The Washington Commanders spent 2025 getting burned in the same place over and over: at linebacker, where coverage in space became a problem they never really solved.
That’s exactly why Daronte Jones is taking a different tack. The new coordinator is trimming down the asks for the players responsible for matching up underneath, and one of the first people to notice the appeal is Leo Chenal.
Chenal, a two-time Super Bowl winner with the Kansas City Chiefs, is one of the bigger additions general manager Adam Peters made in free agency. Washington also poured money into the pass rush, giving Jones the kind of front he needs to run the blitz-heavy looks he picked up under Brian Flores and Mike Zimmer with the Minnesota Vikings. But Chenal may end up being the piece that makes the whole thing feel cleaner, because his value comes from being able to move, react and finish in space.
He laid out why the new approach should help him get on the field fast, per The John Keim Report:
"We drop back a lot of time, a lot of defenses, different defenses, and it works for them. They search the routes down. They're centered the routes while, you know, sometimes the ball's in the air, but a lot of our match zones or a lot of our coverages here allow us to really like get back to where we're supposed to be, you know, see periph' routes, but be able to look back at the quarterback, be able to break on where he's throwing."
That idea - keeping pass-catchers in front instead of asking linebackers to turn and chase - fits what Washington needed after opponents repeatedly targeted its second level last season. Veterans like Bobby Wagner, a 10-time Pro Bowler, were exposed far too often, and the coverage structure under Joe Whitt Jr. didn’t help.
Whitt leaned on man coverage a lot, especially during Washington’s Cinderella run in 2024. That continued into last season, when the Commanders used the scheme at the sixth-highest rate in the league, according to Stat Muse.
The deeper problem was how often the middle of the field was left open. Sharp Football Analysis says Washington left the deep middle uncovered on 49.5 percent of plays, a sign the defense was living in single-high looks behind Cover-1 or Cover-3.
Cover-1 is man coverage with a safety over the top, and even Cover-3 can blur the line between man and zone. In other words, the Commanders were in man more than the basic numbers might have suggested.
Jones was always going to steer this in a different direction. He came over after serving as defensive backs coach and pass-game coordinator for a Vikings defense that played zone 77.1 percent of the time in 2025. What stands out now is how much simpler he’s making life for the linebackers, giving them concepts that let the best athletes play faster instead of thinking through every step.
That matters because Washington has suddenly built a linebacker group that looks a lot more suited to this style. Chenal is in the mix, and so is Sonny Styles, whom the Commanders drafted with the No. 7 overall pick. Jordan Magee and Kain Medrano also fit the picture as lighter, more mobile players with safety-like traits.
The coverage ideas here are less about intricate pattern-matching, where linebackers have to sort through routes and follow receivers into their areas, and more about old-school spot-dropping. The linebackers sink to a spot, keep their eyes on the quarterback and drive on the ball when it comes out.
That setup can create turnovers, and Chenal already has a play that shows why. He intercepted a pass against the Baltimore Ravens last season.
Intercepted by Leo Chenal!
BALvsKC on CBS/Paramount+ https://t.co/HkKw7uXnxV pic.twitter.com/kyG1dpBcg1
- NFL (@NFL) September 28, 2025
It should also help cut down yards after the catch, which is a big deal for Jones’ pressure package. If short completions only turn into small gains, offenses are more likely to face third-and-long, and that’s where the blitzes can really start to bite.
That also helps Frankie Luvu, who should get back to doing what he does best in this defense. But he won’t have to carry the load by himself anymore.
This time, he has company. Plenty of it.
Chenal looks like one of the likeliest candidates to make it work.
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What makes the addition notable is the connection behind it. The two had already worked together in San Francisco, giving Peters another evaluator he knows well as Washington keeps refining its personnel operation. It also comes after a recent shakeup in Minnesota, where Washingtons path opened up and created an opportunity for the Commanders to move quickly. [Read more 🡒]