3 Commanders players with the quickest route to prosperity in 2024

Dorance Armstrong Jr. - Commanders DE

One of the players coming over from the Dallas Cowboys with Dan Quinn is Dorance Armstrong Jr. This addition comes with a significant amount of intrigue attached.

Quinn had the luxury of having three good to elite pass rushers in Dallas. It will be a lot different during his first season with the Washington Commanders.

Armstrong was handpicked by Quinn to be the top edge rusher for the Commanders in 2024. This was evident in the contract that was given - a three-year, $33 million deal with a $15 million signing bonus and $22.12 million guaranteed.

This will be the largest role Armstrong has ever had in his NFL career. He will need to step up in 2024 to fill the gaping void left by Montez Sweat and Chase Young.

Quinn could use Jamin Davis in a similar role as Micah Parsons, which is something that makes better use of his athletic attributes. Nonetheless, Armstrong will still be the top dog in the edge-rushing department.

Armstrong is not a player to be taken lightly. He is a capable pass rusher and he proved that in Dallas, even in more of a rotational role. He is coming off back-to-back nine-sack seasons. He compiled 20 tackles, nine sacks, and 34 pressures on just 280 pass-rush snaps during his final campaign with the Cowboys.

He will have his help on the interior. We already talked about Jonathan Allen getting back to prosperity as an elite power rusher. Daron Payne is also an elite talent at defensive tackle. Not to mention, rookie Johnny Newton should become a great interior defensive lineman for this defense, especially when it comes to rushing the quarterback.

Due to the elite talent on the interior, Armstrong won’t have as much attention on him as he would otherwise. I’m excited to see what kind of packages Quinn and Joe Whitt Jr. come up with to get all three of the interior guys involved.

We know Armstrong has been great in smaller samples in Dallas. The path has been laid out for him to get to prosperity in 2024. So the question remains, can he do it in a much larger role?