The Commanders are promoting tight ends coach David Raih to pass game coordinator and they’ve found a new position coach to take over his former role on Dan Quinn’s staff.
Tom Pelissero of NFL Media reports that they will hire Ben Steele as their new tight ends coach.
Steele had the same job on the Cardinals’ staff over the last three years, so he had a hand in Trey McBride’s ascent to the top tier of tight ends in the league. Steele worked for the Broncos, Vikings, Falcons, and Buccaneers before heading to Arizona.
Steele played in 17 games for the Packers in 2004 and 2005. He had four catches for 42 yards in those appearances.
Commanders Clips
Teams making decisions about picking up the fifth-year options on the contracts of their 2023 first-round picks now know how much that will cost.
The NFL revealed the values on Friday afternoon. There are four levels of compensation at each position. Players who have made multiple Pro Bowls as an original selection are at the top followed by players with one Pro Bowl selection and players who have hit playing time milestones before reaching the lowest level.
Panthers quarterback Bryce Young and Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud were the first two picks of that draft and both of them reached the playing time level of compensation. That will leave them with fully guaranteed salaries of $25.904 million if the teams decide to exercise the options, but longer-term extensions are also a possibility now that they have finished their third seasons.
The full list of 2023 first-rounders — there were 31 that year because the Dolphins were stripped of their pick — and their fifth-year option salaries appears below:
1. Panthers QB Bryce Young — $25.904 million (playing time).
2. Texans QB C.J. Stroud — $25.904 million (playing time).
3. Texans DE Will Anderson — $21.512 (Pro Bowl).
4. Colts QB Anthony Richardson — $22.483 million (base).
5. Seahawks CB Devon Witherspoon — $21.161 million (multiple Pro Bowls).
6. Cardinals OT Paris Johnson — $19.072 million (playing time).
7. Raiders DE Tyree Wilson — $14.475 million (base).
8. Falcons RB Bijan Robinson — $11.323 million (Pro Bowl).
9. Eagles DT Jalen Carter — $27.127 million (multiple Pro Bowls).
10. Bears OT Darnell Wright — $19.072 million (playing time).
11. Titans OG Peter Skoronski — $19.072 million (playing time).
12. Lions RB Jahmyr Gibbs — $14.293 million (multiple Pro Bowls).
13. Packers DE Lukas Van Ness — $14.475 million (base).
14. Steelers OT Broderick Jones — $19.072 million (playing time).
15. Jets DE Will McDonald — $14.475 million (base).
16. Rams CB Emmanuel Forbes — $12.633 million (base).
17. Patriots CB Christian Gonzalez — $18.119 million (Pro Bowl).
18. Lions LB Jack Campbell — $21.925 million (Pro Bowl).
19. Buccaneers DT Calijah Kancey — $15.451 (playing time).
20. Seahawks WR Jaxon Smith-Njigba — $23.852 million (Pro Bowl).
21. Chargers WR Quentin Johnston — $18 million (playing time).
22. Ravens WR Zay Flowers — $27.298 million (multiple Pro Bowls).
23. Vikings WR Jordan Addison — $18 million (playing time).
24. Giants CB Deonte Banks — $12.633 million (base).
25. Bills TE Dalton Kincaid — $8.162 million (base).
26. Jets DT Mazi Smith — $13.391 million (base) Smith was traded to the Jets by the Cowboys.
27. Jaguars OT Anton Harrison — $19.072 million (playing time).
28. Bengals DE Myles Murphy — $14.475 million (base).
29. Saints DT Bryan Bresee — $13.391 million (base).
30. Eagles LB Nolan Smith — $13.752 million (base).
31. Chiefs Felix Anudike-Uzomah — $14.475 million (base).
The Commanders are making another change to their offensive coaching staff.
NFL Media reports that the Commanders are promoting tight ends coach David Raih to pass game coordinator. The Commanders promoted David Blough to offensive coordinator after Kliff Kingsbury left the team in January.
Raih joined the Commanders in 2024 and was also on Kingsbury’s staff with the Cardinals as their wide receivers coach in 2019 and 2020.
Raih moved on to a year as Vanderbilt’s offensive coordinator and he was an offensive analyst for the Buccaneers in 2023. He was on the Packers’ staff from 2014-2018 and coached at Texas Tech, Iowa, and UCLA earlier in his career.
The Commanders will be looking for a new starting center.
Via Ian Rapoport of NFL Network, the Commanders will release Tyler Biadasz.
Biadasz signed a three-year, $29.25 million contract with the Commanders in 2024. He started 31 regular-season games over two seasons.
He was due to make $8.3 million in 2026, with a $1 million roster bonus due on April 1.
Biadasz landed on injured reserve late in the 2025 season with a knee and ankle injury, after starting 16 games.
A Pro Bowler in 2022, Biadasz previously played four years with the Cowboys. He was a fourth-round pick in the 2020 draft.
The Jaguars will be spending a little extra time in London during the 2026 season.
The team has made annual visits to the United Kingdom for more than a decade and the NFL announced on Wednesday they will be playing a pair of games on that side of the Atlantic this year. The NFL announced that the Jaguars will be the designated home team for games at both Tottenham Hotspur Stadium and Wembley Stadium. The games will be played in consecutive weeks.
A second game was added to this year’s schedule because of the ongoing renovations at EverBank Stadium in Jacksonville. The team will play with reduced capacity at the stadium during the 2026 season.
The NFL also announced that the Commanders will be the designated home team for a game at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. The Commanders played the Dolphins in Spain last season and last visited London for a 2016 tie against the Bengals.
No dates or opponents for the games have been revealed at this point.
The Commanders traded for left tackle Laremy Tunsil during the 2025 offseason and they’d like to secure his rights beyond 2026 this offseason.
Tunsil started all 14 games he played for Washington in his first season with the team and General Manager Adam Peters said on Tuesday that signing the veteran to an extension is one of the team’s priorities in the near future.
“But it is really important for us,” Peters said, via the team’s website. “We’ve been having good and productive talks with Laremy and his team. We’re as motivated as ever to get that done . . . I don’t think either side wants to drag it on, but I don’t think the league year is gonna be a deadline of sorts.”
Tunsil is set to have a cap number of more than $24 million for the 2026 season. An extension would likely bring that number down and give the Commanders cap room to use in other ways as they try to return to the playoffs after falling short in 2025.
Zach Ertz’s 13th NFL season ended when he tore his ACL, but he reportedly doesn’t plan on the injury being the end of his playing career.
Tom Pelissero of NFL Media reports that Ertz plans to play in 2026. He is currently rehabbing his injury and, per the report, expects to be cleared for full activity a some point around the start of the regular season.
Ertz’s desire to play is only one part of the equation for getting him on the field for a 14th season. His contract with the Commanders is up, which means he’ll become a free agent in March unless he re-signs with the team in the next few weeks.
Ertz caught 50 passes for 504 yards and a touchdown in 13 games before tearing his ACL last year. He ranks 37th in NFL history with 825 catches.
The Commanders are holding onto one of their top reserve offensive linemen.
They have agreed to a new deal with Andrew Wylie, who was set to become a free agent. Multiple reporters confirmed a report by Ari Meirov of The 33rd Team that the deal is for two years and is worth $7.5 million with an upside of $10.5 million.
Wylie started 29 games for the Commanders over the 2023 and 2024 seasons, but only started five of his 16 appearances during the 2025 season. He spent his first five seasons in Kansas City and started 59 games during his time with the Chiefs.
Left guard Chris Paul is still set for free agency in Washington. Backups Trent Scott, George Fant, and Lucas Niang also do not have contracts for 2026.
The following are PFT’s top 100 free agents for the start of the 2026 league year. The rankings include prospective unrestricted free agents and released players. The list will be updated as events warrant, with signings, tags and re-signings denoted when announced and/or reported. Players released after initial publication may be added and all 100 players initially on the list will still be listed after any additions.
1. Cowboys wide receiver George Pickens. (Placed the franchise tag on him on February 27.)
2. Colts quarterback Daniel Jones.
3. Ravens center Tyler Linderbaum.
4. Jaguars linebacker Devin Lloyd.
5. Bengals edge rusher Trey Hendrickson.
6. Falcons tight end Kyle Pitts. (Placed the franchise tag on him on February 24.)
7. Colts wide receiver Alec Pierce.
8. Chiefs cornerback Jaylen Watson.
9. Jets running back Breece Hall.
10. Packers quarterback Malik Willis.
11. Bucs cornerback Jamel Dean.
12. Seahawks WR/KR/PR Rashid Shaheed.
13. Packers offensive tackle Rasheed Walker.
14. Seahawks running back Kenneth Walker.
15. Colts offensive tackle Braden Smith.
16. Eagles linebacker Nakobe Dean.
17. Seahawks edge rusher Boye Mafe.
18. Packers linebacker Quay Walker.
19. Chiefs linebacker Leo Chenal.
20. Bucs wide receiver Mike Evans.
21. Seahawks defensive back Coby Bryant.
22. 49ers wide receiver Jauan Jennings.
23. Packers wide receiver Romeo Doubs.
24. Jaguars running back Travis Etienne.
25. Broncos edge rusher John Franklin-Myers.
26. Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers.
27. Eagles edge rusher Jaelen Phillips.
28. Commanders wide receiver Deebo Samuel.
29. Bills center Connor McGovern.
30. Jets guard Alijah Vera-Tucker.
31. Seahawks cornerback Riq Woolen.
32. Chiefs safety Bryan Cook.
33. Bears cornerback Nahshon Wright.
34. Bills edge rusher Joey Bosa.
35. Dolphins edge rusher Bradley Chubb.
36. Ravens tight end Isaiah Likely.
37. Chargers edge rusher Odafe Oweh.
38. Steelers offensive guard Isaac Seumalo.
39. Lions defensive tackle D.J. Reader.
40. Browns linebacker Devin Bush.
41. Bears safety Jaquan Brisker.
42. Rams safety Kamren Curl.
43. Bills offensive guard David Edwards.
44. Patriots edge rusher K’Lavon Chaisson.
45. Dolphins wide receiver Tyreek Hill.
46. Saints cornerback Alontae Taylor.
47. Chargers offensive guard Zion Johnson.
48. Browns offensive guard Joel Bitonio.
49. Eagles tight end Dallas Goedert.
50. Lions linebacker Alex Anzalone.
51. Panthers center Cade Mays.
52. Chargers edge rusher Khalil Mack.
53. Bears safety Kevin Byard.
54. Colts edge rusher Kwity Paye.
55. Falcons linebacker Kaden Elliss.
56. Ravens edge rusher Dre’Mont Jones.
57. Browns offensive guard Wyatt Teller.
58. Lions edge rusher Al-Quadin Muhammad.
59. Commanders linebacker Bobby Wagner.
60. Giants wide receiver Wan’Dale Robinson.
61. Patriots safety Jaylinn Hawkins.
62. Cowboys edge rusher Jadeveon Clowney.
63. Saints linebacker Demario Davis.
64. Panthers running back Rico Dowdle.
65. Falcons edge rusher Arnold Ebiketie.
66. Titans offensive guard Kevin Zeitler.
67. Broncos running back J.K. Dobbins.
68. Cardinals safety Jalen Thompson.
69. Buccaneers tight end Cade Otton.
70. Saints edge rusher Cameron Jordan.
71. Seahawks cornerback Josh Jobe.
72. Giants offensive tackle Jermaine Eluemunor.
73. Texans wide receiver Christian Kirk.
74. Browns tight end David Njoku.
75. Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce.
76. Giants offensive guard Greg Van Roten.
77. Commanders quarterback Marcus Mariota.
78. Jaguars cornerback Montaric Brown.
79. Falcons defensive tackle David Onyemata.
80. Bucs linebacker Lavonte David.
81. Bengals guard Dalton Risner.
82. Vikings safety Harrison Smith.
83. Giants quarterback Russell Wilson.
84. Ravens wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins.
85. Jets safety Andre Cisco.
86. Buccaneers running back Rachaad White.
87. Packers edge rusher Kingsley Enagbare.
88. Chargers wide receiver Keenan Allen.
89. Dolphins cornerback Rasul Douglas.
90. Texans defensive tackle Sheldon Rankins.
91. Titans tight end Chig Okonwko.
92. Eagles safety Reed Blankenship.
93. Raiders offensive guard Dylan Parham.
94. Browns safety Rayshawn Jenkins.
95. Broncos linebacker Alex Singleton.
96. Broncos outside linebacker Justin Strnad.
97. Bengals quarterback Joe Flacco.
98. Colts cornerback Mike Hilton.
99. Bills defensive tackle DaQuan Jones.
100. Falcons running back Tyler Allgeier.
Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels has played two games in Philadelphia in his NFL career, losing both. He thinks there’s no tougher place in the NFL to play.
Daniels said in an interview with Sports Illustrated that the fans in Philadelphia deserve credit for the passion they bring, which only makes it harder on opposing quarterbacks.
“I love Eagles fans. I love Eagles fans,” Daniels said. “They just embody what Philly brings. To be able to go out there and play against them, it’s kind of just that thing. Their environment is kind of like the closest thing you can get to a college environment.”
Asked if the fans in Philadelphia give him more fuel, Daniels answered, “For sure.”
“If you go out there, you can beat Philly in Philly, that’s a different type, but their fans bring it,” Daniels said. “Especially as we’re rivals with them in the NFC East. I love playing against them.”
Winning in Philadelphia is high on Daniels’ list of goals for 2026.
