JD McKissic spurning Bills for Commanders changes complexion of free agency

Washington Commanders fans have been patiently waiting for the team to get the ball rolling in free agency. Well, they got their wish in a big way on Wednesday, because the front office has been making moves left and right before the official start of the new league year at 4 p.m. EST.

To give you a quick rundown, the day kicked off with the re-signing of Cams Sims. Though he wasn’t used properly (or nearly enough) last season, the 6-foot-5 receiver figures to be a favorite target of Carson Wentz, who has a long track record of targeting wideouts with big statures.

After that, the Commanders sent an all-out blitz on the transaction wire.

First, they released Matt Ioannnidis, which came as a small surprise given Tim Settle departed for Buffalo just days earlier. The cap-crunching campaign continued when Ereck Flowers was released in the name of saving $10 million.

If you thought those moves were shocking, we can’t imagine your reaction when news broke that JD McKissic, who had previously agreed to a two-year deal with the Bills, spurned the AFC East champs to return to Washington.

That’s right, folks. Your favorite third-down RB is back for the same compensation (two years, $7 million) he had agreed to with Buffalo.

JD McKissic returning to Washington changes the complexion of the Commanders’ free agency.

What a turn of events for the Commanders! While there’s still work to be done, McKissic spurning the Bills to return to Washington changes the entire complexion of the team’s free agency performance thus far.

Yes, there are holes at both guard positions and there’s suddenly a shortage of depth along the defensive line, which was maybe Washington’s greatest strength a season ago, with Settle and Ioannidis both not returning.

Think about it like this, though. The Commanders have parted ways with players at positions that are relatively easy to replace. While Scherff and Flowers were rock-solid, starting guards, unlike tackles, are truly a dime a dozen.

The same can be said for interior defensive line depth. Ioannidis and Settle were quality backups. Some might even say elite backups. But they were luxuries. The salary cap makes it impossible to horde so much talent at one position.

As for McKissic, while impact running backs can be found seemingly anywhere, the Commanders would’ve been hard-pressed to find a replacement — whether through free agency or the draft — who could replicate McKissic’s value.

The best part about McKissic returning? The second Washington matched Buffalo’s offer, he didn’t want to leave, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter.

You can question why they didn’t just make an offer to begin with, but they came through at the eleventh hour and that’s all that really matters. This also confirms that McKissic, who was outspoken after the season ended about wanting to re-sign with Washington, remained true to his word.

We’ll hold off on judging free agency as a whole until the chaos clams down. What we will say, though, is that roster turnover is a given in the NFL and we’re looking at Washington’s moves through this lens: they made a seismic upgrade at QB, kept maybe their most important offensive weapon from last season, re-signed a key depth receiver and now have enough cap space to make more additions … or dole out extensions for Terry McLaurin and Daron Payne.

Whatever happens, the narrative has flipped in a BIG way since Monday.