Washington has the grayest roster in the NFL, scaled by average age, at 28.6 years old. Impressively, a handful of the prehistoric (wink, wink) players in the Commanders locker room are big-time contributors.

In 2014, a voter from The Associated Press cast an MVP ballot with Bobby Wagner’s name on it. Wagner made 104 tackles in only 11 games that season, leading Seattle and the No. 1-ranked defense to a Super Bowl appearance against New England. That recognition made Wagner, a six-time First-Team All-Pro, the fifth LB this century with a first-place MVP vote, joining Ray Lewis in 2000 (1 vote), Brian Urlacher in 2001 (2), Derrick Brooks in 2002 (1), Lewis again in 2003 (2) and James Harrison in 2008 (3).

Eleven years later, Wagner paces the Commanders “D” and ranks fourth in the NFL with 115 tackles through Week 13. He also has a couple of picks and sacks and five quarterback hits in his 14th campaign.

Wagner didn’t practice Wednesday or Thursday due to a knee injury—back-to-back games in OT, sandwiching an idle week, must toll the body. He was listed as a limited participant Friday and is questionable for Sunday. Still, he’s worth the extra text. Wagner is the fourth player 35 or older with 100-plus total tackles, 2-plus INTs and 2-plus sacks in a season, linking him to Gold Jackets Sam Mills (1995) and Lewis (2010), as well as London Fletcher (2012).

Wagner is 107 tackles from overtaking Lewis’ all-time record (2,059); he has a bronze bust in his future.

And so do two of his Washington teammates: TE Zach Ertz and OLB Von Miller.

The latter has a strong case to make it in as soon as he is eligible. The No. 2 overall pick in 2011, Miller earned eight Pro Bowl nods over his first nine seasons and is the active leader in sacks, with 134.5. His credentials include the AP Defensive Rookie of the Year Award, three First-Team All-Pro mentions, two Super Bowl wins – he was MVP of SB 50 – and membership on the NFL’s All-Decade Team for the 2010s.

Miller, 36, has not been a regular starter since 2022, but he’s an X-factor on passing downs. In 2025, he has 5.0 sacks and 10 QB hits – both are second on the Commanders behind Dorance Armstrong, Jr. (5.5), and Jacob Martin (12). His legs looked fresh on a chase-down sack in the fourth quarter against Miami in Spain on Nov. 16.

As for Ertz, there’s less certainty about his Pro Football Hall of Fame candidacy. Arguing against his Canton worthiness is a fool’s errand, though. His rap sheet includes a slew of Pro Bowls and the decisive TD catch in Super Bowl LII, which lifted the Eagles, led by backup Nick Foles, over the juggernaut Patriots and G.O.A.T. QB Tom Brady. The 35-year-old Ertz ranks fifth in history for the most receptions by a tight end (824) and is seventh at his position for catches in the postseason (54). Furthermore, Ertz’s longevity – not just the act of playing for a long time but maintaining an elite body of work annually – is attractive.

Seven years ago, Ertz reset the bar for catches in one season by a TE, with 116 via 156 targets. Now, Ertz is Washington’s second-leading receiver with 49 grabs for 493 yards and four TDs and is on the verge of surpassing Greg Olsen for sole ownership of the sixth-most 50-catch, 500-yard seasons at his position (9).

It’s amazing these three players are well past their primes but playing superiorly to many of their peers.