The Washington Commanders cut bait with defensive end Chase Young before the 2023 trade deadline, and there were no complaints from the player. This often fractured relationship had run its course, and a fresh start was the best possible solution for all parties.
It's been a rocky road for Young since his Washington departure. Now, the once generational college prospect out of Ohio State quietly silenced his doubters in the best possible way during the 2025 campaign.
The New Orleans Saints saw enough in Young's first season to give him a contract extension. A few eyebrows were raised around the league regarding this development. Still, his dominant second half of the campaign went a long way to putting the skeptics back in their place.
Chase Young is finally becoming the player that the Commanders envisaged
Young gained double-digit sacks for the first time in his career. He did it in just 12 games. This led Bradley Locker of Pro Football Focus to proclaim him as the best signing (or re-signing) New Orleans made during the 2025 offseason. And it's hard to argue with the notion.
"The Saints made a rarely large move when they retained [Chase] Young on a three-year, $51 million contract to prevent him from leaving. In turn, Young absolutely dominated when on the field with an 86.3 PFF pass-rush grade and a 15.2% pass-rush win rate. The former No. 2 overall pick appears to have settled into form with the Saints."Bradley Locker
This is a massive step in the right direction for Young. It also doesn't change the fact that the Commanders were correct to part ways with the pass-rusher when it was clear to all that this wasn't going to work out.
The Commanders only managed to get a compensatory third-round pick for someone they selected No. 2 overall in the 2020 NFL Draft. However, it's a testament to Young's resolve that he's bounced back from adversity and emerged smiling.
At 26, everything is still ahead of Young. His cap number soars to $20.5 million next season, which raises expectations. At the same time, if this season's resurgence was a sign of things to come, his contract might look pretty cheap when push comes to shove.
As for the Commanders? They need to bolster their pass-rush urgently this offseason. General manager Adam Peters made no secret of that during his end-of-season media availability, and he must be aggressive in pursuing a solution to this issue.
Those plans don't include Young. Even so, he is slowly becoming the player everyone envisaged when he entered the league.