Everyone on the outside believes the Washington Commanders must still address the offensive tackle position.
Ahead of this offseason, the Commanders released veteran left tackle Charles Leno Jr. — their left tackle for the past three seasons. Washington already needed help at the position, so releasing Leno ensured that the new general manager, Adam Peters, would be busy adding a new starter through free agency or the NFL draft.
Peters was busy in free agency, including adding new starters at center and left guard. However, Washington’s only free-agent move at offensive tackle was re-signing veteran Cornelius Lucas. Lucas has been with Washington since 2020 and has been a reliable swing tackle for the past four seasons, often filling in at both tackle positions.
Surely, the Lucas signing was to retain him for depth purposes.
In the 2024 NFL draft, Washington selected quarterback Jayden Daniels at No. 2 overall. No surprise there. Many assumed the Commanders would use some of their draft capital to move back into the first round to select an offensive tackle. They tried but to no avail.
Instead of reaching on a tackle in the second round, the Commanders stuck to their board and selected TCU’s Brandon Coleman with the No. 67 overall pick.
Both Coleman and Lucas worked with the first team throughout the offseason program. Washington believes Coleman has big-time potential at offensive tackle.
With a rookie quarterback, though, do the Commanders have enough?
Lorenzo Reyna of Pro Football Network recently named one free-agent signing every team should make before training camp. Reyna said the Commanders should re-sign Leno.
Like the Tennessee Titans, the Washington Commanders have a young passer to keep intact in Jayden Daniels. Charles Leno Jr. can be brought back for experience and depth reasons, having spent the last three years in D.C., starting in 47 total games.
On paper, this sounds plausible. But, remember, one week after he was released, Leno underwent hip surgery. How is Leno these days? Does he still want to play? He will be 33 in October.
Washington’s offensive line struggled in recent seasons, and Leno often received too much blame. He was much more solid than some fans realized. However, a reunion doesn’t appear to be in the cards. The Commanders seem content to head into camp and see how the current roster shapes up before adding another veteran.
