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Washington Commanders News & Rumors

Cowboys To Re-Sign CB Jourdan Lewis

March 14th, 2024 at 1:30pm CST by Sam Robinson

Now employing two All-Pros at cornerback, the Cowboys will still find room for Jourdan Lewis. The career-long Cowboy will stay with the team once again, per the Dallas Morning News’ Michael Gehlken.

This will be Lewis’ eighth season with the Cowboys. The past three came under Dan Quinn. While the new Commanders HC is believed to have expressed interest in adding Lewis to the Dallas-to-Washington pipeline, via ESPN’s John Keim, Lewis will be set to work with Mike Zimmer next season.

With DaRon Bland posting one of the most productive seasons in cornerback history last year and Trevon Diggs coming back from an ACL tear, the Cowboys may have their top three corners in place. As Stephon Gilmore remains a free agent, Lewis is coming back on a third Cowboys contract. With Bland establishing himself as a boundary corner last season, Lewis working as the team’s nickel again in 2024 appears a likely scenario.

Lewis, 28, made it back from a severe foot injury to play that role in 2023. During the 2022 season, the former third-round pick suffered a Lisfranc injury that was deemed career-threatening. The Cowboys ramped up Lewis’ workload early last season. By the midpoint, he was working as a regular again. After playing out a three-year, $13.5MM deal, the 5-foot-10 cover man is signing up to play a supporting once in the Dallas secondary once again.

The Cowboys gave up on ex-second-rounder Kelvin Joseph after two seasons, but their Joseph-for-Noah Igbinoghene swap did not move the needle. Rolling out a Gilmore-Bland-Lewis trio, the Cowboys ranked fifth in pass defense. Pro Football Focus did not view Lewis’ first season back from injury in a positive light, however, ranking him in the bottom 10 among cornerback regulars. The Michigan alum did force three fumbles and intercept a pass. Lewis ranks behind only DeMarcus Lawrence as the longest-tenured Cowboy defender.

The Commanders have added Dorance Armstrong and Tyler Biadasz from the Cowboys, but they have not made a move at corner yet. Both Washington’s secondary starters who entered free agency among the best options available — Kendall Fuller, Kamren Curl — are unsigned on Day 4 of free agency.

RFA/ERFA Tender Decisions: 3/13/24

March 13th, 2024 at 9:25pm CST by Ben Levine

Here are today’s free agent tender decisions:

RFAs

Tendered:

Non-tendered:

ERFAs

Tendered:

Minor NFL Transactions: 3/13/24

March 13th, 2024 at 9:18pm CST by Ben Levine

Today’s minor moves:

Chicago Bears

Cleveland Browns

Houston Texans

Jacksonville Jaguars

Miami Dolphins

New Orleans Saints

San Francisco 49ers

Seattle Seahawks

Tennessee Titans

Washington Commanders

WR Jamison Crowder Re-Signing With Commanders

March 13th, 2024 at 6:29pm CST by Ely Allen

Jamison Crowder‘s second stint in DC is set to continue. According to Josina Anderson of CBS Sports, the veteran wideout is returning to the Commanders on a new one-year deal.

The Commanders’ front office has been busy so far in free agency, bringing in a number of attractive names while also keeping some contributors home. Crowder is the latest to join that group. The 30-year-old will be heading into the second year of his second stint with the team after spending three years with the Jets and a fourth in Buffalo.

Crowder’s best seasons came early in his career, delivering two strong seasons each with both Washington and New York. Injuries derailed his final season in Washington and his last two years with the Jets, and his short stint in Buffalo ended with a season-ending ankle injury in Week 4. He signed with the third New York team last offseason, but the Giants released him just prior to the start of the regular season.

Crowder rebounded by signing to the Commanders’ practice squad a week later, getting promoted to the active roster just five days after that. Crowder’s contribution in 2023 was far from what he provided years ago, but he is a reliable, veteran backup on a team loaded with young talent at receiver. He also served as the team’s primary punt returner, breaking off a season-long 61-yarder in Week 6.

Fellow receivers Curtis Samuel and Byron Pringle are also free agents, so Crowder returns to play alongside Terry McLaurin, Jahan Dotson, and Dyami Brown. The team may still attempt to bring back Samuel or Pringle, or they may try to replace their production through the draft. Regardless, they have Crowder in the fold as a veteran backup and an experienced return man.

Latest On Potential NFL Trade Deadline Change

March 13th, 2024 at 5:49pm CST by Ben Levine

It sounds like some NFL teams have made progress in their quest to push back the trade deadline. According to Tom Pelissero of NFL Network, there were two recent bylaw proposals to move the trade deadline back from its current date of the Tuesday after Week 8.

[RELATED: Teams Proposing Pushing Trade Deadline From Week 8 To Week 10]

The Steelers proposed a bylaw that would see the deadline pushed back a week, which would make it the Tuesday after Week 9. The Browns, Lions, Jets, Eagles, and Commanders were looking to push it back even further, proposing the deadline fall on the Tuesday after Week 10.

The NFL moved the deadline to Week 8 back in 2012, but they didn’t make an adjustment when they added a week to their schedule in 2021. That’s led some GMs to propose pushing the deadline back and lining it up with other major sports’ trade deadlines.

While the hypothetical recently gained some traction, there were reportedly some GM and owners who questioned if the change even needed to be made. While Browns GM Andrew Berry previously expressed his belief that pushing the deadline would help improve the “competitive integrity” of the NFL, there was some fear that a deadline move could only incentivize tanking. Berry seemed to disagree with that notion, though, saying last month that a deadline change would only keep teams more competitive.

“We think as a league it makes sense to give teams the most flexibility as long as possible to have the best product down the stretch run of the playoffs,” Berry stated (h/t Spencer German of Browns Digest). “We wanted to make sure we maintained the competitive integrity of the season so you don’t get into player dumping late in the year.”

The next round of league meetings are set for March 24-27.

Commanders To Add LB Bobby Wagner

March 13th, 2024 at 4:42pm CST by Sam Robinson

Dan Quinn has reunited with multiple Cowboys since taking over as Commanders head coach; he will now circle back to one of his former Seahawks charges who remains active.

Bobby Wagner is heading to Washington on a one-year deal worth $6MM guaranteed, NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport tweets. Quinn coached Wagner during his run as Seahawks defensive coordinator, overseeing the former second-round pick’s breakthrough years. Wagner, who will join a third team in three years, can max out at $8.5MM on his latest NFL contract.

[RELATED: Commanders Sign DE Dorance Armstrong]

Wagner, 33, will head from Los Angeles to Seattle to Washington in a three-season span. But the future Hall of Famer has remained productive into his 30s. Wagner is riding a remarkable streak of 10 straight seasons with a first- or second-team All-Pro honor on his resume. The past two years have brought second-team distinctions, but Wagner will stroll into the Hall of Fame following his career. A Washington chapter may well become part of his Canton montage.

The Seahawks were viewed as unlikely to bring Wagner back, despite the 12-year veteran excelling upon returning to Seattle. Wagner will also reunite with ex-Seahawks DC Ken Norton Jr., whom Washington hired as linebackers coach. This marks the second straight year the Commanders will bring in a Seahawks linebacker; they signed Cody Barton to a one-year deal in 2023. This year, the Commanders are bringing in two of the NFL’s most productive linebackers over the past two years, with Frankie Luvu heading to D.C. as well.

A 2012 second-round draft choice, Wagner played under Quinn for two years. The Seahawks brought him back to replace Gus Bradley as DC in 2013 and ’14. Wagner quickly becoming a star — for back-to-back Seahawks Super Bowl teams — helped Quinn land the Falcons’ HC job. Of the troops on Quinn’s two Seattle defenses, Wagner is the only one left playing.

Pro Football Focus rated Wagner seventh among linebackers; despite his age, the Utah State alum led the NFL with a career-high 183 tackles. That doubled as Wagner’s third tackles title. Over the past two seasons with the Rams and Seahawks, Wagner also took on a bigger role as a blitzer, totaling 9.5 sacks in that span. Over the past two years, Wagner has combined for 21 tackles for loss.

Although teams do not make a habit of handing out notable money to aging linebackers, Wagner and Lavonte David have collected decent guarantees on one-year pacts this week. Wagner will bring six first-team All-Pro honors to Washington, representing a leadership presence as Quinn and football ops boss Adam Peters — an ex-49ers exec who has certainly seen his fair share of the decorated linebacker — attempts to craft a turnaround effort.

Minor NFL Transactions: 3/12/24

March 12th, 2024 at 9:31pm CST by Ben Levine

Today’s minor moves:

Carolina Panthers

Cleveland Browns

Dallas Cowboys

Denver Broncos

Detroit Lions

Green Bay Packers

Houston Texans

Kansas City Chiefs

Minnesota Vikings

New England Patriots

Philadelphia Eagles

Pittsburgh Steelers

Seattle Seahawks

Tennessee Titans

Washington Commanders

Commanders To Sign S Jeremy Chinn

March 12th, 2024 at 3:55pm CST by Sam Robinson

Jeremy Chinn will join Frankie Luvu in making the trek from Charlotte to Washington. The Commanders continue their run on defensive additions with the ex-Panthers safety, Bleacher Report’s Jordan Schultz tweets.

The four-year Carolina starter will be tied to a one-year deal that can max out at $5.1MM. Considering where Chinn’s value stood going into last year, this is a bit of a disappointment. But the former second-round pick will have a chance to reestablish his value in Washington.

It is certainly interesting the Carolina-to-Washington pipeline will continue without Ron Rivera, though ex-Panthers GM-turned-Commanders exec Marty Hurney was in place when Chinn was drafted in 2020. The former Defensive Rookie of the Year runner-up has seen his stock dip, falling out of favor with the Panthers. But he generated trade interest following Matt Rhule‘s firing. At 27, Chinn should still have some time to prove he can return to his early-career level.

Working in a hybrid role that featured extensive linebacker work, Chinn combined for 224 tackles (eight for loss) and three forced fumbles from 2020-21. An injury slowed Chinn in 2022, and he did not prove a good fit in Ejiro Evero‘s defense. The Panthers reduced Chinn’s workload a month into last season, and even though he made two starts down the stretch, the 2-15 team kept his snaps low. Chinn will be looking to bounce back.

This agreement may soon lead to Kamren Curl departing. The young safety came into the tampering period as one of the top defenders available, but the team still has 2023 second-round pick Quan Martin and Darrick Forrest. With Xavier McKinney signing for $17MM per year, Curl will likely be targeting a deal in that neighborhood. It will be interesting to see if another team will consider that kind of contract for a safety, given the cheaper options available. But Curl is probably the best option left.

Commanders, DE Dante Fowler Agree To Deal

March 12th, 2024 at 2:36pm CST by Adam La Rose

Cowboys free agents continue to trek to the nation’s capital. Defensive end Dante Fowler has agreed to a deal with the Commanders, Clarence Hill Jr. of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reports.

Fowler joins Dorance Armstrong as the latest defender set to follow former defensive coordinator Dan Quinn from Dallas to Washington. The latter is in place as head coach, and he will have multiple familiar faces along the defensive front as the team looks to re-build along the edge in particular.

Like Armstrong, Fowler occupied a rotational role as part of a deep edge contingent during his time with the Cowboys. The 30-year-old logged snap shares of only 30% and 25% over the past two years, so it comes as little surprise he will head elsewhere in search of more playing time. The Commanders will mark the fifth career team for the 29-year-old.

Fowler combined to post 10 sacks and 33 pressures during his run with the Cowboys. The former third overall pick has only managed double-digit sacks once in his career – the 2019 campaign when he was with the Falcons – and his journeyman status will continue this offseason. Fowler played on consecutive one-year pacts with Dallas, and it would come as no surprise if this Commanders accord was likewise a short-term investment.

Washington’s edge group was thinned out at the 2023 trade deadline with Montez Sweat and Chase Young beind dealt prior to the expiration of their respective rookie deals. Armstrong, Clelin Ferrell as well as hybrid linebacker Frankie Luvu – added on a big-money deal in part for his ability as a pass rusher – and now Fowler will be among players the faces brought in by Washington’s new regime.

Commanders To Sign QB Marcus Mariota

March 12th, 2024 at 9:42am CST by Adam La Rose

Widely expected to draft a passer with the second overall pick in this year’s draft, the Commanders are adding a veteran to the mix. Quarterback Marcus Mariota is set to join Washington on a one-year deal, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports. The pact has a base value of $6MM and can be worth up to $10MM, he adds.

Mariota’s journeyman status will continue with this pact. Washington will represent the fourth different team in as many years for the former No. 2 pick. After his run as the Titans’ starter came to an end in 2019, he had a two-year stint with the Raiders. That was followed by one-year pacts in Atlanta and Philadelphia, with the Falcons being the only team to provide a starting opportunity during that stretch.

The 30-year-old’s play in Atlanta came to an end under unusual circumstances. Mariota left the team before ultimately undergoing knee surgery. His performance and health status limited him to a one-year accord with the Eagles, although he has landed more money upfront and a higher maximum value this time around. The Oregon alum played in three games last season, attempting 23 passes. Easton Stick – a familiar face for new Eagles OC Kellen Moore – could replace Mariota as the team’s backup, Pro Football Network’s Adam Caplan notes.

The Commanders have Sam Howell on the roster, having drafted the North Carolina alum in 2022. He was handed the starting gig ahead of 2023, and for a time the 23-year-old showed flashes of potential. Things took a turn for the worse toward the end of the campaign, though, and a new general manager and head coach are in place compared to the regime which drafted him. Howell has been mentioned in trade talk with the expectation Washington would add a veteran passer before drafting either Drake Maye or Jayden Daniels in April.

Having Mariota in place will no doubt lead to increased chatter regarding a deal sending Howell out of the nation’s capital. A number of teams have already made a move on the backup quarterback market, but the latter (who has two more years on his rookie contract) could still be of interest to teams looking for a developmental option. Mariota, meanwhile, will aim to lock down the backup spot in Washington with the potential to see playing time early in 2024.

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