Washington general manager Martin Mayhew spoke with the media Monday at the NFL owner’s meetings in Florida and discussed the Commanders’ pursuit of quarterback Carson Wentz.
However, the most interesting nugget from Mayhew’s time with the media was his comments regarding Washington’s search for a mike linebacker.
Heading into the offseason, head coach Ron Rivera seemingly indicated Washington would be in search of a mike linebacker in the offseason. While the Commanders drafted Jamin Davis in the first round in 2021 with the hope of him taking over inside, Rivera and his staff quickly realized Davis was better suited to playing outside.
Back to Mayhew’s comments, he told reporters the Commanders might already have their mike linebacker in Cole Holcomb via Nicki Jhabvala of The Washington Post.
Veteran LB Cole Holcomb said after the season that he'd like to be play the "mike" for Washington and believes he'd be good at it.
He might get his chance. This is what Martin Mayhew said today: pic.twitter.com/a9lcbsjvIL
— Nicki Jhabvala (@NickiJhabvala) March 28, 2022
That’s interesting.
Holcomb did have his best season in 2021 and is better playing outside linebacker. Rivera noted after one game how Washington started veteran David Mayo inside, and it freed up Holcomb outside because Mayo handled the play calls.
Rivera said they used David Mayo a lot today as the MIKE LB to free up Cole Holcomb. Get used to this: Holcomb's future here likely outside, along with Jamin Davis. Will be a big search this offseason to get a MIKE. Would make a big help.
— John Keim (@john_keim) January 2, 2022
On Tuesday, it was Rivera’s turn at the podium, and he was asked about Mayhew’s comments concerning Holcomb.
Ron Rivera said that, yes, Cole Holcomb would be a possibility at MLB.
I will say, I've heard this a few times this offseason but would still view MLB as something they want to add. Feeling has been Holcomb is a more natural OLB. Gives them an option tho…Still need LB depth.— John Keim (@john_keim) March 29, 2022
It’s good that Rivera’s vision aligns with Mayhew’s, but is Holcomb really an option at mike linebacker? Can the Commanders go into another year without a true mike linebacker?
Rivera seemed to indicate the perception of Holcomb may have changed after the season once he and his coaching staff sat down to review the film.
One school of thought here is Mayhew and Rivera are keeping all options open. Bobby Wagner, the top free-agent linebacker, is still available. While Wagner feels out of reach for the Commanders, no one truly knows if the team has been involved with the future Hall of Fame linebacker or not.
Washington missed out on other options, but perhaps that was by design. The Commanders did meet with several linebacker prospects at the combine, so maybe the plan is to address the position with one of their first two picks.
Washington fans shouldn’t necessarily believe the Commanders are done at inside linebacker. Why would Rivera or Mayhew tell the media, “we are desperate for a mike linebacker?” Sure, that was the strategy at quarterback, but everyone already knew the Commanders had to upgrade at quarterback.
While Mayhew and Rivera are saying all the right things about Holcomb and love him as a player, that doesn’t necessarily mean he will be lining up at mike linebacker in September.
It’s wise to keep all your options open—all the time.
