When Adam Peters began his major Washington Commanders' roster reconstruction in 2024, the general manager focused on young veterans. The success was immediate and plans shifted as a result.
His major signings in the early days of free agency last year were players like Dorance Armstrong Jr., Frankie Luvu, Tyler Biadasz, and Nick Allegretti. All were 26 or 27 years old and each was inked to a three-year deal.
Things are different now.
Peters' biggest splash in free agency was signing 27-year-old defensive lineman Javon Kinlaw to a three-year deal. The next group of signees are all older than the quartet mentioned above.
Jacob Martin and Will Harris are both 29 years old. Deatrich Wise Jr. and Jonathan Jones are past 30, as is the re-signed Marcus Mariota.
Why the change in approach? It’s easy to figure.
Commanders seizing their window of opportunity with Jayden Daniels under center
Jayden Daniels entered the league at a significantly higher level than even the most enthusiastic analysts expected. He is already a borderline elite quarterback, perhaps in a tier just below Patrick Mahomes, Josh Allen, Lamar Jackson, and Joe Burrow.
The window for the Commanders to win a Super Bowl with Daniels is open right now. Peters knows better than to wait.
When he took over as general manager, the former San Francisco 49ers executive talked about his desire to build through the draft. Peters signed a lot of free agents early on because of how moribund his inherited roster was, but he remained committed to drafting the future. He just needed to use all available tools to restock.
When he began trading away draft picks for more veterans, the new philosophy became obvious. You don’t give up picks for players like wide receiver Deebo Samuel Sr. and left tackle Laremy Tunsil — who will be 29 and 31 years old at the start of the upcoming season — if you don’t expect to compete for a title immediately.
The average age of the free agents Peters signed this offseason is almost a full year older than those scooped up in 2024. That may not seem like much. But in the NFL, it is significant.
Given the rate of decline at most positions as players approach 30, the difference between the 28.6-year-old signed in 2024 and the 29.5-year-old signed in 2025 matters more than it might initially seem.
Part of that increase is due to 2024 free agents who were re-signed this offseason. Several of them — Bobby Wagner, Zach Ertz, and Nick Bellore — are well into their 30s. They were initially brought in to provide veteran leadership and stability as the franchise went through transition. They were each signed to one-year deals and there was no guarantee any of them would return.
All three played well last year. Peters recognized that each can contribute to a winning team this year and rewarded them accordingly.
Based on the way Peters spoke last year, it would have been entirely plausible to allow draft picks Ben Sinnott and Jordan Magee a chance to take over for Ertz and Wagner. The presence of the older players may delay the progress of those youngsters. He wouldn't be doing that this year if the front-office leader didn’t the linebacker and tight end could help win a Super Bowl right now.
The bigger names like Samuel, Tunsil, Wagner, and Ertz are not even the most telling hint at the new mindset.
Whereas only 18 percent of the free agents signed last year were over 30 years old, this year a whopping 45% have turned 30. That includes veteran returnees like the aforementioned trio and Tress Way. It also includes players like Wise, Jones, and Eddie Goldman. Those players all got one-year deals.
Peters continues to make wise long-term investments, signing players just entering their primes to multi-year deals while securing valuable, experienced role players with shorter contracts.
The general manager will never stop looking for those younger players, as he did with Kinlaw and younger offensive linemen like Nate Herbig and Foster Sarell. But if he still saw this as a rebuild, players like this would constitute the majority of his signings.
That’s not where the Commanders are entering the 2025 season.
They were one game away from the Super Bowl last year. Peters is going to shift away from the long-term building to acquire players who can help te team win instantly.
In a league as mercurial and temperamental as the NFL, it’s the only choice he could make.