3 young offensive tackles with uncertain futures Commanders could sign in 2023

Which young offensive tackles with uncertain futures could the Washington Commanders sign to boost their options in 2023?

The Washington Commanders have begun to dip their toe into the XFL/USFL waters this off-season. The recent signing of mammoth tackle Jaryd Jones-Smith, late of the St. Louis Battlehawks, may only be one of several small moves the team makes.

I shouldn’t say “small". Jones-Smith will contend with Cornelius Lucas for taking up the most space on the team bus. Perhaps in a perfect world, the younger option, who has experience at both tackle spots, could take over as the Commanders' backup swing presence. But that’s looking pretty far ahead.

To date, Jones-Smith has had virtually no NFL experience. He did, however, put in a season with the Commanders – the San Antonio Commanders of the deceased Alliance of American Football.

Though Jones-Smith’s signing did end the brief roller-coaster career of Drew Himmelman with the Commanders, I am eager to see what the new man can do. In the NFL, you always need developmental tackles. In Washington's case, they desperately need to actually develop one. They have a very poor track record in that regard.

Perhaps Jones-Smith will be the answer. But I think they should probably keep looking until they know for sure. So, as a public service, I’m here to namedrop several other younger tackles who are currently on NFL rosters – but who may not be at various cut stages this offseason.

These are all intriguing prospects who are caught up in a numbers game with their current teams. Any one of them could turn out to be a quality pro.