Washington Commanders defensive end Deatrich Wise Jr. talks to New England Patriots linebacker Jahlani Tavai. Eric Canha-Imagn Images

Commanders forced to adapt after losing $31 million defender

Originally posted on Washington Commanders on SI
By Jeremy Brener | Last updated Sep 20, 2025 7:00 AM ET

The Washington Commanders are going into the rest of the season without veteran defensive end Deatrich Wise, who suffered a season-ending injury in Week 2 against the Green Bay Packers.

Commanders defensive coordinator Joe Whitt Jr. spoke about how much of a loss Wise is for the team and how they plan on replacing him.

“You know, Deatrich on and off the field, he's one of those professional guys I talked about that's always studying first guy in the building. He's a guy that really is a solid factor in the run game setting edges. And then also in the pass game he can push the pockets," Whitt said.

"But you know, injuries in football is just like tackling and throwing and catching the football as part of it. So, [DE Javontae Jean-]Baptiste and other guys are going to have opportunities to step up. [DE Jacob] Martin would get more reps and we will play well.”

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Wise is big loss for Commanders

The Commanders also went out and signed outside linebacker Preston Smith, who played with Washington from 2015-18. After six years with the Packers and a brief stint with the Pittsburgh Steelers, Smith returned to the nation's capital hoping to help the team out with depth.

“You know, we're still seeing, Preston's very new to the group and [Defensive Pass Game Coordinator] Jason Simmons has history with him. They were together in Green Bay, but he is a veteran player so we just have to make sure that he's in shape, ready to go learning the system," Whitt said.

"He's with [Defensive Line Coach Darryl] Tapp, he's with [Pass Rush Specialist Ryan] Kerrigan, so I have high anticipation that he will learn the system very quickly and then when we get him involved is whenever he's ready.”

A decade of experience in the league should help the Commanders tremendously in the pass rush department, especially after Wise went down with an injury.

If the Commanders want to contend for the playoffs again, they will need to rely on players like Smith to get after the quarterback throughout the season.

Smith could make his return to the field on Sunday against the Las Vegas Raiders at 1 p.m. ET.