The Washington Commanders looked like they had cracked the code in 2024. A four-win team the year before suddenly ripped off a 12-5 season, reached the NFC Championship game, and did it with a rookie quarterback and a first-year head coach and general manager steering the ship. It felt like the start of something real.
Instead, 21 months later, the picture is almost unrecognizable: Washington sits at 6-16-1, and several key people in the building are staring at uncertain futures.
So how did a run that looked like the launch of a contender turn into a false dawn? A lot went wrong, and it starts with the way the roster was built.
Adam Peters leaned hard into a roster model that couldn’t last. In his first year running the front office, he added veteran help to a team that was stuck in no-man’s-land, and those moves paid off immediately in 2024.
Zach Ertz, Austin Ekeler, Bobby Wagner, Dante Fowler Jr. and Jeremy Chinn all made major contributions, even if none of them were meant to be part of a long-term core. Once Washington unexpectedly surged, Peters kept pushing in that direction.
He traded for Marshon Lattimore, Laremy Tunsil and Deebo Samuel Sr., signed Von Miller, and brought back Ertz, Ekeler and Wagner. The result was the league’s oldest roster by a wide margin - and, as it turned out, a team that was old and slow.
Dan Quinn’s first-year magic also didn’t carry over once expectations changed. He was the right voice for a rebuild, and Washington responded to his energy right away in 2024.
But over the last two years, the problems have piled up: clock management mistakes, discipline issues, and defenses that have been flat-out bad. Quinn has taken plenty of the heat, and inevitably a head coach does when things unravel.
He deserves some room because he wasn’t the only culprit, but the fit that worked in the beginning may not be the fit Washington needs going forward if it wants a younger, fresher voice.
Health has been a constant wrecking ball, too. The Commanders spent last season explaining away a bad finish with injuries, especially Jayden Daniels’ seven-game season, and there was hope for a healthier reset in 2026.
That hope vanished quickly when Tunsil went down in training camp with a torn triceps. Daniels has already missed two games again this season with another dislocated elbow, and Terry McLaurin’s injury-related decline may be the most painful setback of all.
After Washington extended the fan favorite following his standoff a year ago, the expectation was at least a few more Pro Bowl-caliber seasons. Now, he might have played his final snap in the burgundy and gold.
The young talent that was supposed to keep the window open hasn’t held up either. In 2024, Mike Sainristil, Brandon Coleman and Johnny Newton were starting as rookies alongside Daniels, while Quan Martin was taking a step in Year 2 and Luke McCaffrey and Ben Sinnott had promise.
But that group has mostly stalled or regressed. Washington still has some hope in No. 7 overall pick Sonny Styles, third-round receiver Antonio Williams, and 2025 first-round right tackle Josh Conerly Jr.
Beyond that, the cupboard looks thin.
And then there’s the simplest explanation of all: maybe the 2024 team just overachieved in ways that couldn’t be repeated. Washington played a last-place schedule and kept winning tight games.
It escaped one bad opponent on a Hail Mary, got another one when a walk-off two-point try failed, and stayed relatively healthy while the regular-season signature win over the Philadelphia Eagles came after Jalen Hurts exited with a concussion. In the postseason, the Commanders handled a Tampa Bay Buccaneers team that was described as a pretender and then beat the Detroit Lions without half of their starting defense before getting crushed by the Eagles by 32.
The 23 games since then have only reinforced the uncomfortable truth.
In Other News...
Adam Peters Framed Washingtons Coaching Response In A Telling Way
The Commanders used their bye week to take stock after the loss to the 49ers, and general manager Adam Peters radio appearance offered a clearer picture of how the organization is handling the uneven stretch. Peters addressed the teams recent performance and the coaching side of things, while also confirming a move on defense that had been expected behind the scenes for some time.
What stood out most was the lack of drama around the staff during the break. There were no sweeping changes, and Dan Quinn is still expected to remain as head coach through the end of the season, which keeps the structure intact for now. The real question for Washington is how much the recent adjustment on defense can help steady things as the schedule resumes. [Read more 🡒]
Terry McLaurin Is Already Showing Commanders What Comes Next
Terry McLaurins season ended with a knee injury that will send him into a long rehabilitation, but the Commanders are already seeing the part of his value that goes beyond Sundays. General manager Adam Peters spoke about McLaurins leadership and the way he has handled the setback, noting the receivers steady presence and positive approach even as the injury changed the shape of Washingtons season.
Peters also made clear that McLaurin intends to remain a resource for the locker room while he recovers, which matters for a young team still sorting out its next steps at receiver. The on-field production is now on hold, but the mentoring piece may become a bigger part of McLaurins role in the months ahead, giving Washington a veteran voice it can lean on while the roster keeps evolving around him. [Read more 🡒]
Commanders May Have Found A Defensive Cornerstone At The Perfect Time
Sonny Styles has already given Washington plenty to like in the opening stretch of his rookie season, and the praise has started to come from outside the building. ESPN analyst Domonique Foxworth singled out the linebacker for his mental acumen and the way he has performed through the first six weeks, a notable endorsement for a player the Commanders are counting on to grow into a central piece of the defense.
What makes that kind of attention matter is the way Styles has filled up the stat sheet while learning on the fly, showing impact in coverage, around the line of scrimmage and as a disruptive presence. Foxworth even drew a comparison to four-time All-Pro Fred Warner, which is the kind of company that usually comes with expectations as much as praise, and it leaves Washington with a promising question: how high can Styles climb once his rookie season settles in? [Read more 🡒]