Star left tackle Laremy Tunsil breaks down his decision to re-sign with the Washington Commanders this offseason
After days of finalizing the several free agent signings, the Washington Commanders made their two year contract extension for star left tackle Laremy Tunsil official on Friday.
Tunsil noted that avoiding a dragging situation that resembled the Terry McLaurin saga wasn't one he preferred with news of his deal breaking on day one of the legal tampering window.
"I wanted to get the deal done quicker than normal, and for sure, get more money in that bank account," Tunsil told local media on Tuesday. "Absolutely, I wanted to get it done fast."
The expectation all offseason was that Washington would lock in a long-term answer for Tunsil ahead of the final year in his contract. After trading four draft picks for him, it made sense.
The former Texans blindside tackle arrived in Washington proving to be among the best offensive tackles in the NFL despite not being named to the All Pro team, allowing just 1.5 sacks in 14 starts while ranking second among all NFL offensive linemen with an 88.9 pass block grade from Pro Football Focus. Tunsil also allowed just 15 pressures in over 500 pass blocking snaps, cementing himself as the upgrade at left tackle that general manager Adam Peters envisioned.
With the chance at re-signing with a team that wants and appreciates him, as Tunsil noted, finalizing a deal prior to the official new league year mattered.
"I was very excited that we got the deal done, quicker than normal. I think is the quickest one I have done out of the three I had. But it shows how much they respect me," Tunsil said.
The extension was also officially finalized one day before starting left guard Chris Paul made his return official with a new one-year deal, locking down the left side of the offensive line for 2026.
"Playing next to somebody you really don't have to say much to, it's just kind of like everything just falls into place. Pass pro, run blocking, doesn't matter what it is," Tunsil said of Paul.
With his contract now resolved, Tunsil is now shifting his attention toward offseason training where he revealed that Josh Conerly and Brandon Coleman. "[Trent] Scott called me the other day and said he's going to come down here with me," Tunsil added.
While it may not apply as much to the offensive line as the skill players and quarterback Jayden Daniels, Washington's shift from a no huddle to under center style offense remains the expectation under first year coordinator David Blough. Tunsil noted that the Commanders' new offensive system resembles the offense from his time with the Houston Texans under Bobby Slowik, his offensive coordinator for his last two seasons prior to being traded to Washington.
"I feel like it's more of the same thing, like more of under center, outside zone, play action. I feel like it just gave the offensive line more of an advantage of just running off the ball. I feel like this system actually puts the offensive linemen at a good advantage to do a lot of different things."