Commanders are working on a new plan to add to their pass rush

ASHBURN, Va. – The Washington Commanders are in the midst of a 3-5 first half of their season, looking to turn things around in Week 9 against the Seattle Seahawks.

Entering the year as a team expected to challenge for a Super Bowl, the Commanders have been plagued by inconsistent play and injuries all year long, dating back to the preseason when they couldn’t even get their full starting offense on the field due to the holdout by receiver Terry McLaurin and injury suffered by fellow receiver Noah Brown.

For all of the issues the offense has had, however, it has been the defense that has proven most inconsistent in Washington, dealing with its own batch of injuries along the way, and ahead of Week 9, the team had three pass rushers in for tryouts as it continues to look for ways to improve the roster.

Feb 25, 2025; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Washington Commanders general manager Adam Peters speaks during the NFL Scouting Combine at the Indiana Convention Center. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

The Trade Deadline Looms

With the trade deadline just days away, everyone is waiting to see if the Commanders become buyers, sellers, or if they stand pat and let the cards fall where they may.

No matter what they do, it won’t be because general manager Adam Peters is sitting on his hands, head coach Dan Quinn shared this week.

“[Peters is] on top, he and his staff, going through when people call and go through and evaluate things. But the pro scouting department's a big part of the trade part too because they grade all the players in the league, all the teams, different divisions. So, right now you could go and look on a player X, this team, this position and there'd be a write-up on him. And so, every team has that. And so, most of the time there's just a lot of talking, but he does a great job of keeping me informed of if there was ever a discussion that was serious or not. But as it gets closer, we would talk if things did and last year it did. And so, every year is different and the same and not every opportunity's the same. But he does a great job of staying on top of it and does a great job of communicating with me too,” Quinn said.

Due Diligence on the 'Street'

Free agency is a year-round possibility with no deadline, and for Peters, it’s another pool of available talent he looks to when trying to figure out where to find players. And that’s where those workouts that happened this week come in.

“The Commanders tried out three pass rushers today: Malik Reed, DeMarcus Walker and Kingsley Jonathan,” Nicki Jhabvala of The Athletic reported following the team’s first practice of the week.

Sep 22, 2024; Indianapolis, Indiana, USA; Chicago Bears defensive end DeMarcus Walker (95) moves in toward Indianapolis Colts running back Jonathan Taylor (28) on during a game against the Chicago Bears at Lucas Oil Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Grace Hollars USA TODAY Network via Imagn Images | Grace Hollars USA TODAY Network via Imagn Images

Analyzing the Options

Reed entered the NFL as an undrafted free agent out of Nevada, making his league debut in 2019 with the Denver Broncos. He’s played for four teams, including the Broncos, and has collected 38 career starts, producing 16 sacks and 34 quarterback hits in the process.

Walker also entered the league courtesy of the Broncos as a second-round pick in the 2017 NFL Draft out of Florida State. Lasting four seasons with Denver, Walker started five games and sacked opposing quarterbacks 10.5 times before heading to the Houston Texans in 2021, followed by a one-year stint with the Tennessee Titans before spending the last two seasons with the Chicago Bears.

In 2024, Walker started all 17 regular-season games for the Bears and earned 3.5 sacks with 16 quarterback hits.

Jonathan is another undrafted free agent, this time coming out of Syracuse, and got his start in 2022 with Chicago before landing with the Buffalo Bills the same season. He spent 2023 and 2024 with the Bills as well and has yet to earn a start or a sack, though he does have three hits on opposing quarterbacks in 20 game appearances.

The tryout news may not be the roster development effort fans are looking for, but it’s a reminder that the league is never quiet, and especially in Washington, it is never not looking for an opportunity to improve the roster.

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