Jan. 23, 2026, 4:40 a.m. ET

The Washington Commanders still don’t have a defensive coordinator. Once they fired Joe Whitt Jr. at the end of the season, two names immediately jumped to the top of the list of potential replacements: recently fired Falcons head coach Raheem Morris and Falcons defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich.

Both Morris and Ulbrich have deep ties to Washington head coach Dan Quinn. Both coached under Quinn for years. Earlier this week, the Falcons took Ulbrich off the board, as new coach Kevin Stefanski retained him. Atlanta previously denied all requests for teams to interview Ulbrich.

Morris remains available. However, he’s interviewed for multiple head coaching jobs and could still land one. Morris could also take some time off from coaching and go into television. He has options.

Washington has interviewed seven candidates thus far. Morris is not among those who have interviewed. No one should look too deeply into that because he and Quinn are close. Perhaps Morris has told Quinn they’d interview once the head-coaching carousel slows down. Or maybe Morris told Quinn he doesn’t want to be the defensive coordinator in 2026.

Is Morris even in the mix at this point? ESPN’s John Keim believes Morris is probably still atop Washington’s wish list.

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“I think Raheem would be at that top, cause there’s a familiarity, clearly Quinn trusts him and, you know, he’s worked with him,” Keim said on Thursday’s edition of the “Kevin Sheehan Show” on Team 980 in Washington, D.C.

“What I always say with that is like, I would hope, in any situation, you’re taking a guy, not because you’re familiar, but because you think he’s gonna make you better. And, you know, I think after these moves, these were aggressive moves that Quinn made this offseason. So, you would think that would be the priority for him. You can look at the stats under Raheem in other places, like, eh, you know, but I think he obviously has a good reputation. So I don’t say that to say he can’t do that or shouldn’t do that, it’s just that you want to make sure it’s about more than that. But I would still put him at the top.”

Keim is right about Morris’ stats elsewhere: “Eh.” Morris isn’t known as a schemer like Brian Flores or Jim Schwartz. Morris is more known for his ability to lead and cultivate relationships. That’s not to say he’s done a bad job when he’s led a defensive unit before, but he’s more of a CEO type, which sounds like what Quinn is aiming for as Washington’s coach moving forward.

So, while Morris may be a top candidate, is he the best candidate? Ultimately, Washington must show dramatic defensive improvement in 2026. A dramatic improvement doesn’t mean a top-10 defense, but at least one that can get off the field on third downs, force an occasional turnover, and rush the passer.

More important than anything, the Commanders need to add players on defense. They need to spend in free agency and use their No. 7 overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft to land a high-impact starter.

Of the remaining candidates, Morris is the safest to hire. After making a big move to promote David Blough to offensive coordinator, Quinn may choose to be more conservative with his defensive coordinator hire. Whatever he decides, he can’t afford to be wrong.