After making another move to add a defensive backs coach to the Washington Commanders staff in 2026, are a pair of LSU defensive backs the obvious draft targets for the front office?
The Washington Commanders reportedly upgraded its defensive staff on Friday night after adding LSU assistant Jake Olsen, who was one of only a few to be retained by new head coach Lane Kiffin this past offseason.
Olsen now joins a defensive staff with some familiarity given his year spent with the Tigers under Daronte Jones, who served as LSU's defensive coordinator at the time while he was formally introduced as the Commanders new defensive coordinator earlier this week.
What role Olsen will serve on the defensive staff remains to be seen with Tommy Donatell the current safeties coach and William Gay serving as cornerbacks coach with both also carrying the 'defensive backs coach' title. It comes as part of the latest restructuring under head coach Dan Quinn that saw Eric Henderson become the first college coach to join the staff, replacing Darryl Tapp's role as defensive line coach with Tapp reassigned to assistant defensive line coach in 2026. But the latest coaching move could give the Commanders an obvious prospect to know outside of the first round.
LSU safety AJ Haulcy enters the NFL Draft as one of the top prospects at his position with ESPN's Mel Kiper ranking him eighth best behind Caleb Downs, Emmanuel McNeil-Warren, Dillon Thieneman and Zakee Wheatley among others after Haulcy proved himself as one of the nation's best.
Haulcy began his carer at Houston where he started in nine games and finished third on the team with 87 tackles and adding seven takeaways before transferring to Houston and registering a career-high 98 tackles in his first season with the program. He transferred to LSU in 2025 where he finished second on the team with 88 tackles, while he ended his last three seasons ranked inside the top two on his team in total tackles.
But what Haulcy did well fits what Daronte Jones has emphasized in interviews: takeaways with eight interceptions and 12 pass breakups over his last two seasons. While his angle and pursuit were inconsistent during SEC play, Haulcy has also flashed as a tackler through his college career including a career-high 24 tackles in 2023 against Fresno State. Other safeties not named Caleb Downs who fit Washington's defense include Bud Clark from TCU and Kamari Ramsey from USC, but with familiarity between Olsen and Haulcy, there's an obvious connection. Haulcy has drawn day two grades with some outlets projecting him to come off the board in the third round, making it a realistic possibility for the Commanders ahead of the combine later this month.
Of course, whether safety materializes into a need beyond the first round depends on what Washington does with its first selection after Ohio State star safety Caleb Downs, who has drawn buzz as one of the best safety targets in years, a continued and consistent draft prospect linked to the Commanders. But so have a number of positions with wide receiver being linked to Washington again this past week, while others have pointed to edge rushers like David Bailey as possibilities.
Head coach Dan Quinn pointed to the secondary as a position of need in an interview on the Kevin Sheehan show days ago, leading some to point to LSU cornerback Mansoor Delane as a realistic target who can also address another position of need this offseason.
Delane is the second-best prospect at his position behind Jermod McCoy out of Tennessee in Mel Kiper's positional rankings where he's viewed as a clear upgrade at the top of the cornerback room that also returns Trey Amos following his season-ending injury. In his lone season with the Tigers, Delane posted a pair of interceptions and 11 pass breakups while allowing just a 40% completion rate and no touchdowns - and doing it without recording a penalty.
And just like Daronte Jones, Delane-to-Washington would also mark a homecoming for the Archbishop Spalding product and Silver Spring, MD native. But with Olsen aboard, the idea of adding both Delane and Haulcy to the secondary could serve as a jolt of optimism.