Reviewing the roster limit
As you are probably aware, the NFL CBA allows each team to have 90 players on its offseason roster, but it also makes provisions for a 91st player who joins the team via the International Player Pathway
(IPP) program. For the last several years, the Commanders have made use of this IPP exemption, as they have again this season, so Washington’s offseason roster limit is once again 91 players.Washington’s 91st player via the IPP is currently edge rusher TJ Maguranyanga, who spent the 2025 season with
the Commanders as well.
Incredible level or roster change since the beginning of training camp
I’m not sure how obvious it’s been to casual observers, but in the 15 days that have passed since players took the field for the first day of training camp, the Commanders have announced 22 roster transactions! There is at least one more to come when the team announces Laremy Tunsil’s revised status by the end of the month (he may not go onto IR until the initial cutdown to 53 players for ‘technical’ reasons).
I have grouped the transactions by type rather than chronological order for ease and digestibility:
Retired (3)
- LB Nick Bellore
- CB Ahkello Witherspoon
- DT DJ Davidson
Released/waived (8)
- Edge Andre Carter
- TE Anthony Firsker
- CB Tre Hawkins
- OG Tyler Cooper
- OG Tim McKay
- OG Sala Aumavae-Laulu
- WR Chris Hilton Jr
- S Robert McDaniel
Signed (10)
- WR Stefon Diggs
- WR River Cracraft
- OT Nicholas Petit-Frere
- P Matt Haack
- OL Max Scharping
- OL Trey Hill
- OL Daniel Brunskill
- ILB Curtis Jacobs
- DT Byron Cowart
- CB Fabian Moreau
You will notice, perhaps, that there have been 11 departures but only 10 new players signed. This is because, on the first day of camp, I had already listed Rasul Douglas on the depth chart — listing 92 players at that time — without a corresponding move. Nick Bellore’s retirement, announced at the start of camp, was that corresponding move.
Accounting for Laremy Tunsil
Conversely, while today’s chart lists 91 players, we know already that one of those players, LT Laremy Tunsil, will not be on the active roster in Week 1.
Timing counts for a lot with players who suffer major injuries in training camp. Here’s a quick explanation of the considerations under the relevant NFL rules:
1. The Pre-Cutdown Rule (Season-Ending)
If the Commanders place Tunsil on IR during training camp before the final 53-man roster reduction deadline on August 30, 2026, he is automatically ruled out for the entire season. He would not be allowed to practice or play for Washington at any point during the year.
If doctors determine, post-surgery, that Tunsil will not be able to return to play prior to mid-February, then the Commanders might choose to exercise this option.
2. The Cutdown Day Exception (Designated to Return)
NFL rules allow teams:
a. to designate, on cutdown day, up to two injured players to return from IR during the season
b. alternatively, the team can carry him onto the initial 53-man roster and move him to IR the following day
(Option A is almost certainly the one that the Commanders would choose in Tunsil’s case)
This approach allows Tunsil to keep his season alive since it leaves the door open for him to return after sitting out a minimum of four games (obviously, in Tunsil’s case, it would be closer to 4 months than 4 games).
If doctors determine, post-surgery, that Tunsil’s return to play could happen prior to mid-February, then the Commanders might choose this option to keep all possibilities on the table for their left tackle. The only cost to the team is the opportunity to carry one more player on the training camp roster for two weeks.
Not your typical depth chart
The chart below is only a depth chart insofar as it assigns players to positions and stacks them in an order.
The primary purpose of the chart is to keep track of the 91 guys that currently comprise the training camp roster, not to predict gameday alignments.
You will note, for example, that I have 12 offensive position stacks and 13 defensive position stacks on the chart, despite the fact that a team can only field 11 players at one time.
You will also note that each player’s name appears only once regardless of the fact that he may play in multiple alignments or positions (e.g., an interior offensive lineman who can play center and both guard spots will appear at only one of those positions, not all of them). Again, this is by design since the goal is to provide handy visual reference of the 91 individual players while also offering an overall snapshot of team strength and depth. The bias, though, is to provide a visual list of the full roster, not so much to create a game-ready depth chart.
Finally, you will also note that, where players are capable of playing more than one position (and likely to do so on game days), my decision on where to align them may be very different from your idea of where they belong.
A few changes since the previous iteration of the preseason 91-man depth chart
Position consolidation
At some position groups where players frequently change alignments, I have consolidated the chart somewhat.
With the offensive line, for the most part, starters align in the same position nearly all the time, barring injury, though backup offensive linemen tend to cover at least two different positions. For the OL, I have not consolidated the chart.
Here are my notes on recent consolidation of certain other position groups:
Inside linebacker
It’s unclear how many ILBs will be on the field at the same time from down to down. Traditionally, in a 3-4 defense, there would be two, but Daronte Jones could opt for just one in certain 3-safety alignments, or three in 4-3 alignments or when using one of them as a ‘walk up’ LB as part of a simulated or actual pass rush. I have one group for ILB displayed graphically in 3 stacks.
Defensive line
Similary, DL personnel packages and alignments are expected to be fluid in Daronte Jones’ scheme. Daron Payne, for example, could line up as a 3-tech on 1st down, nose tackle on 2nd down, and 5-tech on 3rd down. Like the ILBs, I have one group for the DL, displayed graphically in 3 stacks.
Slot/Z receiver
The Commanders are blessed with a lot of players — Stefon Diggs, Luke McCaffrey, Jaylin Lane, Antonio Williams — who have the ability to play either in the slot or as the ‘z’ receiver (or even ‘x’ when Terry McLaurin is off the field). Here is the alignment by offensive snap count for these receivers in 2024 and/or 2025 (as indicated in chart):
Rather than dividing the group into slot vs ‘z’ on the chart, I have grouped 8 receivers into two stacks on the right side of the offensive chart.
Running back
With Bill Croskey-Merritt’s offseason work as a pass catcher and the proven ability of Rachaad White, Jeremy McNichols and Jerome Ford to run inside and/or outside zone in addition to being capable-to-outstanding receivers out of the backfield, I have eliminated the 3rd-down back distinction and presented the team’s 6 RBs graphically in 2 stacks.
Other notes on players of interest:
Cornerback
With the retirement of Ahkello Witherspoon and reports that Trey Amos is expected to be healthy enough to play Week 1, I have moved Mikey Sainristil from backup slot corner to wide corner in the stack with Rasul Douglas. This simply reflects my belief that his primary competition is now with Douglas rather than with Amik Robertson. I expect the rest of training camp and preseason to have a big impact on which players we see in which roles in the defensive secondary during the September regular season games.
Safety
Recent camp reports taken in the context of comments by Dan Quinn have led me to list Jeremy Reaves ahead of Will Harris for one of the safety positions. This simply reflects the appearance, based on camp reports, that Reaves is winning whatever competition is taking place; I’m confident that both players will make the 53-man roster and that both will get snaps in regular season games (though Wednesday’s joint practice reports about Reaves seem to be a bit concerning).
Nose Tackle
With the retirement of DJ Davidson, I have moved Jeffrey M’ba and Shy Tuttle into the 2nd & 3rd slots on the depth chart behind Tim Settle. I suspect that when Settle is off the field, it is more likely that Payne (or another ’starter’) will shift inside than it is that M’ba or Tuttle (or another player) will come off the sidelines. That said, John Keim was talking up Shy Tuttle’s likely role as Settle’s backup in his Wednesday post-practice podcast. Again, I, personally, expect to see a lot of alignment flexibility with the top-6 defensive linemen.
Center / Guard
The team added 3 interior offensive linemen in the past few days — Trey Hill, Max Scharping and Daniel Brunskill. I’m not sure how much differentiation there is between the three players. I have chosen to list Brunskill as the primary backup to Nick Allegretti based on his NFL experience and number of starts — basically, Brunskill is my pick to win the competition for primary backup at the center position. Rather than putting 6 guys at the center position, I have listed Hill & Scharping as guards, along with returning veteran Commander Julian Good-Jones, despite the fact that all 3 have center experience, and I have labeled Scharping as a player ‘on the bubble’ based on my understanding of the players’ relative skills. With all that said, I think the decisions about which interior OL players make the roster will be complex and possibly surprising, meaning that I view the fates of all non-starters at center and guard as wild guesses at this point.
The updated offseason roster/depth chart
NOTES: The numbers that appear beside some players’ names are 2026 cap hits per Over the Cap. I have not included cap hits below $1.5m. We do not yet have contract information for Stefon Diggs.
The Commanders currently have 44 defensive players, 42 offensive players and 5 special teams players.
Please note that assigned positions and color codes are my own personal opinions; they do not necessarily represent the thinking of Washington’s coaches or front office, nor are they necessarily consistent with fan consensus or the thoughts of other writers on Hogs Haven. Finally, when it comes to backup players, I don’t put much effort into making sure that they are on the right or left or behind the specific player that they backup. I mostly just try to fit everyone on the chart efficiently.
It’s also probably worth noting that my goal is primarily to illustrate the full offseason roster, not to create a conventional depth chart. I have, for example, 12 position stacks on offense and 13 on defense. Readers can project 11 or 12 personnel (or whatever else) on offense, as well as multiple defensive alignments.
