Commanders Free Agency Preview: Washington must decide whether to extend or upgrade surprising starter this offseason
The Commanders have to decide between extending surprising starter Chris Paul or letting him hit the market and find an upgrade.
The Washington Commanders are one of the top teams to keep an eye on this offseason, with all the pressure on them to turn things around after a nightmare of a season.
The offseason is in full swing now, and NFL free agency is just under a month away. General manager Adam Peters has a ton of decisions to make with 32 pending free agents, which is the most in the NFL.
The Commanders already announced a one-year extension for punter Tress Way, but could another be on the way, or will they let a surprising starter hit the market?
The Commanders need to decide whether to extend or move on from free agent LG Chris Paul
Having 32 free agents is a pretty big hurdle to clear, even if the Commanders have top-5 salary cap room this offseason. The NFL also received a boost in the salary cap, which will help them bring back some of their own players, but not all of them.
One of the biggest wild cards of free agency is left guard Chris Paul, who came out of nowhere and became the starter early in the season, and never looked back. Now, the former seventh-round pick is due for a new contract, and he’s also a pending free agent who will have a market outside of Washington.
It’s hard to predict what his market will be, and free agents will have inflated contracts this offseason as well, but I predict that Paul could net around $8-$12 million per year on his new deal. The Commanders could sign him to a three-year, $30 million contract, and it would be more than reasonable, while keeping him in a place where he’s succeeding.
That contract would have him making the same as New York Giants LG Jon Runyan Jr. and would be the 11th-highest-paid guard in the league.
The Commanders should bring Chris Paul back
Paul’s climb to the starter at left guard was one of the better stories of the season, and it came out of nowhere. Everyone was shocked when Brandon Coleman was benched after a rough start, but Paul got his opportunity and made the most of it.
Paul became the starter in Week 3, and allowed only two sacks and 17 total pressures on 535 pass blocking snaps, with only two penalties on the season. He finished with a 78.2 pass blocking grade on PFF, which was seventh-best among all guards in the NFL. Paul can also move in space as a run blocker, which is the area he still needs to improve at, but he’s shown he can start for the Commanders.
Offensive linemen are a premium position in the NFL, and teams will absolutely have interest in Paul, so getting a deal done before the free agency tampering window opens on March 9th would be smart. Hopefully, a Laremy Tunsil extension could be done by then as well, so Jayden Daniels will have his left side well-protected for years to come.
Washington Commanders News
Dan Quinn reveals three critical types of players Commanders are seeking to add this offseason
Dan Quinn knows what the team is looking for this offseason, and now the Commanders need to capitalize in free agency and the NFL Draft.
