While the Washington Commanders enjoy their first-round draft pick, they are still trying to sort out the Terry McLaurin situation. Also, here is the biggest surprise from the Commanders’ first unofficial depth chart of the 2025 NFL season.
Because of the progression of the Commanders during the 2024 season, they entered this offseason with more stability on the roster. That’s especially true after they acquired Deebo Samuel and Laremy Tunsil.
So the first official release of the team’s depth chart wasn’t going to be frontloaded with surprises. However, there is one thing that deserves a closer look.
Commanders rookie RB Jacory Croskey-Merritt listed fifth team
It makes sense from one direction. Croskey-Merritt was a seventh-round pick in this year’s draft. So whatever he gets, he will have to earn.
That means he started the summer behind guys like Jeremy McNichols and Chris Rodriguez Jr. Of course, he’s also behind starter Brian Robinson Jr. and backup Austin Ekeler.
However, it’s a little surprising because the season is drawing closer. And some people believe Croskey-Merritt will make the 53-man roster and be a significant backup. He has been one of the Commanders’ biggest surprises this summer, according to commanders.com.
“There has been a lot of hype surrounding seventh-round running back Jacory Croskey-Merritt,” Zach Selby wrote. “There's a lot to like about him; he's quick, decisive, and can burst through running lanes. It's been a while since he's played in a meaningful game, but it didn't appear as if he's lost a step during OTAs and minicamp.”
Croskey-Merritt has made an impression on head coach Dan Quinn, even though it’s not the full picture, according to commanderswire.com.
“Yeah, at that position, like I said, it's a hard one to evaluate in non-pads because you don't know, did the person make the tackle? Did he break the tackle? And so it's the offensive line, the defensive line, the running backs are sometimes the hardest,” Quinn said.
Is there a method to the placement of Jacory Croskey-Merritt?
And perhaps that feeds into Croskey-Merritt remaining low on the depth chart. Still, the clues may be there already about his impending move to RB3 eventually.
“But what you can evaluate is the explosion on the cut, the assignment, was the read correct?” Quinn said. “Having Anthony (Lynn, running backs coach) here is a really big deal, from a running back standpoint. He's got so much experience and can give the insight to the players to absolutely get them right.
“But I think it's the violence of the cuts. That he can get his shoulders square and get downhill fast. So I'm very excited to see, once we get into some opportunities. Does he get tackled? [Or] does he not? Does he run through some? But he's off to a really good start.”
The Commanders rarely got explosive plays from the backfield in 2024. If they add that to the offense this year, things could elevate to another level with Jayden Daniels running the show.
What role does the offensive line play?
Most of what happens on the ground will be impacted by whether the offensive line improves as much as it should with the addition of Tunsil. Quinn said he likes what he’s seen from Tunsil and Brandon Coleman, according to commanders.com.
“They're unique, and now we've seen both pull,” Quinn said. “How do you get out and go? So, whether it's a guard pull on a counter or both guard and tackle pulling, just to tackle, maybe on a sweep or a toss play. And that jumped out to me that usually you don't have that type of flexibility.
“Oftentimes, there's one really good puller, and sometimes it's the left guard when you're running into this side. When you have the flexibility to move and be dominant, get into the combinations, it's a big deal for us. And part of our offense is being at the line and being aggressive, but having that ability to pull and move, that's a hard thing defensively to defend.”
There are a lot of reasons to think Croskey-Merritt could be more than a backup in 2025. But when the team is comfortable moving him up to RB3 remains to be seen.
One thing is for sure: the Commanders need to be better with the ground attack this season. They can't rely on big runs from Daniels to be the biggest threat. Ekeler is past his prime, so it's up to Robinson to step up and be that threat. If he can't, the door is open for Croskey-Merritt. The Commanders think they got a steal, and time will tell if that's true.
