The Commanders announced they’d signed first-round pick Sonny Styles earlier on Friday.
The club has not gotten the rest of its 2026 draft class under contract.
Washington announced third-round receiver, Antonio Williams, fifth-round defensive end Joshua Josephs, sixth-round running back Kaytron Allen, center Matt Gulbin, and seventh-round quarterback Athan Kaliakmanis have all signed their four-year rookie contracts.
The Commanders also announced they’ve signed nine undrafted free agents: receiver Jaden Bradley, guard Tanoa Togiai, defensive tackle Jeffrey M’Ba, safety Malik Spencer, running back Robert Henry Jr., tight end Quentin Moore, receiver Chris Hilton Jr., cornerback Fred Davis, and kicker Drew Stevens.
The Commanders have signed their top pick in the 2026 draft.
Linebacker Sonny Styles has signed a fully guaranteed four-year deal with the team worth $37.2 million. The Commanders also have an option for a fifth season on the deal.
Styles was the seventh overall pick in this year’s draft and one of four Ohio State players to come off the board in the first 11 picks. He had 244 tackles, 22.5 tackles for loss, nine sacks, an interception, three forced fumbles and a fumble recovery during his time with the Buckeyes.
The Commanders made six selections in the draft this year and they’ll likely have more of them signed before the end of this weekend’s rookie minicamp.
Former NFL quarterback Taylor Heinicke announced his retirement from football.
“For 25 years, I had the pleasure to play this great sport of football,” Heinicke wrote on Instagram. “It has taught me a lot, not only about myself but about life as well. Many ups and downs throughout the years, but the ups outweigh the downs tenfold. Never in my wildest dreams did I think I would’ve been able to live this life.
“Thank you to all who have supported me in this journey. Thank you all who have believed in me. And thank you to those who gave me the opportunity to live out my childhood dream. Excited for this next chapter of my life!”
Heinicke, 33, last played in the NFL in 2024 with the Chargers, who released him out of the preseason in 2025.
Heinicke went undrafted out of Old Dominion in 2015, signing with the Vikings. He also spent time with the Patriots, Texans and Panthers in the NFL and the St. Louis BattleHawks of the United Football League.
He played 42 games with 29 starts and completed 62.5 percent of his passes for 6,663 yards with 39 touchdowns and 28 interceptions.
His biggest moment came in a wild-card playoff loss with Washington against the Buccaneers in 2020. He threw for 306 yards with a touchdown and an interception and ran for another 46 yards and a touchdown.
The Commanders are hiring 49ers scout Ryan Kessenich as their new director of college scouting, Neil Stratton of ScoutSpeak reports.
Kessenich is returning to Washington, where he began his scouting career in 2005.
His stint in San Francisco began in 2019, where he and Adam Peters worked together before Peters left to become the Commanders’ General Manager in 2024. Kessenich also worked as a scout for the Chiefs and the Bears and had two stops at Northwestern University, along with one year as a scout for the Senior Bowl, before joining the 49ers.
Kessenich will replace Tim Gribble, who left in January to join the Steelers.
Linebacker Sonny Styles is going to play a big role for the Commanders after being drafted seventh overall and one facet of his role will be determined on the practice field in the coming weeks.
During an appearance on The Rich Eisen Show, Quinn said that the first-round pick has “unique traits” for a linebacker because he began his time at Ohio State as a defensive back. Quinn said that the “football acumen” will allow the Commanders to use him in a variety of ways that could include relaying the team’s defensive plans as the player with a green dot on his helmet to hear play calls from coaches.
“In practice, we’ll certainly consider that,” Quinn said. “A number of guys will have it during the practice time. He is definitely capable of that. It’s one of the nice things now with the guys already doing that in college.”
Styles’ physical tools suggest he won’t be coming off the field much and that makes him an even likelier choice to wind up as the defensive centerpiece in Washington.
