Jonathan Allen's pending return should give everyone associated with the Washington Commanders a huge boost on and off the field. Unfortunately, that didn't mean good news for everybody.
One player had to be sacrificed to make room for Allen on the 53-man roster. That happened to be yet another draft bust from Ron Rivera's disastrous four-year tenure.
According to Ian Rapoport from the NFL Network, the Commanders waived defensive lineman Phidarian Mathis. This brings an end to the former second-round pick's less-than-stellar time with the franchise where little if any momentum was generated over three years.
Mathis just couldn't get going. His rookie campaign ended after just a few snaps due to injury. Things weren't much better in Year 2 of his professional career, with more health issues and poor performance levels leaving his future with the organization in doubt under the new regime.
Phidarian Mathis joins growing list of Commanders draft busts from Ron Rivera's regime
Credit to Mathis for keeping his roster place last summer at the expense of John Ridgeway III, who was traded to the New Orleans Saints. The interior presence couldn't do enough to firmly establish himself in a competitive setting once again. The writing was on the wall when unheralded names such as Sheldon Day and Carl Davis started being preferred.
The Commanders made Mathis a healthy scratch over the last two games. His social media posts suggested a desire to fight in pursuit of turning the tide. Allen's return ahead of time ended that immediately.
Mathis joins an ever-growing list of high-end draft picks made by Rivera that couldn't meet expectations.
There were more than a few eyebrows raised when the Commanders went in this direction when one considers the presence of Allen, Daron Payne, Chase Young, and Montez Sweat — all first-round players — on the defensive front at the time. But as always, the previous head coach thought he was one step ahead when he was really two behind.
General manager Adam Peters hasn't blinked when disposing of mistakes made under the Rivera regime. All of his first-round selections — Young, Jamin Davis, Jahan Dotson, and Emmanuel Forbes Jr. — are gone via release or trade. Others taken further down the pecking order suffered a similar fate during Washington's drastic roster regeneration.
In all honesty, Mathis did well to last this long.
What the future holds for Mathis is anyone's guess. He could catch on somewhere else, perhaps on a team looking to bolster their defensive line depth for the playoffs. But it's a long road ahead to convince people he was worthy of a Day 2 draft selection.
There was so much more meat on the bone when Rivera took a luxury pick instead. His personnel evaluation and roster construction left a lot to be desired. Peters is now cleaning up the mess with ruthless efficiency.
The Commanders will move forward without Mathis. And if Allen can pick up where he left off, this represents the biggest roster upgrade imaginable on the home stretch.