The Washington Commanders fired the offseason's first major shot by agreeing to acquire wide receiver Deebo Samuel Sr. from the San Francisco 49ers in exchange for a fifth-round draft pick. But there is a lot for this team to get through in the coming weeks, starting with free agency.
No one can dispute the price Adam Peters paid. A fifth-rounder for a player of Samuel’s potential is a bargain. His impact on the salary cap should be mitigated by the eventual trade or release of Jonathan Allen. Once that happens, the general manager will again have one of the biggest bankrolls in the league to spend on free agents.
The Samuel deal cannot be made final until the new league year begins on March 12. That’s when teams can begin signing free agents as well.
Several potential free agent targets for the Commanders — such as Tee Higgins and Osa Odighizuwa — are reportedly going to get the franchise tag. The Cincinnati Bengals and Dallas Cowboys are the only teams that can currently negotiate with those players.
Peters is in a similar position with Washington’s pending free agents. For the first time in many years, the Commanders have several players who should draw interest from other clubs if they do not re-sign. That’s a testament to his smart roster moves last offseason.
That kind of success comes with difficult decisions. Washington might wish to retain some who contributed in 2024, but they cannot sign them all. The roster still has holes and treading water isn’t good enough. The Commanders have to spend money on new players, which means some of the older ones will be leaving.
We’ll take a brief look at the key defensive free agents. With no salary cap or roster limitation, Peters might want to re-sign all of them. Since that won’t happen, we’ll examine what other NFL teams might make a play for each and assess how likely it is that each will be on a new team in 2025.
Examining the outlook for key Commanders free agents on defense
Jeremy Chinn
Jeremy Chinn might be the free agent that Peters is most eager to re-sign.
Chinn had a good bounce-back season under Dan Quinn and Joe Whitt Jr. He can provide the Commanders with a hard-hitting, in-the-box safety who is still young enough to merit a multi-year deal. The Buffalo Bills would love to bolster their back end with a player like this, so getting something worked out before legal tampering would be wise.
Dante Fowler Jr.
Dante Fowler Jr. was Washington’s best pass rusher in 2024, but he’ll be 31 years old when the new season begins and his future production is not guaranteed. The Commanders might want to re-up him, but that would be as part of a significant overhaul across the defensive front.
The Chicago Bears recently released DeMarcus Walker and it’s no secret they are in the market for pass rush help. Fowler should draw some interest, but it will most likely come after a few of the bigger names have been snapped up.
Noah Igbinoghene
Noah Igbinoghene filled a valuable role for the Commanders in 2024. He came from Dallas with Quinn and Whitt, stepping in when Washington finally pulled the plug on the last of Ron Rivera’s failed cornerbacks.
The problem is he should be playing inside as a slot corner. That’s also the role Mike Sainristil should be playing.
Because Benjamin St-Juste and Emmanuel Forbes Jr. couldn’t handle the perimeter last year, both Igbinoghene and Sainristil had to sometimes play out of position. Going forward, Peters should find a legit perimeter corner to pair with Marshon Lattimore.
This would allow Sainristil to move inside. That could leave Igbinoghene out. He would not be out for long.
The Bengals, Minnesota Vikings, and San Francisco 49ers are just a few of the many teams that will be looking to add players to their cornerback room this offseason.
Bobby Wagner
When Bobby Wagner was signed, most of us assumed the venerable veteran linebacker would be around for one year to mentor Jordan Magee. Then the rookie got hurt. He barely saw the field in 2024.
Wagner had another All-Pro season. Combined with his graduate work at Howard University, we all assumed he would remain at least one more year. But that has also come into question with some mixed signals coming from Commanders management.
This is the most intriguing free-agent situation Peters has to deal with. There will be interest should Wagner not re-sign. Pete Carroll might want him for the Las Vegas Raiders. The Los Angeles Rams had his services a few years ago and he would look very good anchoring that young, promising defense.
I would hate to lose Wagner, but the only nightmare scenario would be for him to leave Washington and sign with the Philadelphia Eagles to take over for Zack Baun should he depart. Playing against him twice a season wouldn't be ideal.
