National Football League

Commanders offseason wrap: Did they do enough to become a playoff team?

Published Jul. 12, 2023 1:26 p.m. ET

The Washington Commanders looked at their 8-8-1 team from last season and apparently decided to mostly stand pat. This is partly because they’re a franchise in transition, awaiting a sale that could be completed by the start of training camp.

Another reason is because general manager Martin Mayhew and coach Ron Rivera seem to think the pieces of a contender are already there.

Are they right? And did they make enough small moves this offseason to make it happen? Here’s a look at what they’ve done and who they are heading into the summer, in the form of 3 truths and 1 lie:

Truth #1: They have a chance to have one of the best defenses in the NFL.

The Commanders had the NFL’s No. 3-ranked defense last season, so this isn’t really much of a stretch. Their D carried them to an 8-8-1 record and kept them in the playoff hunt almost to the end, despite a struggling offense and major quarterback issues.

They guaranteed their defense would still be pretty good the moment they re-signed Daron Payne, one of the best young defensive tackles in the league. But they also bolstered a pretty good secondary by drafting corners Emmanuel Forbes and Jartavius Martin in the first two rounds, which they hope will improve their turnover ratio.

Now imagine what this defense will look like if Chase Young returns healthy and looks anything at all like the Chase Young of old. He did nothing in his end-of-the-season cameo last year, so the Commanders' defense rose to No. 3 completely without him. Potentially, they have a dominating defensive line and a devastating end duo with Young and Montez Sweat.

Even if Young doesn’t make it all the way back, they still have the look of a top-10 defense and one of the best defensive lines in the league. If Young is what they once thought he’d be, this Washington defense could be great.

Truth #2: They really should have signed or drafted a tight end this offseason.

What a bizarre swing-and-a-miss this was, especially after hiring offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy away from the tight end-crazy Chiefs. If they have any hope of running any of the tight end plays the Chiefs always ran through Travis Kelce, the Commanders are going to have to get an enormous improvement from the injury-prone Logan Thomas who is about to turn 32.

Even if Bieniemy isn’t planning on making the tight end a centerpiece of his scheme, a strong receiving tight end sure would be a big help for a young quarterback like Sam Howell. That’s not Thomas, though. He had just 39 catches for 323 yards and a touchdown last year. He’s only had one strong season in the NFL, and that was in 2020 (72-670-6) and there’s no sign he can even duplicate that.

The Commanders seem content with a tight end room featuring Thomas, John Bates, Cole Turner and Armani Rogers. It’s just really not clear why.

Truth #3: Even with new offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy installing a version of the Chiefs’ offense, the strength of the Commanders will still be the running game.

This is the most interesting part about the Bieniemy-Rivera marriage. Rivera is a strong proponent of a dominant running game. Bieniemy is coming from a system where everything was pass-first. And he’s also coming to a team where he’s got three pretty good receivers —Terry McLaurin, Curtis Samuel and Jahan Dotson.

But Bieniemy is smart enough to know he can’t put that kind of pressure on a young quarterback like Howell who has made just one NFL start so far. And he can see the best part about the Commanders’ offense last season was their 12th-ranked rushing attack led by then-rookie Brian Robinson (797 yards) and veteran Antonio Gibson (546).

Bieniemy will undoubtedly lean on those two as much as he can. Yes, the Commanders will probably pass a little more than expected — maybe even a little more than last season. But until Howell shows he can handle the pressure of carrying a team, Bieniemy seems likely to adapt to Rivera’s run-first philosophy. Considering their top two backs combined for more than 1,300 yards last season, that obviously can be effective.

Then they can build out a better passing game from there.

Eric Bieniemy raises brows with a switch to Commanders OC

The Lie: The Commanders are absolutely all-in on Sam Howell at quarterback.

Not quite. And definitely not "all" in. At least not yet.

They are mostly committed to Howell as their QB1, but there’s a reason why they signed veteran Jacoby Brissett to be his (probable) backup and why Rivera won’t commit to Howell being his Opening Day starter. So far all Rivera has said is that Howell is the current first-teamer, and it will be that way entering training camp. Then they’ll see how it goes.

That’s because they really do want to see how it goes first. They believe in Howell and they think he’s going to be good — so much so that they were willing to trust him in a year whereas, Rivera probably needs to win to keep his job. But they are leaving the door open in case there’s any sign this summer that he’s not quite ready, or that Brissett is better.

So the Commanders have left themselves an out, which is different from giving an all-in commitment. They have an insurance policy that they’re making it clear they’re not afraid to use. If all goes well, Howell will be the Day 1 starter and they’ll probably ride him as far as they can. But their actions show they know there’s a possibility some things will go wrong. Just in case they do, they have a Plan B standing by.

Ralph Vacchiano is the NFC East reporter for FOX Sports, covering the Washington Commanders, Philadelphia Eagles and New York Giants. He spent the previous six years covering the Giants and Jets for SNY TV in New York, and before that, 16 years covering the Giants and the NFL for the New York Daily News. Follow him Twitter at @RalphVacchiano.

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