders have a player ready to step in for Paul in Brandon Coleman. He struggled at left guard last year but he had a very unsettled offseason where he switched positions multiple times and battled with some injuries that never really let him get set. He’s also a much more athletic lineman than Paul, which would mean if the Commanders are to try and use more of the zone blocking scheme. Coleman would be a better schematic fit than Paul.

I’m perhaps reading too much into that comment from Quinn, but I did feel it was notable that he didn’t really give a firm response to say they wanted Paul back. Quinn also stopped short of saying the team wants Bobby Wagner back. There were also reports on Tuesday that Wagner intends to play in 2026, just like Ertz. When asked about Wagner, Quinn was more enthusiastic than he was with Paul, but also didn’t commit to anything.

”We love Wagz. One of my favorite ones this year was just getting to visit with him after him winning the Walter Payton Man of the Year Award. So proud. We haven’t got into the specifics of what’s ahead and where we’re at with that yet, so that will be in the days and weeks ahead”.

One final point worth talking about here came from Peters press conference at the podium at the combine. Reporters from around the league are all gathered in one place and they get to go to press conferences of coaches and GMs from teams they don’t usually cover. A 49ers reporter that knew Peters from his time in San Francisco, joined Peters’ press conference to ask him about 49ers wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk.

Aiyuk has been an interesting debate this offseason for Commanders fans. It’s well known that he’s one of Jayden Daniels closest friends from their time together in college. There’s been a whole situation brewing for a while now in San Francisco and it appears as though the 49ers will be moving on from Aiyuk at some point after the new league year starts, likely cutting him with a post-June 1st designation. That designation will allow the 49ers to spread out the dead cap hit from cutting him over two years and save them more on their cap this season.

The 49ers have been very open about this. GM John Lynch has publicly stated Aiyuk has played his last snap for the 49ers. So it’s just a matter of when, not if he will become available. Given Peters was in San Francisco when the 49ers drafted him, and how Daniels has a strong relationship with him, it feels inevitable that Aiyuk will likely end up in Washington this season.

But until it happens, we won’t know for sure. So the 49ers reporter asked Peters about the situation. Peters quickly mentioned that “Brandon Aiyuk is a player on another team under contract, so I can’t comment on that.”. When the question was reframed to how Peters feels about giving players second chances, he opened up a little more.

“Yeah, I think everybody on earth deserves a second chance.” He went on to talk about Javon Kinlaw, another former 49ers player who left San Francisco and Peters brought in to Washington. But just before ending his answer, Peters said one final piece on Aiyuk. “But in terms of Brandon, love the person, but can’t really comment on the player.”

Now of course, it wouldn’t make any sense for Peters to say he hates Aiyuk as a person, but he also didn’t have to say anything at all about that and could easily have stuck by his original reply about Aiyuk being under contract with the 49ers. The fact he circled back to Aiyuk to specifically mention he loves the person suggests to me that he’s very much open to the idea of giving Aiyuk that second chance in Washington.