While the Washington Commanders did a more-than-commendable job of rebuilding their defense so far this offseason, their offense still leaves quite a bit to be desired.
Perhaps the most glaring example of this is the franchise cutting starting center Tyler Biadasz and watching him get scooped up by the Los Angeles Chargers on a 3-year, $30 million contract.
Bleacher Report’s Gary Davenport plotted a path to finding the right replacement, urging the Commanders to sign 6-foot-6, 320-pound free agent center Ethan Pocic.
“… As things stand, the starting center in 2026 would be journeyman veteran Nick Allegretti, who played just 260 snaps in 2025 and wasn’t particularly good when he was out there,” Davenport wrote. “Ethan Pocic wouldn’t be a long-term solution for the team — he’ll turn 31 before the season starts. He has also missed multiple games in three of the past four seasons, including four a year ago. However, the 10th-year veteran is a capable NFL starter with 97 career starts under his belt and allowed just two sacks in 826 snaps last year with the Cleveland Browns. On a one-year deal, Pocic would be a solid addition for Washington.”
Ethan Pocic Dealing With Terrible Injury
While injuries have been an issue for Pocic the last few years, they’ve been nagging ones — the injury he suffered toward the end of the 2025 season might actually put him in doubt for being able to start the 2026 season on anyone’s roster.
“The news concerning veteran center Ethan Pocic was exactly what the Browns feared it would be,” The Akron Beacon Journal’s Chris Easterling wrote on December 8. “Pocic suffered an Achilles tear in his left leg on Dec. 7, coach Kevin Stefanski confirmed … Stefanski had said that immediately after the Browns’ 31-29 loss to the Tennessee Titans, but said it required an MRI to confirm the injury. The injury will obviously require surgery.”
Full-Time Starter for 2 Different Franchises
Pocic was a 2-time All-SEC selection and All-American at LSU before the Seattle Seahawks selected him in the 2nd round (No. 58 overall) of the 2017 NFL draft.
He became a full-time starter as a swing guard for the Seahawks as a rookie and made the NFL All-Rookie Team, but only played 14 games over the next 2 seasons due to injuries.
In 2020, he became the full-time starter at center for the Seahawks and stayed there until he signed a 1-year, $1.18 million “prove-it” free-agent contract with the Browns in 2022. He turned that into a 3-year, $18 million free-agent contract with the Browns in 2023.
Through his 1st 9 NFL seasons, Pocic has approximately $26.7 million in career earnings.
What Commanders Lost With Tyler Biadasz
Bleacher Report called Biadasz the NFL’s “Biggest Steal” in free agency this offseason and praised the Chargers for moving so quickly to bring him in what ended up being a bidding war between the Chargers and Chicago Bears.
Biadasz started 31 games the last 2 seasons for the Commanders after signing a 3-year, $29.5 million free agent contract before the 2024 season.
“Biadasz graded higher than former Chargers starting center Braldey Bozeman in both pass block (94.5%) and run block win rate (69.9%) last season,” ESPN’s Kris Rihm wrote. “Bozeman ranked 30th in PBWR, while Biadasz finished 15th. In RBWR, Bozeman ranked 18th compared to Biadasz at 16th.”
Commanders Singled Out as ‘Perfect Fit’ For 6-foot-6, 320-Pound Center