Washington Commanders Depth Chart
- NFC East
- Stadium
- Commanders Field
- Head Coach
- Dan Quinn
- Offensive Coordinator
- Kliff Kingsbury
- Defensive Coordinator
- Joe Whitt Jr.
- Special Teams Coach
- Nate Kaczor
- Defensive Scheme
- 4-3
Washington quarterback Michael Penix appears to have impressed during his recent pro day. The young signal-caller ran a 4.5 40-yard dash and posted a 36.5-inch vertical leap at Washington's pro day. After that, an unknown NFL coach has reportedly called Penix a locked in first round pick. Everyone should take this with a grain of salt because we don't know who the coach was who said this. However, the five-year prospect has looked impressive, so this isn't a crazy take. Currently, Penix is viewed more as a Day 2 prospect, but it wouldn't be shocking if he does sneak into the late first round after a strong showing on Thursday.
Free-agent wide receiver Olamide Zaccheaus has agreed to terms to sign with the Washington Commanders, according to John Keim of ESPN. Zaccheaus was originally undrafted out of Virginia in the 2019 class, and he spent four seasons with the Atlanta Falcons before one year with the Philadelphia Eagles last season. Overall, the 26-year-old has hauled in 104 passes for 1,492 yards and 10 touchdowns through his first 72 NFL games. With Terry McLaurin and Jahan Dotson on the roster and Washington likely to take shots on wide receivers in next month's draft, Zaccheaus is unlikely to have a path toward fantasy success in 2024, barring injury. He's likely just a depth piece for a franchise looking to rebuild on the fly.
The Washington Commanders have signed interior offensive lineman Michael Dieter, according to John Keim of ESPN. The 2019 third-round pick spent four seasons with the Houston Texans before one year with the Miami Dolphins in 2023. Dieter has 73 games of NFL experience (33 starts) and can play center or guard. The team has now signed or retained almost 20 free agents, so new general manager Adam Peters and head coach Dan Quinn are looking to improve the franchise quickly. Dieter will likely provide depth as a backup for multiple positions.
The Washington Commanders could be leaning toward selecting former Michigan quarterback J.J. McCarthy, according to conversations NFL insider Tom Pelissero has had with executives around the league at the NFL's league meetings. North Carolina's Drake Maye and LSU's Jayden Daniels have seemingly been competing to be the next quarterback off the board after USC's Caleb Williams, but McCarthy has been getting more hype as the pre-draft process has gone on. All that said, there is no shortage of examples of quarterbacks being pushed up by the media, only to fall in the real NFL Draft. Last year, Will Levis was projected to be picked as high as No. 2 overall, and he ultimately fell to the Tennessee Titans at pick 33. McCarthy is seemingly a lock to be selected in the first round of next month's draft, but it would still be somewhat of a surprise if he overtakes both Maye and Daniels in draft position.
New Washington Commanders head coach Dan Quinn admitted on Saturday that "it'd be fair to envision we'd be taking a quarterback" in next month's NFL draft. "To say where it'll be happening, I think that's a better question for (general manager) Adam (Peters)," Quinn said. The new head coach said there's still a lot of work to do on who the team will take if they decide to stay at No. 2 overall. Washington added veteran QB Marcus Mariota in free agency and also traded 2023 starter Sam Howell to the Seattle Seahawks, so they have a clear need at the position heading into 2024. The Chicago Bears are fully expected to take USC QB Caleb Williams at No. 1 overall, with the Commanders most likely deciding between LSU's Jayden Daniels and North Carolina's Drake Maye.