It has been an ugly start for the Washington Commanders, who sit at 1-3-1.

Commanders head coach Dan Quinn’s defense is surrendering a staggering 29.8 points per game, which ranks 30th out of 32 teams. The offense isn’t picking up the slack either, scoring just 23 points per game to rank 17th in the NFL.

Quarterback Jayden Daniels gets most of the headlines, but a modest rushing attack has been a major area of concern for Washington. Daniels has done his part on the ground, piling up more than 200 rushing yards at 9.7 yards per carry. The running back room hasn’t been able to match that. Jacory Croskey-Merritt, Rachaad White, and Austin Ekeler have all turned in underwhelming performances.

That brings us to one name that makes a lot of sense: New York Jets running back Breece Hall.

Why Breece Hall makes sense for the Commanders

I spoke with A to Z Sports Washington Commanders analyst Sean Anderson about the biggest needs on this roster, and running back was the first one he brought up. Anderson said that the Commanders’ running back room is trying to be death by paper cuts, but they need an actual running back.

He pointed to Hall as a potential answer. Anderson sees Hall as a Kenneth Walker type addition for Daniels, similar to what Walker is giving Patrick Mahomes in Kansas City. Anderson also added that you’ll never get him cheaper currently while Hall deals with recovering from an injury.

If you ask me, that’s the key point. Croskey-Merritt, White, and Ekeler aren’t contributing enough to directly win games. Hall could.

Hall has been banged up this season and has played in only three games. In that stretch, he has run the ball 51 times for 163 yards and a touchdown, which works out to a mere 3.2 yards per carry. Those numbers don’t jump off the page.

When Hall has been healthy over the last several years, though, he has been a tremendous running back for the Jets despite playing on bad football teams.

He is also still only 25 years old. That gives him a legitimate developmental track and a track record of production in front of him, which is exactly why Washington should be paying attention.

Running a Breece Hall trade scenario

With Anderson’s thoughts in mind, I ran a trade scenario through the A to Z Sports trade simulator. Here’s the offer I put together:

– Commanders receive: RB Breece Hall and a 2028 sixth-round pick; Jets receive: A 2027 third-round pick

Plug that into the simulator, and it will tell you that New York wins big in this deal. I think that undersells Hall’s overall value. Yes, he’s a running back, and teams have grown hesitant to spend big on the position. A former second-round pick who has been a very good NFL running back and is still only 25 years old carries real value, regardless of position.

A third-round pick feels fair for a player of Hall’s talents. He may be having an underwhelming season, but there is still plenty of optimism for what he can do once he returns to the field. Buying while his value is down is how smart front offices land good players.

What Hall would mean for Jayden Daniels

When healthy, Daniels is a talented dual-threat quarterback, even with his last-second blunder in Washington’s tie against the New York Giants this past weekend. The issue is that he is carrying too much of the rushing load himself.

A player like Hall could help unlock this offense as a whole. Defenses would have to respect a legitimate threat in the backfield instead of keying on Daniels every time he pulls the ball. That’s the reason Anderson put the potential acquisition on the table in the first place.

The path forward is pretty simple for the Commanders. Daniels gets his running back, and the offensive identity in Washington changes overnight. With the defense struggling the way it has, the offense might need to carry this team, and Hall could be the piece that makes that possible.