March 31, 2026, 9:45 p.m. ET
The Washington Commanders signed a defensive tackle on Tuesday: D.J. Davidson.
Who is D.J. Davidson? And why did the Commanders sign him? Davidson is 6-foot-5, 320 pounds, and was a college teammate of Jayden Daniels at Arizona State for three seasons (2019-2021). But of course, that is not the primary reason the Commanders have signed Davidson.
Weighing 320 pounds, Davidson brings mass and width that the Commanders are going to really need if they plan on going with a 3-4 front. The “34” defense typically requires a nose tackle. A nose tackle requires more size than a typical 4-3 scheme, where two tackles play with two defensive ends.
With the signing of Davidson, the Commanders now have seven defensive tackles on their roster. Remember, GM Adam Peters is working on attempting to provide more depth at each position, attempting to form the most competitive 90-man roster he can for the 2026 training camp. Smaller tackles typically don’t like playing at nose tackle because most often the nose tackle gets double teamed. A smaller nose tackle will therefore get pushed around all day long.
Here are the defensive tackles the Commanders have on their roster along with their listed weight:
Expert NFL picks: Exclusive betting insights only at USA TODAY.Ricky Barber (295)D.J. Davidson (320)Javon Kinlaw {319}Jer’Zhan Newton {295)Daron Payne {320}Tim Settle {308)Shy Tuttle (300)
Davidson was drafted by the New York Giants in the fifth round (147) overall in the 2022 NFL Draft. He played through his rookie contract, playing all of his first four seasons with the Giants. Davidson has never broken through in the NFL, starting only four games in his career. The most Davidson has played was in 2024, when he played 262 defensive snaps, or 35% of the snaps he was on the field for with the defense.