I don’t like to sugar-coat things. If something looks FANTASTIC, I like to point it out. If something looks BAD, I will bring that to the forefront. In this series, “The Cold, Hard Truth”, I will give my analysis on various parts of the team in an effort to allow healthy discussions on the specific […]
I don’t like to sugar-coat things. If something looks FANTASTIC, I like to point it out. If something looks BAD, I will bring that to the forefront.
In this series, “The Cold, Hard Truth”, I will give my analysis on various parts of the team in an effort to allow healthy discussions on the specific topics at hand.
Washington is severely lacking ELITE talent:
I got the idea for this article from my guy Disco on Twitter. Disco asked the question – when was the last time Washington had the best anything at any position?
His question was a really good one and the points he made in his video were really thought-provoking. Please take a listen below.
I agree with most of what Disco said, and it got me thinking about the parameters for an article.
In this first excerpt of The Cold, Hard Truth, I first wanted to define what I felt was “elite” talent. Disco asked in his video when was the last time Washington had the best anything at any position. I do feel that elite talent is pretty subjective and can certainly very from year-to-year based on performance. For that reason, I didn’t want to go with the “top” player at his respective position. Instead, I decided to use TOP THREE at their respective positions (which too can be somewhat subjective), but it does give us a starting point for discussion, and it certainly would fall under what most would consider “elite” talent. I also took into account how long said player has performed at that level (although that is not the final verdict), as we all understand one-year outliers certainly do happen, just as we all understand injuries can cause what would be considered a down year by a very good player. Finally, age certainly factors into this. An example is Von Miller. He will be a Hall of Famer, but we didn’t have Von when he was in his prime. We got him when he was nearing the end of his career, and he definitely was not the same player he was in his prime.
With the parameters now somewhat set, let’s dive into our roster – both past and present.
*I did not include special teams players in this analysis – sorry to all the Tress Way lovers out there.
I had to go all the way back to the 2018 season to find a Washington player who was top three in the NFL at his respective position. That player was the future Hall of Famer Trent Williams. Williams started 13 of a possible 16 regular season games that season for Washington. It would be the last time he took the field in Burgundy and Gold.
That 2018 team also boasted Brandon Scherff (top five guard), Jordan Reed, Alex Smith, Adrian Peterson (1K yard rusher), Ryan Kerrigan (13 sacks), Jonathan Allen (eight sacks), Daron Payne (rookie – five sacks), Preston Smith, Josh Norman and Zach Brown.
The Commanders started the season 6-3 under the game management skills of Alex Smith and a good defense. Smith suffered a gruesome leg injury in a week 11 loss and Washington went on to lose five of their last six games and miss the playoffs with a 7-9 record.
That would be the last time Washington had that collection of team-talent.
2019 Season:
- Brandon Scherff (top five G)
- Ryan Kerrigan
- Josh Norman
- Terry Mclaurin (rookie season – 919 yards and seven TDs)
- Montez Sweat (rookie season – seven sacks)
- Jon Allen
- Daron Payne
2020 Season:
- Brandon Scherff (top five G)
- Terry McLaurin
- Chase Young (rookie season – seven-and-a-half sacks DROY)
- Montez Sweat
- Allen/Payne
2021 Season:
- Brandon Scherff (top five G)
- Terry McLaurin
- Chase Young (injured after eight-and-a-half games)
- Montez Sweat
- Allen/Payne
2022 Season:
- Terry McLaurin
- Montez Sweat
- Kam Curl
- Allen/Payne
- Chase Young
2023 Season:
- Terry McLaurin
- Montez Sweat
- Kam Curl
- Allen/Payne
- Chase Young (traded mid-season)
2024 Season:
- Terry McLaurin
- Jayden Daniels (rookie season – OROY)
- Sam Cosmi
- Bobby Wagner
- Frankie Luvu
- Allen/Payne
2025 Season:
- Laremy Tunsil
- Jayden Daniels (injured)
- Terry McLaurin (injured)
- Trey Amos (rookie year – injured)
- Daron Payne
Washington has gone seven long years without having a top three player at their respective position. We have had guys like Brandon Scherff who may have been considered a top five guard in his prime here, but aside from him, the next closest player was this past season with Laremy Tunsil, who I have just outside the top five among offensive tackles in the NFL. Can you make the argument Tunsil is still “elite” – sure, but I think there are six or seven tackles who most would agree are above him.
If you notice between the 2022-2024 season, I have Terry McLaurin as our best player. I think we can all agree that Terry is VERY good, but not elite. He’s had one season that you can make an argument that his production was borderline elite (his 13 touchdown 2024 season), but even then, he falls short of the best in the game when it comes to yards and receptions.
I looked around our own division, and each team boasts at least one player who would rank in (or very close to) the top 3 at their respective position.
Philadelphia Eagles:
- Lane Johnson (top 3 OT)
- Jalen Carter (top 3 DT)
- Saquon Barkley (top 3-5 RB)
- Quinyon Mitchell (top 3-5 CB)
- Zach Baun (top 5 LB)
- Jordan Mailata (top 5 OT)
Dallas Cowboys:
- Tyler Smith (top 3-5 G)
- CeeDee Lamb (top 3-5 WR)
- *Had Micah Parsons (top 3 EDGE)
New York Giants:
- Brian Burns (top 3-5 EDGE)
- Dexter Lawrence (top 3-5 NT)
2026 Washington Commanders Projected Starters:
*I left out any pending free agents
Offense:
QB: Jayden Daniels (top 10)
RB: ?
RB: Bill Croskey-Merritt/Chris Rodriguez
TE: ?
TE: Ben Sinnott/John Bates
WR: Terry McLaurin (top 12)
WR: ?
WR: Luke McCaffrey/Jaylin Lane
LT: Laremy Tunsil (top 10)
LG: Brandon Coleman
C: Tyler Biadasz
RG: Sam Cosmi (top 10)
RT: Josh Conerly
Defense:
EDGE: ?
DT: Daron Payne (top 15)
DT: Javon Kinlaw
EDGE: ?
MIKE: ?
WILL: Jordan Magee
SAM: Frankie Luvu
CB: Trey Amos
CB: ?
Slot: Mike Sainristil/Quan Martin
S: ?
S: ?
Conclusion:
I think we can all agree that the Commanders are SEVERLY lacking overall team talent, and DEFINITELY don’t have what I consider any true ELITE players.
That said, I do believe we have some players who could become very good/elite if put in the right situations.
Here are some questions I would like you to think about when discussing this in the comments section:
-Is what we are seeing here MORE a lack of talent, or the lack of coaching to maximize the talent we do have?
-Do elite players excel regardless of coaching?
-Can good coaches make good player elite?
-Is scheme as important as the talent you have (putting guys in positions to succeed)?
-How important is a surrounding cast of good talent to help turn good players into elite ones?
-How would you address Washington’s severe lack of talent in free agency and the draft?
-Should Adam Peters trade more draft picks to acquire more proven elite talent (ie. Maxx Crosby, AJ Brown)?
Category: General Sports
