Washington’s left side took a major hit Monday, with head coach Dan Quinn confirming that Laremy Tunsil tore his triceps and will need surgery.
The Commanders are bracing for a long absence. Tunsil’s exact recovery timeline won’t be clear until after the procedure, and no surgery date has been set yet because he is still seeking medical opinions. Even so, Quinn said the expectation is that Tunsil will miss a vast portion of the season at minimum.
The injury happened during a Saturday 1-on-1 rep against Odafe Oweh, and Quinn addressed it bluntly before Monday morning’s training camp practice.
“It’s always tough to talk about a player missing time with a great player like LT,” Quinn said in his Monday press conference. “Not only is he a great player, he is a fantastic teammate. He will be missed and we can’t wait to get him back.”
With Tunsil out, Washington is turning to Brandon Coleman at left tackle. Coleman played there during the 2024 season and again when Tunsil was injured last year, and he now steps into the spot after spending time competing with Chris Paul for the starting left guard job in 2026. Coleman has 18 career starts at left tackle, and Quinn said the move back outside should be manageable because of Coleman’s experience there.
“When you’re a rookie thrown into it and you go through the ups and downs, I think he, after going through some adversity and you get to Year 2 and you want to fight back,” Quinn said. “That’s the type of offseason he had.
That’s why I think he’s been off to a good start inside at left guard. We’ll make the move to switch him outside, but, when you come through the tough things, you come out the other side stronger, harder after learning the lessons.
Brandon and a couple of other guys are in that same space.”
The Commanders are also keeping 2025 first-round pick Josh Conerly Jr. at right tackle, even though he played extensively on the left side in college. Quinn said the team wants to avoid moving too many pieces around.
“We like the progression of where Josh is,” Quinn said. “(Tunsil) is going to be back, and we thought we’d keep the development of where Josh is, and not the shuffle of lots of shuffling.”
For now, the team has not discussed adding an outside left tackle.
Replacing Tunsil is a steep ask. Quinn praised not only his play, but the impact he brings every day.
“He’s in fantastic shape. He’s really on the top of his game right now,” Quinn said.
“In the run and pass, he’s an equally strong player. This is a big deal.
When the game’s on, you run behind a player like that. In pass protection, you don’t have to give a lot of help.
That’s a good thing.
“... The on-field portion speaks for itself.
This is a great player. The off-field portion is also significant, with his teammates and how he interacts with them.
On and off the field, this is significant for us.”
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The timing makes the loss especially uneasy because the Commanders were counting on that spot to help protect a young quarterback and keep the offense on schedule. Now the depth chart has to be reshuffled quickly, with Brandon Coleman and Andrew Wylie among the names in the mix, and Washington's next move at tackle could end up shaping how much of Daniels' growth is visible early in the year. [Read more 🡒]