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Commanders Free Agent Will Be 'Key Player' in Quinn Defense

Originally posted on Washington Commanders on SI
By David Harrison | Last updated Feb 10, 2024 2:40 PM ET

If you asked us entering the 2023 NFL Season whether cornerback Kendall Fuller would be back with the Washington Commanders, we'd likely have told you he would not.

With the growth cornerback Benjamin St-Juste showed in 2022 and the Commanders ' selection of cornerback Emmanuel Forbes Jr. in the first round of the NFL Draft it seemed likely the veteran would be squeezed out this offseason.

A 4-13 season changed a lot of things in Washington, and now, maybe the best decision the franchise could make this offseason is to retain the eight-year veteran.

"The Washington Commanders were a mess on defense last season, but Kendall Fuller was one of the few bright spots," Marcus Mosher of 33rd Team says. "With (new head coach) Dan Quinn coming to town, Fuller will be a key player in his defense. Fuller turns 29 in February, but look for Washington to keep him around as they try to rebuild the defense."

According to Pro Football Focus, Fuller played just over 1,000 snaps with 952 of them coming out wide and the remaining reps coming mostly in the box or the slot.

He finished with an 82.8 coverage grade, the second-best in his career thus far thriving in his zone assignments.

Unfortunately for Washington, the second-best zone corner was St-Juste who finished more than 20 points lower than his veteran counterpart.

Meanwhile, Forbes struggled in zone coverage earning a 49.9 grade and allowing a 133.9 NFL passer rating in the process.

Given the performance of the secondary as a whole last season, there's a real chance the Commanders add to the group in free agency, the NFL Draft, or both.

The more holes the team sees in its roster heading into the new league year in March the more it'll need to pursue outside options.

Retaining Fuller may not have been at the top of the priority list this time last year, but it may be now.

Spotrac projects Fuller to earn $14.1 million in average annual salary on a three-year deal this offseason.