4 position battles Commanders fans should watch this offseason
By Jerry Trotta
3. Defensive Line
No need to beat around the bush here.
If the season started today, Jonathan Allen, Daron Payne, Chase Young, Montez Sweat, Phidarian Mathis and Efe Obada would be locks log significant snaps. Behind them, James Smith-Williams’ spot should be secure given the spark he personified when Young and Sweat were out of the lineup last season.
It’s expected Smith-Williams and Obada will kick inside on passing downs to help fill the void following the losses of Tim Settle and Matt Ioannidis.
If our math is correct, that leaves four remaining spots up for grabs between Casey Toohill (who’s likely to make the cut), Shaka Toney, who flashed down the stretch of 2021, Daniel Wise, David Bada, William Bradley-King, Bunmi Rotimi, Jacub Panasiuk and Tyler Clark.
Toohill, Toney and Wise are definitely the favorites amongst that group, but stranger things have happened in the build-up to roster cuts. After all, Young and Sweat both reported to OTAs Monday and Young is still recovering from ACL surgery. In other words, there will be plenty of first-team reps to go around.