Commanders’ 53-man Roster Prediction: Undrafted rookie on the roster bubble, a shake up in the RB room, and answers on defense
One last run at how the Commanders 53-man roster will shake out.
The Washington Commanders have completed the final preseason game of the offseason, and now it’s time to trim the roster down to 53 players before the cutdown deadline on Tuesday afternoon at 4 pm ET.
There were a lot of players trying to make one lasting impression on the coaching staff in the preseason finale, and a lot of moves were made leading up to now, and the roster is starting to finally settle in. Here’s my final prediction of how the initial 53-man roster might look.
Note: Players with a single asterisk (*) are 2025 draft picks, and players with double asterisks (**) are 2025 undrafted free agents.
Quarterback (3)
IN: Jayden Daniels, Marcus Mariota, Josh Johnson
OUT: Sam Hartman
The skinny: Sam Hartman unfortunately just didn’t do enough to win the third and final spot in the quarterback room this preseason, but I’m moving him to the practice squad to continue to develop. Veteran Josh Johnson is QB3 on the roster, and he will hopefully never need to play.
Practice squad prediction: Sam Hartman
Running Back (4)
IN: Chris Rodriguez Jr, Austin Ekeler, Jeremy McNichols, Bill Croskey-Merritt*
OUT: Kazmeir Allen, Demetric Felton
The skinny: The Commanders traded Brian Robinson Jr. to the San Francisco 49ers, and the pressure is on for the rest of the RB room remaining. The offense will run the ball by committee with Jayden Daniels and Deebo Samuel in the mix, but the RB duo will be Chris Rodriguez Jr. and rookie Bill Croskey-Merritt. I like what Demetric Felton brings to special teams, so he’s going to the practice squad.
Practice squad prediction: Demetric Felton
Wide Receiver (6)
IN: Terry McLaurin, Deebo Samuel, Luke McCaffrey, Noah Brown, Jaylin Lane*, Ja’Corey Brooks**
OUT: Chris Moore, River Cracraft, Jacoby Jones**, Michael Gallup, K.J. Osborn, Braylon Sanders, Tay Martin
The skinny: The passing game has been horrible in the three preseason games, and the wide receivers aren’t helping much. Jaylin Lane was the breakout wide receiver in the second preseason game, but the final spot is still in the air for me. Brooks gets the nod.
Practice squad prediction: Michael Gallup, K.J. Osborn
Tight End (3)
IN: Zach Ertz, John Bates, Ben Sinnott
OUT: Lawrence Cager, Cole Turner, Colson Yankoff
The skinny: The tight end room remains the same as last year, and expect the Jayden Daniels and Zach Ertz connection to be just as strong as last year. Kliff Kingsbury might run more 3 tight end sets this year, too.
Practice squad prediction: Colson Yankoff
Offensive Line (10)
IN: Laremy Tunsil (LT), Brandon Coleman (LG), Tyler Biadasz (C), Sam Cosmi (RG), Josh Conerly Jr. (RT), Nick Allegretti, Andrew Wylie, Trent Scott, Nick Harris, George Fant.
OUT: Foster Sarell, Bobby Hart, Chris Paul, Tyre Phillips, Timothy McKay**, Michael Dieter
The skinny: The Commanders added veteran tackle George Fant, which shows me that they wanted more depth at the tackle position. They also brought in Nick Harris, who I think is a better backup center option. The team went to work improving the offensive line, and it looks much improved top to bottom.
Practice squad prediction: Tyre Phillips, Timothy McKay**
Defensive Line (10)
IN: Von Miller (OLB/ED), Dorance Armstrong (DE), Daron Payne (DT), Javon Kinlaw (DT), Deatrich Wise (DE), Jer’Zhan Newton, Eddie Goldman, Jacob Martin, Clelin Ferrell, Sheldon Day
OUT: T.J. Maguranyanga, Norrell Pollard, Carl Davis, Andre Jones Jr, Jalyn Holmes, Ricky Barber**, Javontae Jean-Baptiste
The skinny: Jean-Baptiste is going to the practice squad for me since he’s missed so much time in training camp. The Commanders loaded up on the defensive line as well, and Jacob Martin will be a surprise standout this season.
Practice squad prediction: Javontae Jean-Baptiste, Jalyn Holmes, Ricky Barber**, T.J. Maguranyanga (International)
Linebacker (5)
IN: Bobby Wagner (MLB), Frankie Luvu (SAM), Jordan Magee, Duke Riley, Kain Medrano*
OUT: Ale Kaho**, Nick Bellore, Kam Arnold**
The skinny: The Commanders should keep Duke Riley over Nick Bellore simply because he can actually play linebacker and special teams. Magee’s injury history puts stress on the linebacker depth.
Practice squad prediction: Ale Kaho**, Nick Bellore
Cornerback (5)
IN: Marshon Lattimore, Mike Sainristil, Trey Amos*, Jonathan Jones, Noah Igbinoghene
OUT: Bobby Price, Car’lin Vigers**, Essang Bassey, Antonio Hamilton Jr.
The skinny: The cornerback room is now one of the strongest units for the Commanders’ defense, and it has depth as well. I think five corners work, especially with Will Harris’ flexibility to come in if there’s an emergency.
Practice squad predictions: Car’lin Vigers**, Antonio Hamilton Jr.
Safety (4)
IN: Quan Martin, Will Harris, Percy Butler, Jeremy Reaves,
OUT: Ben Nikkel, Tyler Owens, Robert McDaniel**, Daryl Worley
The skinny: I left Tyler Owens off the list just because five safeties is a lot, but he can be a popular call-up from the practice squad. The Commanders will run more three-safety sets this season as well, so maybe Owens will be active against certain matchups.
Practice squad prediction: Tyler Owens, Robert McDaniel**
Specialists (3)
IN: Matt Gay (K), Tress Way (P), Tyler Ott (LS)
OUT: N/A
The skinny: The team feels good about Matt Gay and gave him a big contract for a kicker. He hasn’t looked good in preseason, though, and they need to bring in competition.
Overall, the roster is much improved from last season, and it’ll be interesting to see how the team flows this season with different changes. The Commanders could also continue to add to the roster as other roster cuts happen around the league.
Washington Commanders News
‘I think he has the potential to be a Mahomes caliber’ – Jayden Daniels earns high praise as he makes his NFL top-100 debut
Jayden Daniels is already one of the best in te league.
