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The Washington Commanders are, in many ways, back where they started in 2024, with a roster that needs overhauling, a high draft slot, plenty of salary cap space and a critical offseason awaiting them. But what were then viewed as welcome changes, following more than two decades of tumult under former owner Daniel Snyder, are now indicative of how much work lies ahead for general manager Adam Peters and coach Dan Quinn.
The honeymoon is over.
Washington faces heightened urgency to build a contender around quarterback Jayden Daniels, which means when the NFL’s legal tampering window begins Monday at noon ET (and when new deals can be officially signed starting Wednesday at 4 p.m.), the Commanders should be spenders.
But where? And on whom?
The previous two years may not provide much of a guide. The Commanders’ focus has shifted since Peters gutted the roster in 2024 and then re-signed many of Washington’s own (older) veterans to one-year deals in 2025.
This year, the priority is to build the foundation by signing some younger players, especially those coming off their first NFL contracts, to longer deals, according to one person with direct knowledge of the Commanders’ approach.
The Commanders need to add speed across the board, provide more playmakers around Daniels and rebuild a defense that has lagged for years. Luckily for them, they have the means to accomplish this.
After releasing center Tyler Biadasz and cornerback Marshon Lattimore, Washington enters free agency with the fourth-most salary cap space in the league, more than $80 million, according to both Spotrac and Over the Cap (only the top 51 contracts count against a team’s cap in the offseason).
Here are five players to monitor for Washington before the spending begins:
Jaelan Phillips, Edge
Adding an edge rusher (or two, or three) is a must for Washington, and Phillips, 26, is a good one in his prime. The question is whether he can stay available.
Injuries cost Phillips the better part of 2023 and ’24, but when healthy, he’s a clear difference-maker with the burst and versatility the Commanders say they want in their pass rushers. The 2021 first-round pick spent four and a half seasons in Miami before being dealt to the Philadelphia Eagles at the trade deadline last November. In his 17 starts last season, Phillips totaled 73 quarterback pressures and 23 run stops, which ranked ninth and tied for fourth, respectively, among edge rushers, according to Pro Football Focus. He also had a career-high four passes defended.
Isaiah Likely, TE
Zach Ertz was Daniels’ go-to target in the red zone the last two seasons in Washington, but his deal is up, and he’s recovering from an ACL injury he suffered in December. He’s also 35. Although the Commanders say they haven’t closed the door on a possible return for Ertz, the reality is that they have no proven and reliable pass-catching tight end, and their receiving corps is thin and undersized. If there were ever a time to spend on the tight end corps, this year would be it.
Likely’s value is based more on potential at this point in his career — he played behind Mark Andrews throughout his four years in Baltimore — and he’s coming off a down season (27 catches, 307 yards and one touchdown), possibly due to a foot injury he sustained last summer. But he has the size, at 6-foot-4, 245 pounds; the versatility to line up at multiple spots; a high catch rate over the last three seasons; and the ability to make plays like this.
Rashid Shaheed, WR
Washington’s receiving corps was decimated by injuries last season, and their most frequently available option, Deebo Samuel, is now headed for free agency. The Commanders need a No. 2 behind Terry McLaurin, and they need to add speed. Enter Shaheed, an undrafted receiver out of Weber State who now has a pair of Pro Bowl nods and a Super Bowl ring.
Shaheed was probably going to have a healthy market after his run with the New Orleans Saints, but he bolstered his stock even more after he was traded to the Seattle Seahawks last season and proved to be one of the best acquisitions at the deadline. In Washington, he’d provide another deep threat who could double as their ace returner. (Counting the playoffs, he returned three kicks for touchdowns in 12 games with the Seahawks.)
Tyler Linderbaum, C
The Commanders surprisingly cut Biadasz two weeks before free agency, leaving another important position on their roster up for grabs. Washington has essentially two options here: Sign a lower-tier center and have him compete with Nick Allegretti for the starting job, or spend big and pursue Linderbaum.
The latter comes with risks, since the Commanders also hope to sign left tackle Laremy Tunsil to a new deal soon and have many other premium positions in need of upgrades. But solidifying the offensive line is vital for Daniels’ development and the offense at large.
Linderbaum, a first-round pick out of Iowa in 2022, is only 25 and one of the game’s top centers. He allowed only five sacks in his four seasons with the Ravens and, according to ESPN’s metrics, he tied for second among centers with a 97 percent pass block win rate last season. All of that is to say he won’t come cheap, and could even top Creed Humphrey’s $18 million a year to lead all centers in average value.
Tyler Allgeier, RB
Similar to Likely, Allgeier, 25, spent most of his first four seasons behind a long-term starter (and a very good one, at that) in Atlanta’s Bijan Robinson.
Since 2022, when he was selected in the fifth round out of BYU, Allgeier has averaged 38 forced missed tackles a season (he had seven against the Commanders last year), 16.5 runs of at least 10 yards and 3.27 yards after contact, according to PFF.