The opinions expressed in this article do not reflect those of the team.
We're less than a month away from the Washington Commanders reporting to Ashburn, Virginia, for training camp, and it's time we got to know the roster a little better.
The Commanders outperformed expectations in the first year with general manager Adam Peters and head coach Dan Quinn at the helm. Jayden Daniels put together one of the most electrifying rookie seasons in NFL history, and the team was one game away from appearing in the Super Bowl.
Now, with more primetime games on the horizon and a much higher standard to reach, the Commanders must prepare for an encore performance. Like last year, that work will begin in training camp, and Commanders.com will look at every position ahead of the first practice day on July 23. Next up are the linebackers.
On the roster
- Kam Arnold
- Nick Bellore
- Dominique Hampton
- Ale Kaho
- Frankie Luvu
- Jordan Magee
- Kain Medrano
- Bobby Wagner
What to watch
- Can Jordan Magee make a meaningful contribution? The Commanders had plans for former fifth-round pick Magee last season. He was making waves in training camp, and the team was developing packages for him to be used against certain offensive personnel groupings. Magee's injury, which kept him sidelined for a significant portion of the season, ruined all those plans, and he was mostly limited to special teams. Flash forward to this year's OTAs, and Magee is once again making waves with his coaches. Defensive coordinator Joe Whitt Jr. said Magee has shown a strong command of the scheme and looked impressive in practice. The coaches are hoping he can stay healthy, because they have high hopes about what could be not just for this season, but for the future, too. Wagner, as good as he is, will not be with the team forever, and it would solve several upcoming issues if Magee could fill that role.
- What progress has Dominique Hampton made with his development? We didn't see much of Hampton during his rookie season. He was a healthy scratch for most of the year and a special teams player whenever he was active on Sundays. Most of that is because of him switching positions from safety, where he was the most utilized player in Washington Huskies history, to linebacker. Linebackers coach Ken Norton said Hampton has come a long way since his rookie season. He's changed his body, improved his speed and increased his strength. He's also improved his knowledge of the scheme, which will obviously be useful if he is to have a role in his second year. There are other players who will get more attention during camp, but the Commanders would certainly love it if both Magee and Hampton made meaningful progress to stabilize the position for years to come.
- What exactly is Kain Medrano? Medrano is going to be a long-term project for the Commanders, and part of that will be to figure out what role he is going to play on defense. Medrano is still relatively new to the position after spending his high school career as a receiver. He switched positions once he got to UCLA, and with help from Norton, he drastically improved to the point where he was one of the Bruins' top tacklers. Medrano has the potential to be a unique player, as he was one of the most athletic linebackers at the combine, but Whitt mentioned during OTAs that he could operate as more of a hybrid/safety because of that skill set. Medrano will likely be a core special teams player as a rookie, but if the Commanders can put him on the right path this summer, he could take on a larger role later in his career.
