The Washington Commanders took a sizable blow to their defensive line on Monday when coach Dan Quinn announced that Jonathan Allen would miss the remainder of the season with a torn pectoral muscle. If there's any consolation to losing a two-time Pro Bowler, it's that his absence will create more opportunities for Washington's younger players to step up.

Quinn said during his Monday press conference that "a multitude of people" will be included in the plan to replace Allen's production, and second-round pick Johnny Newton will likely be one of them. Newton was widely viewed as a first-round pick leading up to the 2024 draft but slipped to the Commanders at No. 36 overall. The team is excited about the former Illinois defensive tackle, but his playing time so far has been limited because of his own injuries and players like Allen and Daron Payne being ahead of him on the depth chart.

That should change now that Allen is on Injured Reserve, and while he didn't want his chance to come at the cost of a teammate's health, he is ready to show what he can do.

"I don't want to put expectations or limits to it," Newton said. "But hopefully [I can] get back to the level of play that I was in college."

The Commanders should be in good shape if they can get that kind of production from Newton. He recorded 18 sacks in his four-year career at Illinois to go with 188 tackles. He was the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year as a junior for recording 52 stops, 7.5 sacks, nine quarterback hurries, a forced fumble, a fumble recovery and four blocked kicks.

But Newton's production in 2023 was far more than just a blip. His career sacks are tied with Moe Gardner for the most by a defensive tackle in program history, and his 103 pressures in his final two seasons were the most among all defensive linemen in the country.

It's the kind of production that general manager Adam Peters couldn't pass up when Newton fell to the Commanders in the draft.

"He's a team captain," Peters said after Night 2 of the draft. "He got the Commander tag, and he's exactly who we want to bring in this building. We think he's an advanced player who can come in and play right away. Really a three-down player who you can play on the run downs, play on pass downs, skilled, hands and feet are tied together. And he arrives violently when he gets to the ball, and he plays just like we want him to play."

The Commanders have had to be patient with Newton, though. He had surgery to repair a Jones fracture in his foot, which forced him to miss essentially all of rookie minicamp and part of training camp. Newton also had a separate foot injury that was unrelated to the surgery that led to him missing more time.

Newton has been eased into the rotation since the season began. After being inactive for Week 1, he played 12 defensive snaps in Washington's Week 2 win over the New York Giants. His usage has increased from there, going to 21 snaps in Week 3 to 22 and 25 against the Arizona Cardinals and Cleveland Browns, respectively. He played 37 defensive snaps last week against the Baltimore Ravens.

Newton says he's fully healthy now.

"Honestly, I feel great," Newton said. "The training staff, the coaching staff, everybody in the building during the whole process [has] just been helping me get to where I am today. I feel good, honestly, and I'm ready to get to it."

It's unclear at this point just how much more Newton will play, but Quinn said that there will be "a heavier load for Johnny, no doubt about that." Quinn believes Newton is ready for the challenge. It isn't ideal, but it's Newton's chance to "absolutely go for it, and go for it as hard as you can," Quinn added.

Newton has felt the team's confidence in him.

"They just keep telling me no moment's too big for me," Newton said. "They trust me; they're confident in me. That's why they put me in this role to replace Jon. So, I just know with their trust, I just gotta go out there and be me and play to the highest level that I can."

And Newton plans to lean on Allen and Payne for guidance as he gets adjusted to the bigger role. They have a combined 15 years of experience with three Pro Bowls between them, so he's going to take as much advice from them as possible.

"I don't want no drop offs, so I want to go in there and put in the same level that he [Allen] did," Newton said.

That might take some time, regardless of Newton's talent level. Building more chemistry with Payne and the rest of the starting defensive line won't happen in one game, but at least they all share a common goal.

"I feel like everybody's game is different in a way," Newton said. "We share the same mentality. We all want to be the best at our position."