Frankie Luvu admits he took a long look in the mirror and it can help the Commanders defense get back on its feet
Frankie Luvu, along with the rest of the Commanders, had a bad year in 2025. He recently talked about looking inward in order to ensure that doesn’t happen again in 2026.
Just about everyone associated with the Washington Commanders had a bad 2025 season and linebacker Frankie Luvu was definitely in that group.
Luvu was asked to do a lot because of all the injuries to the point where it affected his play. Sure, in an ideal world, the hope is NFL players can find a way to navigate the added responsibilities/different roles, but that’s not always the case.
Luvu is fully aware of his part in the situation, though, and he knows how he can get back to the player he was when played a big role in getting the Commanders to the NFC Championship game.
“To be honest, man, yes, I did do a lot of, you know, self-critical, play on my part, but man, just getting back to playing ball, man,” Luvu said when asked about his self-evaluation process over the last couple of months. “With that being said, just being free and playing within the scheme, you know? And just making my plays when my plays come to me, not going searching for it, and just doing my job.
“I feel like, you know, I wasn’t doing that part over the last year.”
“I just felt like I could be better in some situations,” he later continued. “So, it’s a lot of, you know, me personal-type things, it’s never about [the] team, at the end of the day. But for the most part, I just feel like there’s little things and critical situational things I have to work on.”
Frankie Luvu’s stats since joining the Commanders
Luvu signed a three-year, $30 million contract with Washington during the 2024 offseason. Below are his numbers since inking the deal:
- Tackles: 185
- Sacks: 11.0
- Interceptions: 1
- Forced fumbles: 3
- Tackles for loss: 17
- QB hits: 20
- Games: 34
A refreshed Frankie Luvu would be huge for the second level of the Commanders defense
Man, the Commanders could have one of the NFL’s best linebacker corps, if not the best, if Luvu returns to form. A revived version of his 2024 self, along with new additions in Sonny Styles and Leo Chenal, would give Daronte Jones a versatile, dynamic trio that he could line up in all kinds of different spots to confuse opposing offenses.
Don’t rule out Jordan Magee, either, whom the coaching staff is very high on. He could be a guy that earns more playing time in 2026 – even with the aforementioned additions.
What was a weakness in 2025 has the chance to become a major strength in 2026 if Luvu can get back to his previous ways.