The Commanders are down to the wire with roster cuts, and that means a long list of players could soon be exposed to the NFL waiver process.
Washington has until Sunday’s 6 p.m. deadline to trim to 53 players. That leaves 38 players who will be released, traded, or placed on an injury list as the team gets set for the season opener in Philadelphia against the Eagles.
After noon on Wednesday, any player who clears waivers can be added to Washington’s 17-man practice squad.
The group subject to waivers is a sizable one, featuring several notable names across the roster. It includes RB Kaytron Allen, CB Trey Amos, DT Ricky Barber, DE Boogie Basham, WR Jaden Bradley, T Brandon Coleman, T Josh Conerly Jr., DT Byron Cowart, RB Jacory Croskey-Merritt, QB Jayden Daniels, CB Fred Davis II, OL Julian Good-Jones, C Matt Gulbin, QB Sam Hartman, RB Robert Henry Jr., OL Trey Hill, DE Javontae Jean-Baptiste, DE D.J.
Johnson, S Quindell Johnson, WR Jacoby Jones, DE Joshua Josephs, LB Ale Kaho, QB Athan Kaliakmanis, S Qwuantrezz Knight, WR Jaylin Lane, LB Jordan Magee, DE T.J. Maguranyanga, S Quan Martin, DT Jeffrey M’ba, WR Luke McCaffrey, TE Tre’ McKitty, LB Kain Medrano, TE Quentin Moore, WR Nick Nash, DT Jer’Zhan Newton, S Tyler Owens, OL Nicholas Petit-Frere, CB Darius Rush, CB Mike Sainristil, TE Ben Sinnott, K Drew Stevens, LB Sonny Styles, OL Tanoa Togiai, CB Car’lin Vigers, WR Antonio Williams, and TE Colson Yankoff.
The basic rule is simple: when a player is waived, he goes onto the waiver wire and any team can try to claim him while taking on his current contract. Multiple teams can put in a claim during the same window, but only the highest-priority team gets the player.
Whether a player is waived or released outright comes down to NFL service time. A player with at least four years of accrued service is cut loose and becomes an unrestricted free agent immediately. Players with less than four years of service are subject to waivers first.
That waiver group is made up mostly of players who are not yet eligible for unrestricted free agency, including Exclusive Rights Free Agents with less than three years of service and Restricted Free Agents with three years of service.
Right now, waiver priority follows the 2026 NFL Draft order through the preseason and the first three weeks of the regular season, with no trades included. After Week 3, the order resets each week based on the standings. Until then, the Raiders sit at the top of the list.
Washington, which held the No. 7 pick in this year’s draft and selected Ohio State LB Sonny Styles, is seventh in waiver priority. That puts six teams ahead of the Commanders if eligible players start hitting the wire: the Las Vegas Raiders, New York Jets, Arizona Cardinals, Tennessee Titans, New York Giants, and Cleveland Browns.
The full order continues with the New Orleans Saints, Kansas City Chiefs, Cincinnati Bengals, Miami Dolphins, Dallas Cowboys, Atlanta Falcons, Baltimore Ravens, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Indianapolis Colts, Detroit Lions, Minnesota Vikings, Carolina Panthers, Green Bay Packers, Pittsburgh Steelers, Los Angeles Chargers, Philadelphia Eagles, Jacksonville Jaguars, Chicago Bears, Buffalo Bills, San Francisco 49ers, Houston Texans, Los Angeles Rams, Denver Broncos, New England Patriots, and Seattle Seahawks.
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