They’ve spent big to retool their defense into a potential top-10 unit, but the Washington Commanders could still use a versatile Super Bowl winner to help settle lingering questions about their options at cornerback.
It’s why veteran Rasul Douglas remains somebody the Commanders have “some interest” in during the remainder of 2026 NFL free agency. That’s according to ESPN’s John Keim, who addressed concerns about physicality and depth for the Commanders’ cornerbacks.
Speaking on ‘The John Keim Report’ for Ampire Media, Keim pointed out how “if you’re looking at free agent corners, like Rasul Douglas is out there, and he’s an outside corner. He’s six foot two, did a really nice job for Miami last year. Now Miami’s GM comes from Buffalo, where Douglas also played for a couple years before going to Miami, and they haven’t shown a desire to bring him back. So that’s a little bit telling to me, but he did have a good year. Now this team, I do think there’s some interest there, but I don’t think they want to go more than like a league minimum, but that sounds kind of like that. So, but let’s see where he is in training camp.”
Adding Douglas to the mix would provide new defensive coordinator Daronte Jones with qualities he currently lacks at the position. Being without those qualities makes youthful duo Trey Amos and Mike Sainristil, as well as free-agent arrival Amik Robertson, potential weaknesses in Jones’ complex new system.
Rasul Douglas Offers Commanders What’s Missing
When the Commanders hired Jones from the Minnesota Vikings, they not only got a Brian Flores student who knows how to design sophisticated packages of blitzes. The Commander also got a designer of elaborate zone-based coverage shells.
Keim explained Jones’ Commanders will be “will be heavy, heavy zone.” The scheme will demand physical corners who can muscle receivers on the perimeter and re-route them to the middle of the field, where unexpected defenders will be dropping into coverage.
This is where Douglas represents a good fit because he’s a 6-foot-2, 209-pounder who uses a handsy technique to win in press. Those attributes set Douglas apart from 190-pound Amos and 5-foot-10 Sainristil.
Robertson is scrappy enough to play in the slot, but he’s also only 5-foot-9 and 183 pounds. Douglas would give Jones and his staff a bigger corner man to move around formations.
He helped Washington’s NFC East rivals the Philadelphia Eagles win a Super Bowl to cap the 2017 season, so Douglas has the pedigree to come in and compete for significant reps with the Commanders.
While Douglas makes sense as a potential camp body, there are other viable cornerbacks still on the veteran market. Including two corners with ties to Jones.
Daronte Jones Has Two Fits in Free Agency
As Keim put it, “So then you have Jeffrey Okudah, injuries have really kind of defined his career. You have Fabian Moreau, who was with Minnesota. Okudah, I bring up Okudah and Fabian Moreau because they were in Minnesota last year with Daronte Jones.”
Moreau’s name stands out because he played in Washington from 2017 until 2021. He and Okudah both stand at least 6-foot and each tips the scales at 200-plus pounds, so they fit the Commanders’ need to get bigger on the outside.
It’s a need another veteran, Ahkello Witherspoon, could also answer. He signed with the Commanders back in March, and Witherspoon is a 6-foot-2 press corner who can play his way into a more important role than anticipated.
General manager Adam Peters and head coach Dan Quinn may believe they already have enough at corner, but the multi-layered nature of Jones’ defense means adding more veteran experience at a low cost wouldn’t be a luxury.
Commanders Have ‘Some Interest’ in Super Bowl Winning Free Agent