Commanders' way-too-early 53-man roster projection: The Jayden Daniels era officially begins

It's safe to say the Washington Commanders nailed their 2024 draft class, so now, it's all about making sure these guys turn into the players the franchise envisioned when it decided to draft them.

Not every rookie, both from this class and the undrafted free agents, will make the final 53-man roster, in September. The same goes with incumbent veterans and younger players that don't qualify for vet status, just yet, so naturally, there are some pieces to sort out moving forward.

Part of that is laying everything out and projecting what happens next. Which is exactly what we're going to do with this way-too-early, 53-man roster projection.

Note: Players with a single asterisk (*) are 2024 draft picks and players with double asterisks (**) are 2024 undrafted free agents.

Quarterback (3)

IN: Jayden Daniels*, Marcus Mariota, Sam Hartman**
OUT: Jake Fromm, Jeff Driskel

The skinny: This is pretty easy to project, as Daniels is the face of the franchise and Mariota is an experienced veteran that provides a skill set similar to Daniels'. It would be a major surprise if the Commanders carried three quarterbacks and an even bigger surprise if Fromm beats out Mariota for the backup job before the regular season. The Commanders also gave Hartman a ton of guaranteed money for a UDFA, so it'd be a surprise if he's not on the final 53.

Running back (3)

IN: Austin Ekeler, Brian Robinson, Chris Rodriguez Jr.
OUT: Austin Jones**, Michael Wiley**, Jeremy McNichols

The skinny: Ekeler and Robinson are both three-down backs and Rodriguez plays special teams, so it's hard to see the Commanders carrying more than three RBs into the regular season.

Wide receiver (6)

IN: Terry McLaurin (X), Jahan Dotson (slot/Z), Luke McCaffrey* (slot), Olamide Zaccheaus, Brycen Tremayne, Jamison Crowder
OUT: Kazmeir Allen, Davion Davis, Dax Milne, Mitchell Tinsley, Dyami Brown, Marcus Rosemy-Jacksaint**

The skinny: I wouldn't be surprised if the Commanders go after a receiver in free agency between now and the time final cuts come around, simply because of depth purposes. For now, the guys making the roster make it for obvious reasons and for exact clarity: Tremayne is the only guy with elite size on the roster, currently.

Tight end (3)

IN: Zach Ertz, Ben Sinnott*, John Bates
OUT: Armani Rogers, Cole Turner, Colson Yankoff**

The skinny: The key to winning the TE3 job will be special teams and run blocking. Therefore, that award goes to Bates, who's best at both. Sinnott will play more H-back and it will be fun to watch him in this offense. The Commanders are probably going to add another body, here, before it's all said and done.

Offensive line (9)

IN: Andrew Wylie (RT), Sam Cosmi (RG), Tyler Biadasz (C), Nick Allegretti (LG), Cornelius Lucas (LT), Braeden Daniels, Brandon Coleman*, Michael Dieter, Chris Paul
OUT: Alex Akingbulu, Mason Brooks, Julian Good-Jones, Trent Scott, Ricky Stromberg, David Nwaogwugwu**

The skinny: Daniels is the wildcard, here. Coleman can play both tackle and guard, so his development, along with Daniels' progress itself, are big factors in how all this plays out. Regardless, expect the Commanders to carry at least nine offensive linemen thanks to the NFL's eight active offensive linemen rule.

Defensive line (10)

IN: Clelin Ferrell (DE), Jonathan Allen (DT), Daron Payne (DT), Dorance Armstrong (DE), Jer'Zhan Newton*, Dante Fowler Jr., Efe Obada, John Ridgeway III, K.J. Henry, Phidarian Mathis
OUT: Jalen Harris, Andre Jones Jr., Benning Potoa'e, Joshua Pryor, Javontae Jean-Baptiste*, Norell Pollard**, Haggai Ndubuisi (IPP)

The skinny: Allen and Payne lead the way, obviously, and the Commanders added some EDGE guys in free agency to help take the pressure off them. They went even further during the draft, by selecting Johnny Newton with the 36th overall pick. Newton can give Allen or Payne a breather, while keeping the interior pass rush on pace. 

Linebacker (5)

IN: Jamin Davis (WILL), Bobby Wagner (MLB), Frankie Luvu (SAM), Anthony Pittman, Jordan Magee*
OUT: Brandon Bouye-Randle, Mykal Walker, Keandre Jones

The skinny: Davis, Wagner, and Luvu play a ton of snaps, so there isn't much reason to carry a bunch of linebackers, outside special teams play. It remains to be seen what Magee's actual role is since he's kind of that hybrid-type linebacker/safety player, but he'll show enough to where he makes the final roster.

Cornerback (6)

IN: Emmanuel Forbes (CB), Benjamin St-Juste (CB), Michael Davis (CB), Mike Sainristil* (NB), Noah Igbinoghene, AJ Woods**
OUT: Tariq Castro-Fields, Christian Holmes, D'Angelo Mandell, Nick Whiteside II, James Pierre, Kyu Blu Kelly

The skinny: Dan Quinn likes to have options in the secondary, so the Commanders will carry a decent number of guys, here. One would think they bring in a veteran to compete, at some point. Because one of the starting outside spots, as well as the depth, is really shaky, here.

Safety (5)

IN: Quan Martin (FS), Jeremy Chinn (SS), Jeremy Reaves, Dominique Hampton*, Chigozie Anusiem**
OUT: Darrick Forrest, Percy Butler, Ben Nikkel**, Tyler Owens**

The skinny: Hampton, the fifth-round pick, makes the squad and Anusiem, a former corner will get converted, officially, to safety, which allows him to make the team, himself. 

Specialists (3)

IN: Brandon McManus (K), Tress Way (P), Tyler Ott (LS)
OUT: N/A

The skinny: This room is filled out. I'd be shocked if the Commanders wasted a roster spot on competition for one of these guys unless they just come out of the gates as flat as a pancake.

Final Word

The Commanders actually have 92 players on the roster (Ndubuisi doesn't count since he's IPP), so they'll have to cut a couple of guys, soon, to get back in line with the 90-man limit.

Either way, Washington took full advantage of free agency and the draft to make some big improvements to the roster. This should be a competitive team in 2024 and it may even sniff a shot at the playoffs if it stays healthy. 

However, that's the big thing with the current state of the roster: health. The depth, at pretty much every position, is a bit concerning. If the Commanders suffer a major injury at any position outside running back and linebacker, then that position group is going to take a step back.

It wouldn't surprise me if the Commanders added one, or all, at some point down the line: tackle, cornerback, receiver, tight end, EDGE, and even receiver.