Adam Peters is not waiting around to remake the Washington Commanders roster.
Since taking over as General Manager, Peters has brought in 25 free agents and over the weekend, added nine rookies via the 2024 NFL Draft. By week one, there could be more than 34 players on the active roster that was not in Washington when the 2023 season ended.
“Yeah, it was a great night for us, for everybody here,” Peters said Saturday night after the draft concluded. “We got a lot better and we got a lot of guys who we consider Commanders. “Really proud of our process and identifying.”
The headline, of course, is the new (latest) franchise quarterback in Heisman Trophy winner Jayden Daniels. The LSU star was selected second overall and will be expected to become the team’s starter early in the season, if not before.
But for the team to have any sort of sustained success, it was the picks Peters and his staff made in rounds two through seven that would determine the fate of this franchise in the next few years.
Between picks 36 and 100, Washington was able to select four players. It was a 50/50 split for both sides of the ball.
Defensive tackle Jer’Zahn Newtown was the 36th pick in the draft and will either rotate with starters Daron Payne and Jonathan Allen or perhaps start in a 3-4 alignment.
“Playing next to those guys, outstanding, an amazing feeling,” Newton said. “Older guys who have had success in college and in the NFL. So, I’m really happy. Like I said, I’ve been watching them since they were in college, so that’s a time back. I’m really happy to be playing with them,” he said.
“We were a little nervous that he wasn’t going to make it to us at 36,” Peters said.
“We looked at moving up to get him, very surprising. We had a first-round grade on him and he is an explosive, violent player. He’s a team captain. He got the Commander tag and he’s exactly who we want to bring in this building.”
Washington then took cornerback Mike Sainristil from Michigan with the 50th pick. Sainristil will be counted on to stabilize the slot corner in the Commanders’ nickel package.
The final second-round selection addressed one of the biggest needs on offense, aside from quarterback, taking Kansas State tight end Ben Sinnott with pick number 53.
I’m not comparing him to the guys we had in San Francisco, but he reminds me of guys like [TE] Kyle Juszczyk and [TE] George Kittle,” Peters said. “The way he blocks and in the way he moves, and just the way he competes.”
A strong offseason could make Sinnott a major part of the offense. Free agent signee Zach Ertz is only signed for one year and is 33 years old. Beyond that, the only players on the roster with experience are John Bates (more of a blocker than a pass catcher), Cole Turner (22 career catches), and Armani Rogers (coming off a season-ending injury).
TCU Tackle Brandon Coleman will have a chance to protect Daniels’s blind side this fall. Coleman had a down year in 2023 after helping the Horned Frogs make a run to the NCAA National Championship game in 2022.
Wide Receiver Luke McCaffrey may also provide some interesting options for new offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury.
McCaffrey is the brother of 49ers star Christian McCaffrey and the son of former NFL receiver Ed McCaffrey.
“Near and dear to my heart with the McCaffrey family. They’re an incredible family,” Peters said.
“But Luke earned that…. He took a road less traveled where he started off as a quarterback and really taught himself how to be one of the best receivers in the country in the last two years. And so he’s got size, he’s got speed, he’s got great movement skills, and I think he’s only going to ascend.”
At 6’2” and 195 pounds, McCaffrey has the potential to be the big, possession receiver the offense has lacked in recent years. McCaffrey lacks the production or the star power of top receivers in this year’s draft, but he ran a faster 40-yard dash than his more famous brother at the combine.
Although he’s not expected to crack the starting lineup, he could provide much-needed depth behind Terry McLaurin and Jahon Dotson.
The Commanders rounded out the draft class with linebacker Jordan Magee (Temple), safety Dominique Hampton (Washington), and defensive end Javontae Jean-Baptiste (Notre Dame.)
In the first year of a new administration, all will have a chance to earn a role in what promises to be an overhauled roster come September.