6 free-agent safeties the Commanders could sign in 2024

Commanders could sign Kyle Dugger

I like Kyle Dugger a lot. He is one of the biggest and most aggressive safeties available through free agency in 2024. And he will only be 28 years old next season.

Like Antoine Winfield Jr., he entered the league in 2020 as a second-round draft pick out of Division II school Lenoir-Rhyne. After steadily improving under Bill Belichick with the New England Patriots over his first three seasons, Dugger had an uncharacteristically poor campaign in 2023.

I view that more as a minor glitch than a serious cause for concern. And the down year might depress his salary demands a little bit if the Washington Commanders did show an interest.

Dugger is a tough player who can be a force playing close to the line. He had never been a liability in pass coverage but seemed a little bit reckless at times in 2023. The previous year, he had been one of the best ball-hawks in the league, returning two of his three interceptions for touchdowns, and scoring another on a fumble recovery.

This would seem to be the aggressive, playmaking safety Joe Whitt Jr. had success with during his time working for the Dallas Cowboys. Those occasional lapses aside, Dugger is somewhat of a bigger version of Winfield. He has the size to play near the line and the speed to cover wider zones than typical strong safeties.

Dugger would seem to be more of an obvious match with a player like Darrick Forrest. He would also offer Dan Quinn and Whitt a lot of flexibility in designing their defenses.