LOUDOUN COUNTY, Va. – The Washington Commanders announced today the team's 2024 Bill Walsh NFL Diversity Coaching Fellows for training camp – Chris Chester, Ashley Cornwell, Jason Nikolao and Jason Washington. This year, Washington featured two groups of fellows with the first group participating in the final portion of OTAs and mandatory minicamp and the second group of fellows participating in training camp.

• Chris Chester will work with the offensive line and is currently a football performance coach at EXOS Wellness and Training Center in Frisco, Texas. At EXOS, Chester runs the pre-combine skills training and specializes in run game and pass protection. He is also currently the offensive coordinator for the Texas Threat, which is a 7-on-7 organization. Chester played guard at Oklahoma before playing for a decade in the NFL. He was drafted by the Baltimore Ravens and started in 47 games from 2006-10. He played for the Washington Commanders from 2011-14 and started in 64 games before finishing his career with the Atlanta Falcons from 2015-16 where he started in 36 games. Chester finished his NFL career with 110 consecutive starts and 10 postseason starts. He also participated in the Aresty Institute of Executive Education's Business Management and Entrepreneurship Program in the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School of Business.
• Ashley Cornwell will be assigned to the tight ends and is currently the assistant offensive line coach and run game analyst for Bucknell University. She previously coached the offensive line at Oberlin College. Prior to her stint at Oberlin, Cornwell was a student assistant coach at the University of Wisconsin from 2019-23. During her time with Wisconsin, she assisted in all three phases of the team and coached 12 players who would go on to play in the NFL. She has participated in the Bill Walsh Diversity Fellowship with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2023) and Tennessee Titans (2022). Cornwell has also spent two seasons as the offensive line coach for the International Pathway Program.
• Jason Nikolao will work with the linebackers and is currently the head coach at Clover Park High School in Lakewood, Washington. Prior to his role at Clover Park, he coached in various capacities with Menlo-Atherton High School in Menlo Park, California from 2006-10. He was honored as the 49ers HS Coach of the Week in September of 2008. Nikolao played defensive line at the University of Oregon from 1997-2000 and played for two seasons in the NFL. He was a member of the Jacksonville Jaguars in 2001 and the Houston Texans in 2002.
• Jason Washington will assist the defensive backs and is currently the director of player development at Mississippi State. At MSU he creates and implements programming that assists the student athletes in life off the field. He is also the school's NFL liaison. Prior to running player development for the school, he held the role of running backs coach from 2022-23 and defensive backs coach from 2020-21. Prior to his current stint at Mississippi State, Washington coached the cornerbacks at the University of Texas from 2017-19. He served as the special teams coordinator and worked with the defensive backs at the University of Houston from 2015-16. Washington had two stints at Texas State University where he coached the entire defensive backs (2011-14) and the cornerbacks (2004-07). In between his roles at Texas State, he coached the cornerbacks at Rice University from 2007-10. Washington lettered in football and baseball at Texas State and graduated with a B.A. in Exercise and Sports Science.

Established in 1987, the Bill Walsh NFL Diversity Coaching Fellowship provides NFL coaching experience to a diverse group of participants every year. The program is named after the man who conceived the idea – late Pro Football Hall of Fame head coach BILL WALSH – and exposes talented minority college coaches, high school coaches and former players to the methods and philosophies of NFL coaching staffs. Walsh introduced the concept to the league in 1987 when he brought a group of minority coaches into his San Francisco 49ers' training camp.