The Washington Commanders don't need to be told that things didn't go well this season. Their moves so far this offseason suggest they are fully aware and trying to make the desired improvements to ensure the same doesn't happen again.
Both coordinators are no longer around. Significant changes to the playing personnel are also expected. General manager Adam Peters will have a plan in place to attack his third recruitment period at the helm, and there is added pressure on everyone in positions of power to do what is needed.
Fans haven't lost faith in Peters. The Commanders' campaign fell by the wayside, but that doesn't change the fact that Washington's front office leader was right to push all his chips into the middle to potentially capitalize on their run to the NFC Championship game in 2024.
Commanders need to alter their recruitment strategy again after a lost season
It was a shift from his original plan to build through the draft and supplement any remaining needs in free agency. This was a risk, but nobody should blame Peters. However, after winning just five games in 2025 amid a disastrous run of injuries, contingencies must be put in place.
The Commanders need to consolidate. They have to get younger while also finding the pieces required to become more competitive. Peters knows that the stakes have been raised. Plans change quickly in the NFL, so how the respected executive navigates this turbulence will tell fans everything they need to know about this ambitious project's timeline.
Nobody wanted this scenario to become a reality. Ideally, the Commanders would have cemented their place at the NFL's top table, which would have provided Peters with enough vindication to keep the same methods in place. That didn't happen, to put it mildly. Washington is now almost starting with a blank canvas again, in desperate need of energy and youthful exuberance across the board.
What Peters has this offseason that he didn't have upon taking charge is several cornerstones to build around and a franchise quarterback in Jayden Daniels. That represents a sound foundation, but the magnitude of the next few months will have massive ramifications, one way or another.
Peters has six draft picks. He has more available salary-cap space than most teams, which will increase further once the necessary sacrifices are made. Maximizing every possible resource is crucial. And with John Harbaugh landing in the NFC East as the New York Giants' new head coach, the urgency for decisive action only increases.
The Commanders are not a lost cause by any stretch of the imagination. Hopefully, an altered strategic approach from Peters this offseason can yield better results when competitive action begins in 2026.