Miami (FL) edge Rueben Bain Jr. and Texas A&M edge Cashius Howell are projected to land with the Washington Commanders in the first round of the 2026 NFL Draft.
With the 2025 season officially a wash for the Washington Commanders after dropping their eighth straight to fall to 3-10 and four division games looming, the attention has started to shift to the offseason where general manager Adam Peters will have several questions to answer along the roster.
A big part of the equation is how Washington’s front office navigates rebuilding what has developed into a stagnant offense battling injuries through the 2025 season with fresh questions surrounding the status of quarterback Jayden Daniels ahead of the week 15 matchup against the New York Giants. With Daniels back with a healthy wide receiver room for the first time since week two, Washington’s offense was stifled against Minnesota in what proved to be the first shutout since 2019. With wide receivers Deebo Samuel and Noah Brown on expiring contracts, along with Zach Ertz suffering a season-ending injury that puts his status for 2026 in question, how Peters, head coach and offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury restock the offense for year three of the Jayden Daniels era is a major offseason storyline.
But upgrading the defense is as big, if not a bigger, focus for Washington.
The Commanders rank 29th in passing defense (246.9) and yards allowed (382.5), along with 28th in both run defense (135.5) and scoring defense (27.2). Similar to the offense, injuries have played a role in the defense’s struggles, but upgrading both the defensive line and secondary is a necessity even after head coach Dan Quinn took over play-calling duties midway through the season.
Washington heads into the final month of the regular season in position for the sixth overall pick, and while initial mock drafts pointed to wide receiver as the likely top priority for Washington, that has since shifted to the defensive side of the ball with CBS Sports projecting Miami (FL) edge Rueben Bain Jr. and PFF projecting Texas A&M edge Cashius Howell.
“Rueben Bain Jr. is Dan Quinn's type of pass rusher. He is a power prospect with a thick lower body build who plays with effort and sets the edge in the run game,” CBS Sports wrote.
“The Commanders defense is in a bad place right now, and it starts up front. Howell will face plenty of skepticism about his draft range, given his very short arms for the position, yet he has earned pass-rush grades above 90.0 in three straight seasons, with win rates above 19.0% over that same span,” PFF wrote.
Bain is viewed as arguably the top overall draft prospect ahead of the 2026 NFL Draft after beginning his career with the ‘Canes as the ACC Defensive Rookie of the Year and Freshman All-American, while he enters the postseason with 19 tackles and 4.5 sacks in 2025 as the ACC Defensive Player of the Year. Howell matched Bain’s tackle total in 2025 while posting an SEC-leading 11.5 sacks in 12 games.
Whether Washington opts to remain inside the top ten is also worth monitoring with just five draft picks heading into the offseason and no second-round pick after shipping it to Houston in exchange for veteran offensive tackle Laremy Tunsil.