The Washington Commanders' front office has a lot to learn this offseason, and I hope they’re taking notes. Through the first two weeks of the NFL playoffs, teams with dominant defenses are thriving and making short work of their opponents.

The top-five scoring defenses—the Seattle Seahawks (#1), Houston Texans (#2), and New England Patriots (#3)—all won their first matchups convincingly, while the Denver Broncos used timely takeaways to will themselves into the AFC Championship.

Washington is far, far away from reaching this level, and the stats back that up. Let’s look at where we stand compared to these playoff powerhouses and where we should go next.

So far this postseason, we’ve seen seven games. Three of them exhibited the kind of defensive dominance that makes games physically difficult to watch.

During Wild Card weekend, New England absolutely smothered the Los Angeles Chargers. Justin Herbert was running for his life from the first whistle, hounded by a pass rush that notched six sacks and 11 total hits. Per NFL.com, Herbert was held to a pedestrian 159 passing yards and a miserable 1-of-10 on third down. The Chargers amassed just 207 total yards, nearly 125 yards below the 2025 league average of 331.5.

The Texans also flexed their muscles last week. Aaron Rodgers and the Steelers were completely overwhelmed; the future Hall of Famer passed for just 146 yards, zero touchdowns, and was sacked four times for a QB rating of 50.8 (NFL.com). The Steelers converted only 2-of-14 third downs and were buried by two defensive touchdowns—a fumble return and a pick-six—in a 30–6 dismantling.

Finally, we saw the complete demolition of the 49ers last night. The Seahawks held Kyle Shanahan’s offense to just six points and 3.9 yards per play. Brock Purdy was under duress on a staggering 58% of his dropbacks—the highest pressure rate he has ever faced in his career according to Next Gen Stats. 

As Benjamin Solak noted, a Shanahan offense has been held under seven points only four times in his career; two of those have happened against Mike Macdonald’s Seahawks this month.

Reflecting on the Commanders' season, it’s clear Washington is light-years away from becoming a similar dominant force. In 2025, Washington allowed 26.5 points per game, which ranked 27th in the league (Pro Football Reference). Even more damning, they were the first team since 2002 to lose four consecutive games by 21+ points.

Furthermore, Washington simply doesn’t take the ball away. Former DC Joe Whitt Jr. preached that “Ball is Air,” but that emphasis never bore fruit. Washington compiled only 10 takeaways all season (31st in the league), leading to an abysmal turnover margin of -13.

As we saw yesterday, despite facing a perennial MVP candidate in Josh Allen, the Broncos stole five extra possessions by generating five turnovers. This gave Bo Nix a massive margin for error—a grace that was never afforded to Jayden Daniels this season. Daniels was tasked with being nearly perfect just to keep Washington in games because the defense provided almost zero "free" possessions.

In order to win big games, you can’t give up big plays. This was Washington's primary Achilles' heel in 2025. According to PFF, the Commanders allowed 53 plays of 20+ yards this season—averaging about three "chunk plays" allowed per game.

Even more staggering: Washington ranked last in yards per attempt allowed (9.7) when the QB wasn't pressured and led the league in 50-yard passes allowed with 13. For a team without a high-end pass rusher, this is a damning stat that needs to be rectified immediately. This year, Washington allowed 384.4 yards per game, ranking 32nd in the league. Compare that to the Texans and Patriots, who allowed just 175 and 207 total yards respectively in their playoff wins.

While Washington has talented players like Mikey Sainristil, Frankie Luvu, and Bobby Wagner, the unit still ranked 31st in both third-down conversions and red-zone TD percentage (67.7%) per Pro Football Reference.

The 2026 playoffs have shown Washington a blueprint for success. Although we finally have a franchise cornerstone in Jayden Daniels, you need to have multiple pathways to win. Too many times this season, we were overly reliant on the talent of Daniels, forcing him to play "Superman" just to keep us in the hunt. That is a dangerous way to build a franchise; it compromises his health and asks a young star to do far too much.

As the Commanders head into a pivotal week of Defensive Coordinator interviews, I hope Adam Peters and Dan Quinn take heed of the teams still standing. We are seeing a league-wide emphasis on disciplined football, sound coverage, and effective tackling—the four things Washington lacked most this season.

I believe talent is a key component for a jump in 2026, but Peters and Quinn have to hit on their coaching hire, too. For much of the year, the team lacked discipline and seemed lost in their responsibilities. As we’ve seen over the last two weekends, a great defense can carry you a long way—and if you pair that with a star quarterback, you aren't just a playoff team; you're a contender.