SEASON PREDICTION 

The past two years have been a roller coaster for Commanders fans. 2024 they made the NFC championship game with their rookie QB only to be followed up in 2025 with a 5-12 season (5 wins out of respect for Jayden Daniels) and Daniel's suffering constant injuries throughout the year. This offseason prioritized getting younger as in 2025 they fielded the oldest 53 man roster in over a decade. That old age veered its ugly head in 2025 with a lot of players being placed on IR or receding in capability. Despite the effort to get younger and lessen injuries, their season is already on a downwards trajectory. Their best offensive lineman in Laremy Tunsil got injured in training camp, and the reports are that he's expected to miss a significant portion of the year, which is not a good sign for Washington who is relying on Daniel's health to compete.   

While the loss of Tunsil is a huge blow to the O-line, Washington did the next best thing to help keep Daniels safe, which is adding him a weapon on the perimeter. They added Stefon Diggs in free agency who will immediately slot into the WR2 roll and add a veteran security blanket for Daniels to throw the ball too. I was extremely relieved when they signed Diggs because if Luke McCaffrey was the WR2, it would eliminate any playoff aspirations that Commanders fans had. Although this is a positive signing, I'm not excited for the rest of the offense. Last year was a split committee backfield but now with Chris Rodriguez gone, Washington will hope that Bill can take that second year leap. While I'm not high on Bill, the advanced analytics seem to like him having him ranked 9th overall in rushing success rate and 7th overall in yards per carry last year. However, he's going to have a tough job this year as the Commanders O-line ranks dead last in the league. Before the Tunsil injury, they were expected to be in the mid 20s, but losing such a valuable tackle severely hinders the entire frontline. The lack of a line play also concerns me in the fact that it may lead to Daniels taking a lot of hits and having to scramble out of the pocket to keep plays alive which in turn leads to open field hits where he is unprotected. Daniels skinny frame and his lack of safety concern could lead him to a similar demise that he faced in 2025 where he spends the majority of his season in the blue medical tent.  

As for the defense, Washington is looking to usher in a new era with the departure of Bobby Wagner and Marshon Lattimore. They have the entrance of younger stars such as Odafe Oweh, K'levon Chassion and Sonny Styles. Washington is hoping that the shift to young energy will improve their 27th ranked defense and Dan Quinn is enabling his master plan to revive the defense by making them compete in a spelling bee. The defense does have talent and I expect Sonny Styles to have a fantastic rookie season and finish top three in DROY voting. My issue looking over the roster is that there isn't a definitive superstar player that can take over a game by himself which is an asset all Super Bowl contending teams have. Pair this up with the fact that they're offense is going to struggle mightily at least to begin the season it adds up to this unit being on the field for a large portion of the game. And for a team that needs a top five unit to be competitive, this defense simply does not cut it.  

Hence, due to the O-line loss of Tunsil, an injury prone QB, and a brand new OC, I don't see this offense returning to 2024 form. The defense has improved from 2025, but they will not operate at an elite level that can cover an offense ranking in the mid 20s for efficiency. Which is why I have the Commanders finishing 6-11 and firing Dan Quinn at the seasons end.