Could Trading For This Veteran RB Save The Commanders’ Offense?

LANDOVER, MARYLAND – OCTOBER 06: Jayden Daniels #5 of the Washington Commanders rushes against the Cleveland Browns at Northwest Stadium on October 06, 2024 in Landover, Maryland. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images)

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The Washington Commanders had a “measuring stick” game last Thursday, in which they came up short.

Washington lost in Green Bay with a final score of 27-18. But the score does not encapsulate how dominant the victory was for the Packers.

The Commanders were outrushed 135 yards to 51, Jordan Love threw for 292 yards compared to Jayden Daniels’ 200, and in total, Green Bay accumulated 404 total yards to Washington’s 230.

Even bigger than the loss on the scoreboard was the loss on the field in the fourth quarter, where the veteran running back suffered a season-ending Achilles injury.

Now, just two weeks into the year, the Washington backfield looks completely different from what it did out of training camp.

At the end of the Preseason, the running back depth chart was Ekeler, Brian Robinson, and Jacory Croskey-Merritt.

Croskey-Merritt, a seventh-round pick in this year’s draft, soared up the trust tree of Head Coach Dan Quinn in the offseason, essentially taking the RB2 role from Robinson before the start of the season.

Due to this, and the impending free agency of Robinson entering his fourth year in the NFL, Robinson was traded to the San Francisco 49ers for a sixth-round pick.

That left Croskey-Merritt and Ekeler to split the backfield, with NFL journeyman Jeremy McNichols to take the third spot in the depth chart.

With 15 games remaining in the regular season, now McNichols has already been moved to RB2 by default, which most expect will not be the case for the rest of the year.

What options do the Commanders have? And do they have enough salary cap space to accomplish it?

In the offseason, the Commanders made sure to buy in around Daniels after his historic rookie season.

This included bringing in key veterans like Laremy Tunsil for the offensive line, Javon Kinlaw to their defensive line, and linebackers Bobby Wagner and Von Miller.

Due to the favorable cap space situation, having a quarterback on their rookie contract allowed, the Commanders were able to be one of the most active teams in free agency.

This also gave them the older roster in the NFL, with Ekeler becoming the first example of the injury risks that come with a veteran-heavy roster.

So, if the Commanders were to bring in outside help for their backfield, should they target another running back on their rookie deal?

This has been seen within the division, with Tank Bigsby being traded to the defending champions after backup running back Will Shipley was injured.

Hindsight is always 20/20, so after the Week 2 injury, it is obvious that Washington wishes that Robinson were still on the roster.

However, even if General Manager Adam Peters were allowed to veto that trade and return Robinson to the roster, it may not be the best decision for the team.

Instead, adding another veteran running back to ease the workload and allow Croskey-Merritt to develop as a player could be what the offense needs to return to last year’s form.

Effective veteran running backs are difficult to come by. Especially when the situation around the team is enough to get the player traded in the first place.

So, the best option for Washington may be the only option: Alvin Kamara.

Kamara is signed through 2026 with the New Orleans Saints after signing a two-year, $24.5 million extension ahead of last year. This would be a cap hit of just $9.71 million for 2025 and $18.63 million in 2026.

If the Saints were to trade their franchise-leading running back this season, they would add $15.3 million to their Dead Cap. As a team, the Saints already have the second-most Dead Cap at $91.98 million.

But this would be a worthy sacrifice for New Orleans, whose primary objective this season seems to be the development of its young talent and accruing draft picks.

With the Commanders’ ability to take on Kamara’s salary, Washington would likely only need to give up two late-round draft picks, unless the market for Kamara grows after Week 3.

And this could only open the floodgates for the top performers in Louisiana, with Chase Young and Chris Olave being other options potentially on the move.

Plus, Kamara has not seemed to skip a beat in his productivity, despite entering his age-30 season this year.

When compared head-to-head with Ekeler since 2024, Kamara leads Ekeler with 1,094 rushing yards and 7 touchdowns in 16 games, alongside 76 receptions for 576 yards.

While in a smaller workload, Ekeler continued to be utilized as a dual threat out of the backfield like he was with the Chargers.

Kamara could fill that role, welcoming the potential lack of touches compared to his consistent workload in New Orleans.

Thus, Croskey-Merritt can still be utilized as a north-to-south runner, giving versatility to work behind Daniels.

Coming off a mini bye week, the Commanders may see what they are working with currently when they host the Las Vegas Raiders.

However, if the offense takes a step back from their already underwhelming start to the season, a move could be made sooner rather than later.