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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

Commanders' quiet trade deadline was louder than you think

Originally posted on Washington Commanders on SI
By David Harrison | Last updated Nov 4, 2025 4:56 PM ET

The 2025 NFL Trade Deadline has come and gone, and a new Washington Commanders player is being added to the active roster, but not in the way some thought it might happen.

While there was a possibility the Commanders would become ‘buyers’ at the trade deadline if they were able to snap their losing streak against a tough Seattle Seahawks team in Week 9, the loss of that game and quarterback Jayden Daniels shifted most to the side of thinking the team should look to trade away any player that would return real value for the future.

Players like Washington receiver Deebo Samuel, defensive tackle Daron Payne, and even offensive linemen Andrew Wylie and Nick Allegretti were brought up.

As the clock struck 4 p.m. ET, however, no Commanders had been traded away, and no new ones were brought in. Instead, the only new player on the active roster is receiver Treylon Burks, who will fill one of two open spots after the team made significant injured reserve moves on Tuesday afternoon.

Steve Roberts-Imagn Images

The Roster Moves That Did Happen

Burks was active as a practice squad elevation for the first time since joining the Washington practice squad earlier in October in Week 9. He caught his only target for a gain of 14 yards and played just over half of the team’s offensive snaps, appearing on 35 snaps total in the game.

In other moves, “The Washington Commanders announced today that they have made the following roster moves,” the team communicated via press release.

“The Washington Commanders have placed the following players on the Reserve/Injured List:

CB Marshon Lattimore [and] WR Luke McCaffrey.”

Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images

A Closer Look at the Losses

McCaffrey had become a standout kick returner this season, building on the promise he flashed in his rookie season in 2024, and suffered a collarbone injury on his 26th return of the season.

As a receiver, the second-year receiver also took strides and scored his first three NFL touchdowns while catching 11 passes for 203 yards. His offensive growth was evident on the field and on tape, but also in his Pro Football Focus grades, where he jumped from a 54.3 offensive grade last season to a 72.6 mark halfway through this year.

Lattimore, meanwhile, was a source of contention for Commanders fans as he never seemed to consistently and truly take the form they’d expected he would after being traded for from the New Orleans Saints at the deadline last season.

He had one interception through nine game appearances, suffering a torn ACL in his last and final contest against the Seahawks, and was allowing an NFL Passer Rating Against of 89 when targeted, which is better than the 105.5 rating he surrendered last year between his two teams.

Geoff Burke-Imagn Images

The Jayden Daniels Decision

One move that was not made on Tuesday was Daniels heading to injured reserve, signaling at least the hope that he may return this season from the dislocated elbow he suffered on his non-throwing arm on Sunday night, though the contention status of the team for postseason play may and should factor largely into any decision to bring him back onto the playing field this season after suffering three injuries in the first half of the year that all cost him one or more games missed.

It would appear that Washington is set to move forward into the back half of the 2025 NFL season wounded but together, as it looks to figure out a way to turn things around, and at worst, figure out who will be part of the plans heading into the far future, and who won’t.

Both objectives will take their next steps forward this Sunday afternoon when the Commanders host the Detroit Lions in a rematch of last year’s NFC Divisional Round Playoff game.