While Washington Commanders head coach Dan Quinn tries to make the right moves and save his job, the team is hoping to hit a first-round home run in the NFL Draft. And here are three players the Commanders must let walk in free agency during the offseason.
If the Commanders are going to be competitive in 2026, slow has to go. Speed has to be the new pathway. There wasn’t much of that on the 2025 roster.
And it starts with one of the team’s oldest players.
Commanders should not re-sign LB Von Miller
Yes, he can still get to the quarterback. Miller easily led the Commanders with nine sacks. But this defense proved to be awful, and Miller’s sacks never moved the needle.
But when does Miller's sack train get to the caboose? It has been running down the NFL tracks for 14 years. And Miller’s nine sacks were a throwback. It was his highest total since 2021. It’s hard to imagine he has much more left in the tank.
Not that the Commanders shouldn’t be appreciative of his efforts in a terrible 2025 season.
And here’s one indictment of Miller's free-agent status. He’s listed among the top 100 free agents, according to Fox Sports. But he is ranked No. 100. Just barely there.
“Miller, 36, managed to lead Washington with nine sacks in 2025 while playing rotational snaps on an affordable $6 million deal,” Greg Auman wrote. “Can he do it again for Year 16? Of course, he can. He's the NFL's active career sack leader with 138.5, a lock for the Pro Football Hall of Fame, and he's playing for a fraction of what he cost a few years ago. He played in his heyday for Gary Kubiak in Denver, so could he finish his career with Klint in Las Vegas?”
The Commanders don’t need to keep Miller around. They brought him into the organization, expecting him to be a role-playing piece on a Super Bowl threat. Instead, the team melted to a 5-12 finish.
And there’s no reason to think the Commanders will be back in the Super Bowl mix in 2026. Unless they have a shockingly good draft, or pick up two or three free-agent home runs.
It’s better to go young at the edge rusher position. And let Miller finish his career with another team.
Commanders should let WR Deebo Samuel go
This is another guy who performed admirably, but also another past-his-prime example. At age 30, Samuel isn’t going to separate from defenders very well.
He did stay relatively healthy, appearing in 16 games. And he caught 72 passes for 727 yards and five scores. But that 10.1 yards-per-reception average is just not impressive. It was the lowest of his NFL career.
Samuel has clearly lost a step. And for a team looking to get faster, they don’t need a mud bog at the WR2 position.
He ranks at No. 40 in Auman’s list. And he won’t be as expensive this time around.
“It’s likely he'll get less (than $17 million) this time around, closer to $12-14 million a year,” Auman wrote.
Certainly, the Commanders haven’t been proactive about trying to keep him, according to NBC Sports.
“Samuel’s contract has officially voided, leaving a $12.3 million cap hit on the Commanders’ books for 2026,” Michael David Smith wrote. “He’ll become an unrestricted free agent on March 11.”
Commanders should not offer a contract to Deatrich Wise Jr.
When he walked into the Commanders’ organization, Wise was already on the downside of things at age 31. And he lasted all of two games.
Factor into the equation that Wise has never been a big threat to rack up sacks, and it's easy to let him walk this spring.
Chalk this one up to a big whiff by general manager Adam Peters. Hopefully, Peters learned his lesson. You can’t bring in a bunch of veterans and just hope tape and bandages keep them together.
Do your homework, Peters. Find the young guys who can help your football team. Make the right choices in the draft. Get younger and faster in free agency.
There wasn’t anything special about Wise when the Commanders signed him. So why not shoot for a similar level of player who still has fresh legs?
It’s common sense. Hopefully, the Commanders will exercise it in 2026.
However, even with these moves, the Commanders face a tall task to restructure a roster ruined by Peters in the 2025 offseason. It will be interesting to see if he can bounce back and put the Commanders back on the playoff map.
