The Washington Commanders went into last season expecting to have one of the NFL’s better defenses despite their limitations at linebacker. It didn’t happen. The Commanders regressed everywhere, finishing dead last in multiple categories.
Washington’s failure to address the linebacker position finally caught up to them. Over the past four seasons, former coach Ron Rivera’s only significant addition at linebacker was using a 2021 first-round pick on Jamin Davis. The new regime is using Davis in a pass-rushing role. The Commanders selected Davis to be the middle linebacker of the future. They realized in the training camp before his rookie season he was better outside. Through three seasons, Davis has failed to give the team any reason to extend his contract beyond 2024. The Commanders did not exercise his fifth-year option for 2025.
That sums up Washington’s investment at linebacker in recent years, despite having a head coach and defensive coordinator who played linebacker in the NFL.
That’s no longer the case. General manager Adam Peters and head coach Dan Quinn significantly upgraded the linebacker position, signing future Hall of Famer Bobby Wagner and the ascending Frankie Luvu. ESPN’s Mike Clay ranked Washington’s linebackers as his top group in the NFL. Regardless of rankings, the Commanders will have much better linebacker play in 2024.
We continue our training camp positional previews by looking at the linebackers.