If we’re looking at reasons why the Washington Commanders were so terrible in 2025, we can start with how they treated edge rusher Dante Fowler Jr., whom they let leave in free agency after leading them in sacks in 2024 — and let him sign with the Dallas Cowboys, at that.
After 1 season with the Cowboys, Fowler landed with 1 of the NFL’s best defenses in 2026 on the defending Super Bowl champion Seattle Seahawks.
Pro Football Focus NFL reporter Bradley Locker singled Fowler out as the “Most Underappreciated Acquisition” in the NFL on the eve of training camp.
“Any defending champion will innately lose multiple crucial pieces of success, and that was true for Seattle on both sides of the ball during the 2026 offseason,” Locker wrote. “However, the Seahawks attempted to land replacements, one of which was Fowler. The team signed him to only a one-year deal worth up to $5 million for its edge-rushing depth. Working on a bad Dallas defense didn’t hinder Fowler in 2025. Across 248 pass-rushing snaps, Fowler registered a 72.8 PFF pass-rush grade with a 14.3% pass-rush win rate. Both figures sat in at least the 72nd percentile, and he added an 85th-percentile PFF run-defense mark as well.”
Dante Fowler on 2nd Stint With Dallas Cowboys
Fowler led the Commanders with 10.5 sacks in 2024 and was on his 2nd stint with the Cowboys in 2025.
“Veteran edge rusher Dante Fowler Jr. is signing with the Seahawks on a one-year deal worth up to $5 million, per sources,” NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero wrote on his official X account on May 5. “The No. 3 overall pick in the 2015 draft, Fowler is now entering his 12th NFL season.”
Fowler’s 10.5 sacks in 2024 — his only season with the Commanders — were a huge reason why Washington went 12-5 in the regular season and advanced to the NFC Championship Game for the 1st time since 1991.
Without Fowler, the Commanders went 5-12 in 2025.
Fowler had just 3.0 sacks in 2025 while playing all 17 games for the Cowboys, including 11 starts.
Fowler’s Market Value Lined Up With New Deal
Fowler, the No. 3 overall pick in the 2015 NFL draft, has a projected market value of a 1-year, $5.1 million contract according to Spotrac. The Seahawks brought him in for a free agent visit 2 weeks before he signed.
“Veteran pass rusher Dante Fowler visited Seahawks today,” NFL reporter Aaron Wilson wrote on his official X account on April 16.
The Cowboys moved quickly to steal Fowler from their NFC East rival Commanders after Fowler helped lead Washington its first NFC Championship Game appearance since 1991.
“Fowler played for the Cowboys in 2022 and ’23 before leaving with former defensive coordinator Dan Quinn to the Washington Commanders last year and putting up 10.5 sacks,” ESPN’s Todd Archer wrote in March 2025. “Fowler’s deal is worth $6 million and can move to $8 million based on incentives.”
The Commanders were encouraged to offer Fowler a contract extension late in the 2024 season but they never made a serious move to keep him in the fold.
“One of the former Cowboys that Quinn lured over from Dallas, the 30-year-old has been impactful as a rotational edge-rusher this season,” Bleacher Report’s Matt Holder wrote in November 2024. “The Commanders should be looking to get younger on the edge, but Quinn knows what he has in Fowler. Extending an offer before Fowler hits the open market again would be sensible.”
Former Commanders Star Called NFL’s ‘Most Underappreciated Acquisition’