The Washington Commanders' roster is about to experience a significant facelift this offseason. Namely, the oldest group in the NFL during the 2025 campaign will have to reverse that trend in a hurry.
General manager Adam Peters has the most pending free agents anywhere in the league to make decisions on, and several more will be cut. Cornerback Marshon Lattimore is the highest-profile name on the chopping block, which would add $18.5 million to the Commanders' salary cap when his inevitable departure is confirmed.
This will be a spring and summer in which Peters will have to rectify the mistakes he made in his attempt to boost Washington into Super Bowl contention. And in doing so, he can't make any new ones, either.
Commanders urged to avoid making any more bold trades for veteran players
Gilberto Manzano of Sports Illustrated made Peters' primary objective clear entering free agency. This centered on taking a longer-term approach to his roster construction and avoiding the temptation to make any more trades for veteran players.
"The Commanders thought they were a few players away from finishing what they started in their surprising first season with (Jayden) Daniels in 2024. However, the trades for wide receiver Deebo Samuel and left tackle Laremy Tunsil backfired, and the team’s old age and lack of depth throughout the roster were exposed during a 5–12 season."Gilberto Manzano
Ignoring the confusing statement about Laremy Tunsil, who played at an All-Pro level in 2025, the overall point is correct. Peters got too carried away too quickly and ended up speedrunning a full rise and fall of a championship window in two seasons.
For a team in Washington's position, it's tempting to go all-in. Jayden Daniels is on his rookie contract for at least two, and almost certainly three, more years. The team has the fifth-most cap space in the NFL and is a year removed from playing for an NFC Championship. But that approach backfired in 2025 for a reason.
Washington owns just six picks in the 2026 NFL Draft — two of which are in the first four rounds — and the Commanders don't exactly boast a surplus of young nucleus pieces. They have Daniels, offensive tackle Josh Conerly Jr., cornerbacks Trey Amos and Mike Sainristil, and running back Jacory Croskey-Merritt. That's about it.
Simply put, the Commanders can't afford to trade for more win-now guys. They can use their cap space to make a big free agency splash or two, but they're finished sacrificing draft picks for short-term answers to long-term problems.