Through the first four games of the 2025 season, the Washington Commanders were giving up an average of 107.5 yards per game on the ground. Opponents were eking out just 3.6 yards per rushing attempt.
In the last two weeks, those numbers exploded. Figuring out why and fixing whatever problem exists could be the key to whether Washington can repeat or surpass last year’s success.
Against the Los Angeles Chargers and Chicago Bears, the initially formidable rush defense gave up an average of 150 yards per game. Most alarmingly, the per-rush figure rose two full yards, from 3.6 to 5.6. In those two contests, Dan Quinn’s club looked much closer to the worst rush defense in the league than to the best.
What happened, and can it be fixed?
Commanders’ defensive depth needs to step up to reverse a troubling trend
Part of the troubles of the last two weeks may be anomalies. Frankie Luvu is being blocked and missing tackles at a much higher rate than last season. Quan Martin and Jeremy Reaves are not tackling well. Those things are likely to work themselves out.
Those players are too good. This is probably more a case of a bad week or two than of any permanent downturn.
The more pressing problem concerns injuries, especially at defensive end.
The Commanders are still trying to replace Deatrich Wise Jr., who was lost for the season in Week 2. He was one of those boring free agent signings who would have yielded significant results had he stayed healthy. He is a veteran edge who does not post elite pass rush numbers, but knows how to set an edge against the run.
Defensive coordinator Joe Whitt Jr. has been cobbling together a replacement for Wise from his bench. Jacob Martin has taken the most snaps, but a committee including Jalyn Holmes, Von Miller, Javontae Jean-Baptiste, and the recently signed Preston Smith has all logged time on the edge.
Now Jean-Baptiste is out as well. Drake Jackson was signed, but it'll be a while before fans see him in action after he was placed on injured reserve.
In the first two games without Wise, that run defense continued to hold opponents to well under four yards per carry. Then Dorance Armstrong Jr., the Commanders’ best defensive end, also went out.
An illness one week and a balky hamstring the next limited Armstrong to about 10 plays fewer than his usual workload in Weeks 5 and 6. And when he was on the field, he was clearly not at his best.
The Bears ran at will against Washington’s defensive front. They found particular success running right, directly at the end where Armstrong would have been. With Luvu and the safeties unable to make plays, the Commanders withered.
This was a Bears team that entered the game with no particular talent for running the football. Before playing the Commanders, they had been averaging 102 yards per game on the ground and a modest 3.8 yards per rush. Those numbers ballooned to 145 yards and 5.4 yards per run against Washington in Week 6.
Are there any fixes on the horizon?
Wise is not returning this season. That means getting Armstrong back to full health is vital. With him on the field, they have a good chance of reconstructing that strong run defense. Without him, it won't be easy.
Holmes should be better suited to play the run than the other backups. He has the size to do it. But he has not been perfect thus far.
Against Chicago, the Commanders were also missing one of their best interior run defenders, Eddie Goldman. Holmes was asked to play inside more than usual, and he did not fare well. It might make more sense to call up a reliable defensive tackle like Sheldon Day, instead.
Miller has played reasonably well against the run this year, but it doesn’t seem wise to task the 36-year-old pass-rushing specialist with heavy lifting in the run defense. Smith is essentially a dart throw at this point, but his limitations when called upon are evident.
Martin is the player who needs to step up. He came to Washington wanting to prove that he is more than another pass rusher, and now he will get his chance.
The problem with Martin is that he is just not big enough to be a full-time run-stopper. At just over 240 pounds, he is the smallest of the Commanders’ edges — a hybrid end/linebacker who has played both spots in his career.
It is unlikely Martin can hold up playing starter-level snaps, so Quinn and Whitt will need to spell him. Scheme-wise, there may be a role for a bigger safety like Tyler Owens to play on early downs. For now, the Commanders seem more comfortable with recently signed veteran Darnell Savage in the box safety role, which raises questions about how ready Owens is to play critical defensive snaps.
This role would seem tailor-made for a player with his physical gifts.
If all else fails, moving one of those interior linemen outside on occasion may be necessary. Both Jer'Zhan Newton and Daron Payne did that in Weeks 3-5, but with Goldman missing last week, they stayed inside against the Bears.
Stopping the run will require a total team effort. The middle of the defense — interior linemen, linebackers, and safeties — all need to pick up their level. Right now, I’m not too worried about those positions.
But if the edges don’t stop opponents from gashing them on the outside, it may not matter. The Commanders need their backup defensive ends to rise to the occasion.