Part of the Washington Commanders offseason overhaul was completely rebuilding the pass rush and front seven on their defense, outside of defensive tackles Jonathan Allen and Daron Payne.
Where the Commanders once had Chase Young and Montez Sweat, and then James Smith-Williams and Casey Toohill, now stand Dorance Armstrong Jr. and Clelin Ferrell among others expected to rotate in.
Helping secure the middle with Allen and Payne is Washington rookie Jer’Zhan Newton who still has plenty of excitement around him despite missing all of the offseason practice opportunities thus far.
Despite all the changes, and the shift in style under defensive coordinator Joe Whitt Jr., some are not convinced the team has done enough, and CBS Sports at least believes the edge is where the roster is weakest.
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“In Washington, Dorance Armstrong was a strong rotation edge rusher for the Cowboys and Dan Quinn over the last few years, but he’s now the No. 1 guy. That’s less than ideal,” says Jared Dubin of CBS Sports. “The Commanders are counting on guys like Clelin Ferrell, Efe Obada and Dante Fowler Jr. to supplement him.”
Last year the Commanders drafted KJ Henry and Andre Jones Jr. to help provide valuable depth and development on the edge. Those two will be looking to compete with the players Dubin named for snaps and a roster spot this training camp and preseason.
Additionally, Washington has been expirementing with the idea of using linebacker Jamin Davis as an edge rusher similar to the way Whitt and head coach Dan Quinn did with Micah Parsons during their time with the Dallas Cowboys.
Speaking of the Cowboys, that’s where Armstrong came from this offseason, along with his former defenisve coordinator (Quinn) and assistant coach (Whitt). So if anyone knows whether Armstrong is ready at his shot to be the top guy in an NFL pass rush it’s them. And we’re going to be more inclined to believe them until we see for ourselves that he’s not.
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