The overlooked group that could make or break Commanders’ defense in 2025

During the darkest days of the Washington Commanders’ previous regime, fans could rely on a few constants.

Tress Way would be the punter. Jeremy Reaves would lead the special-teams coverage unit. Terry McLaurin would be the best player on offense. And Jonathan Allen would have that honor on the defensive side of the ball.

Way, Reaves, and McLaurin (hopefully) remain in the fold. But Allen is now playing for the Minnesota Vikings.

Allen wasn’t merely Washington’s best defensive player from the time of his arrival in 2017. He wasn’t simply a Pro Bowler back in the early 2020s. He was also a clear team leader, twice nominated by the club for the Walter Payton Man of the Year Award.

Ultimately, it appears that his dissatisfaction with the dysfunction in the last days of Dan Snyder’s ownership soured him so much that he could not rediscover his enthusiasm when ownership changed and the team’s outlook began to brighten.

Injuries in 2024 played a part in his fall from grace, but the writing seemed to be on the wall for several years. After unsuccessfully attempting to trade one of the club’s longest-tenured and most-decorated veterans, Adam Peters decided to release Allen before free agency.

Commanders defensive tackles must cope effectively without Jonathan Allen

So, Washington heads into the 2025 season with several new faces competing for playing time in the middle of the defensive line.

Allen is gone, but his partner over the past seven seasons remains. Daron Payne will be looking to regain the form that landed him in the Pro Bowl back in 2022. Since then, Allen's former teammate, dating back to their days at Alabama, has struggled to match that level. Now, Payne assumes leadership of the defensive tackle group.

He will have help. Peters’ biggest and most controversial free agent signing this offseason was Javon Kinlaw, the physically imposing tackle he knew from their days together in San Francisco.

Kinlaw has never quite lived up to his extraordinary physical potential, but he is still only 27 years old and may just be entering his prime. Peters has been proven right in a lot of his gambles so far. It would not be wise to bet against him.

If nothing else, Kinlaw adds size to the defensive line. That's something Peters set out to do on both sides of the ball, perhaps to match the massive size of the Philadelphia Eagles’ lines. At 6-foot-5 and 319 pounds, the former South Carolina star offers an excellent blend of strength and quickness.

Second-year player Johnny Newton is cut from the same cloth. Though not as physically imposing as Kinlaw, he has an exceptional burst for a big man. He struggled with both his health and his adjustment to the NFL early last season, but grew more comfortable as the year wore on.

Newton is poised to form a potent three-headed monster in the middle of the line alongside Payne and Kinlaw. Of course, that is based on the right development arriving this summer.

After those three, it’s anyone’s guess.

The Commanders have a lot of other bodies. Depending on how you define the position, they have as many as seven other players likely competing for one or two spots on the roster.

Veterans Eddie Goldman and Carl Davis Jr. have the kind of size Peters and Dan Quinn appear to covet inside. Both are well over 300 pounds.

Davis got on the field in some big moments for the Commanders late last season and acquitted himself fairly well. Goldman, who returned to the league with Atlanta in 2024 after being retired for two years, was once a formidable nose tackle. If healthy and motivated, he could still be a force against the run, but he will have to earn his position on the roster.

Like Davis, Jalyn Holmes played some decent snaps for Washington last year. Viliami Fehoko Jr. played under Quinn in Dallas, so there is a level of familiarity. Both are probably better suited to play outside, but have experience on the interior as well.

Former Virginia Tech star Norell Pollard has been kicking around the Commanders’ practice squad for a few years. Seriously undersized for the interior, he has nonetheless stuck around because of his quickness and tenacity.

It is hard to see him contributing as a standard defensive tackle. Still, Washington’s defense under Quinn has been very creative in finding packages that can exploit an individual player’s skill set.

Peters signed Central Florida’s Ricky Barber shortly after he went undrafted. He is a very powerful interior defender who practically lived in the backfield against weaker competition in college. Whether he can do enough at the pro level remains to be seen.

Of all the potential backups to Washington’s main three interior linemen, Sheldon Day may be the safest bet.

He is not spectacular. Day isn’t especially big, and he doesn’t have the lightning quickness that some of the younger players flash. Indeed, at 31 years old, his best years are probably behind him.

But last year, Day had the highest Pro Football Focus grade of any defensive tackle currently on the roster. He is a veteran who does what he is asked to do. That may be enough to earn him one of the Commanders’ precious backup spots once again in 2025.

The Commanders’ defensive fortunes in 2025 are going to depend a great deal on the emergence of Kinlaw and Newton. If they shine in front of outstanding linebackers Bobby Wagner and Frankie Luvu, Washington’s defense could find itself in the league’s top 10.

If they falter, the Commanders’ defense probably falls into the lower half of the league.  

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