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The 2026 season is off the rails for the Washington Commanders. If they end up opting for a full reset, the best part of the potential vacancy at GM would also provide some challenges.
Feb 25, 2025; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Washington Commanders general manager Adam Peters speaks during the NFL Scouting Combine at the Indiana Convention Center.
© Kirby Lee-Imagn Images
If the Washington Commanders make a general manager change this offseason, the good news is Washington has the hard part done already. Quarterback Jayden Daniels would immediately become the biggest selling point of the job. Having a quarterback to work with instantly upgrades a potential gig. But, in this particular case, timing around Daniels would also create one of its biggest challenges.
Inheriting a young franchise quarterback cuts both ways. Any GM candidate who sits down with Commanders ownership would know exactly who the offense is going to be built around. It’s a head start in the team-building process. But if there’s a new man in charge with the Commanders, one of his first orders of business could be working on a contract extension with the gifted quarterback. That’s a tall order, given the circumstances. Garret Greenlee and Kyle Crabbs of ‘4th & Football’ discussed the Daniels dynamic in Washington earlier this week.
Jayden Daniels would be the best thing about a Washington Commanders GM vacancy this offseason — but he’d also provide some challenges
“I would be patient with (a contract extension). You have the fifth-year option decision that you’ll have to make after the year. I think that’s an exercised option; no-brainer, no questions asked…If I’m a GM and I’m coming in and I want to give myself the best chance to be successful…I want Jayden to lead our rejuvenated group that we’re going to bring in here and then we’ll set the salary around him.”
— Kyle Crabbs, 4th & Football
This will be a bit of a balancing act. Both to negotiating with Daniels and timing up his next deal with the cost of pieces around him.
Daniels makes Washington more attractive because a new GM can build around a known centerpiece. But that same centerpiece puts pressure on the hire to get the roster right quickly, while threading the needle on building up the rest of the roster.
Get the sequencing right, and a new regime could have Daniels surrounded by a complete roster by the time his big cap charges arrive. Get it wrong, and Washington could find itself with an expensive quarterback and not enough around him to win at the level that contract demands.
If Washington changes GMs, Daniels would be the asset that gets candidates interested. But how the next GM handles everything around him may determine whether the hire actually works.
NFC East · 3rd · 2027 NFL DraftWashington Commanders2-5-1 · Projected 6.0 wins · Playoff odds 6%NFL Draft
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