Getty Dallas Cowboys defensive end Dorance Armstrong.
The Washington Commanders went a long time without any good headlines — a direct result of the scandal-ridden era of owner Daniel Snyder, who sold the team in 2023.
What the Commanders have done in the 2024 NFL offseason that seems to have worked is hitting lots of “singles” according to ESPN’s Bill Barnwell — a philosophy that already seems to be paying off for a team that hasn’t had a winning season since going 8-7-1 in 2016 and hasn’t been more than 2 games above .500 since going 10-6 in 2012.
Now, with new leaders in place across the board and a potential franchise quarterback in No. 2 overall pick Jayden Daniels, the Commanders have real reason for hope.
Barnwell led his praise of the Commanders’ offseason by citing the superlative for the franchise as the “team least likely to make headlines.”
From Barnwell: “It’s always a big deal when a team drafts a quarterback in the top five — Washington’s offseason will be made on how Jayden Daniels pans out — but what was otherwise striking was how normal and understandable so many of their moves seem.”
Commanders Hired New GM, New Head Coach
Barnwell led his praise for the Commanders — besides avoiding scandals – by pointing out the deft moves they made in the front office with new general manager and hiring Dan Quinn as the new head coach.
Peters got his start as a scout with the New England Patriots in 2003 then worked his way up the ladder with the Denver Broncos and San Francisco 49ers, where he was the assistant general manager the last three seasons.
Quinn won a Super Bowl as defensive coordinator for the Seattle Seahawks in 2013, spent six seasons as head coach of the Atlanta Falcons and made it to a Super Bowl in 2017 and spent the last three seasons as defensive coordinator of the Dallas Cowboys.
From Barnwell: “The new regime hired a well-respected but untested general manager in San Francisco’s Adam Peters, then flirted with other coaching options before eventually hiring Dan Quinn, a culture-builder who took the Falcons to Super Bowl LI and dramatically improved the Cowboys’ defense within his first two years of joining those organizations.”
Commanders Didn’t Shoot For Moon in Free Agency
One of the hallmarks of the Snyder era was making massive free agent deals that defied football logic, including signing a past-his-prime Deion “Prime Time” Sanders to a 7-year, $56 million contract in 2000 and signing defensive tackle Albert Haynesworth to a 7-year, $100 million contract in 2009 — Haynesworth only played 20 games for Washington.
The new-look Commanders went for solid investments — singles that could turn into doubles and doubles that could turn into triples.
“When it came to personnel, the Commanders didn’t take a big swing and instead invested in bargain deals for a handful of veterans. Their biggest signing was former Quinn charge Dorance Armstrong, who had 21 sacks over the past three years in a situational role in Dallas,” Barnwell wrote. “They plumbed the depths of the Panthers’ defense for Frankie Luvu and Jeremy Chinn, players who looked like potential Pro Bowlers at different times over the past few years. Running back Austin Ekeler and corner Michael Davis were meaningful parts of a playoff team in Los Angeles as recently as 2022.
“Their highest-profile signing was Bobby Wagner, whose one-year deal is as much about reestablishing the team’s culture as it is landing a valuable middle linebacker.