The choice for the biggest turnaround in the NFL in 2024 was pretty obvious: the Washington Commanders. They went from 4-13 in 2023 to 12-5 and a playoff berth the very next year. But they didn’t stop there. The Commanders won two road playoff games — their first postseason victories since 2005 — to reach the NFC Championship Game for the first time since winning the Super Bowl in 1991.
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Rookie QB Jayden Daniels was no doubt the biggest factor in flipping the script in America’s capital. He became just the third rookie to win multiple road playoff games on his way to claiming Offensive Rookie of the Year honors. Washington exceeded all reasonable expectations in 2024, but they were clearly not satisfied. Their offseason strategy has proven that.
General manager Adam Peters has been aggressive in adding talent and experience across various areas of the team. One of the biggest splash moves was acquiring disgruntled wideout Deebo Samuel in a trade with the San Francisco 49ers. They landed the former All-Pro for nothing but a fifth-round pick. Needless to say, Daniels feels “blessed” by the added investment in talent following last year’s surprise success.
“It’s a blessing, it’s super exciting because, obviously we want to get better each and every year and the front office does a great job of trying to figure out how can we get better and adding a dynamic player like Deebo and then adding Laremy, two players that have really been proven in this league for some years,” Jayden told Jon Gruden.
“So it’s awesome, I’m just excited really to get out there and get to work with them and start building that continuity and that relationship,” he continued.
Daniels was referring to former Houston Texans five-time Pro Bowl left tackle Laremy Tunsil. Peters swung a trade for Tunsil and the Texans’ fourth-round pick in 2025 in exchange for third- and seventh-round picks in 2025 as well as second- and fourth-round picks in 2026.
Those two moves on their own were huge.
On one hand, they got Daniels a second weapon to use behind Terry McLaurin. One who can line up all over the formation and work the middle of the field. Not to mention his penchant for YAC, which QBs love.
On the other hand, you also got Daniels a proven entity to guard his blind side in Tunsil. He was the fourth-highest rated tackle by PFF in terms of pass-blocking last year, at 89.1.
That wasn’t all, however. Adam Peters has been busy, and not all his moves were designed just to benefit Jayden Daniels. Many were team-centric moves. They brought back veterans like Zach Ertz and Bobby Wagner on one-year deals.
The Commanders also added some solid defensive depth with lineman Deatrich Wise and CB Jonathan Jones. They also nabbed a litany of solid receivers that can compete behind Deebo and Scary Terry. Veterans like K.J. Osborn, Michael Gallup, and Noah Brown. After relying heavily on McLaurin last year, the Commanders could have one of the deepest receiving corps in 2025.
