Which Commanders made PFF’s list of top 200 free agents?

The Washington Commanders‘ offseason will live and die based on who’s quarterbacking the team in 2022, but these next several weeks will be huge in determining fans expectations for next season.

The NFL combine is currently taking place in Indianapolis. After that, you have the franchise tag deadline on March 8. Six days later, the “legal” tampering period gets underway, followed by the start of free agency on March 16.

Speaking of free agency, the Commanders figure to be pretty busy adding talent. With just under $32 million in cap space and more to come with potential cuts and contract restructures, the front office should flex its financial muscles.

It’s unclear how Washington plans to allocate their resources, but they have some free agents of their own they might consider retaining.

It’s far from a star-studded class, but it includes players who were and have been vital to the team’s success in recent years. In fact, a handful of them made the cut on Pro Football Focus’ annual top 200 free agent rankings.

Which Commanders players made the cut for Pro Football Focus’ top 200 free agents?

Brandon Scherff — No. 18

No surprises here. Scherff is one of the best guards in the game and he should cash a huge check this offseason. Unfortunately, it likely won’t be with Washington amid reports that his relationship with the franchise has run its course.

Some folks in the industry think Washington should re-sign Scherff, but paying him $18-20 million annually (if not more) would greatly limit the team’s offseason spending budget. Who wants that? This is one of the rare instances where quantity outweighs quality, but leave it to the NFL offseason to defy logic.

Tim Settle — No. 114

"Settle has still yet to play 350 snaps in a season, but his second straight 72.5-plus pass-rush grade and three straight seasons with double-digit quarterback pressures are intriguing for teams in need of a potential rotational interior pass-rusher."

Talk about hitting the nail on the head. Settle is far from a household name in the league, but Commanders fans know how valuable he is. We’d love to have him back, but convincing him won’t be easy with Jonathan Allen, Daron Payne and Matt Ioannidis ahead of him in the defensive tackle pecking order.

Ryan Fitzpatrick — No. 117

Coming off major hip surgery, it’s pretty shocking Ryan Fitzpatrick checked in this high on PFF’s rankings. The good news for Fitz is he doesn’t have a lengthy injury history. With that said, he might join colleagues Tom Brady and Ben Roethlisberger in retirement if there aren’t any starting jobs available.

Cornelius Lucas — No. 131

Lucas didn’t finish the 2021 season on a high note, but he was still recovering from a bout with COVID-19 and he’s been a reliable swing tackle for Washington the last two years. According to PFF, he’s allowed just two QB hits over that span and his 79.8 pass-blocking grade is actually tied for 25th among all tackles since 2019. He also improved as a run-blocker in 2021, earning a career-best 71.2 grade.

JD McKissic — No. 190

The disrespect! Did PFF not watch McKissic perform this past season? More importantly, did they watch Washington’s offense perform after he got injured in Week 12? To say it came off the rails would be an understatement and we’re not entirely sure how McKissic came within 10 players of missing the cut entirely.

On top of being one of the best pass-caching backs in the NFL, he’s sublime in pass protection and has a knack for moving the chains. He also ranks third at the position in catches over the last two seasons despite missing the final six games of 2021.

Re-signing him should be one of the club’s top priorities.