Commanders make MULTIPLE moves... Major Updates

In four days, the Commanders lost both of their defensive tackles for the rest of the season. Their defense was already giving up 26 points a game, and now the middle of it is gone. But there is one man that hasn't played a single snap this year, and he might actually be the answer. On November 3rd, Darren Payne and Javon Kinlaw both went on injured reserves, and both are reported out for the season. Those two were the middle of the defense. Each played six games this year and had one sack. Payne is on the books for $27.95 million this season, and Newton is on the books for $2.67 million. The next day, the team signed Ricky Barber, defensive tackle, from the practice squad to the active roster. After losing two starting defensive tackles, and you're starting I'm starting to look at the only answer coming from the practice squad. That's when the team looked at their injured reserves. And this defense needs the help. It gives up 26 points a game, 243 passing yards a game, and 99.1 rushing yards a game. It has just 16 sacks all season, and sacks are exactly what healthy Newton gives you. The record is 2-4-1 after 7. They aren't out of it, but the margin for another bad week is gone. So who is the one man that can change that? The Commanders took Newton 36th overall in the 2024 draft, the fourth pick of the second round. At Illinois in 2023, he was a consensus All-American, the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year, and the Big Ten Defensive Lineman of the Year. So the Commanders were not drafting a project. They were drafting a guy that can completely disrupt in the middle. As a rookie in 2024, he played 16 games with 44 tackles, 2 sacks, and 7 tackles for a loss. In 2025, he played 17 games and had 5 sacks, which was the most of any defensive tackle on this roster. That 5 was 4th on the whole team, behind Von Miller's 9 and 2 players with 5.5. And he saved one of his best games for the end. In week 17 of 2025 at Dallas, Newton had 3 sacks in a single game. Since 1999, only 8 Commander games have ever had 3 or more sacks from one player, and his was the most recent. So you can see why they're counting the days. Across 33 career games, Newton had 7 sacks, and 5 of them came in a single season. Look at the jump. In 2024, he had 2 sacks in 16 games, and in 2025, he had 5 sacks in 17 games, which is more than double. And that was a player that was getting better, and the trend was pointing very far up. Now compare that to what the middle has given them this year. Payne and Kinlaw have 2.0 sacks between them in 12 combined games. Newton's five sacks last year is more than both of them combined, and he's going to continue trending up. That is the player that went down in August. It happened in the preseason opener, a 20-7 win over Miami. Newton had a run stop with 8:54 left in the second quarter, and his left arm appeared to bend back as he went down. Surgery to repair the torn pectoral came that week, and Dan Quinn said he would be out for a significant period of time. On August 31st, the Commanders placed him on injured reserves, which meant he had to miss at least the first four games. Then he watched the season from the sideline, and Standig said that was about 12 weeks. The turn came on October 28th. The Commanders designated him to return, and that opened a 21-day window to put him on the active roster. Here's the part that people miss. If the team does not activate him inside that window, he goes back on injured reserves for the rest of the season. So the clock has been a real thing, and if you count the 21 day window from October 28th, that extends to about November 18th being the final day. But he didn't play against the Eagles, he was questionable, then ruled out and Washington beat Philadelphia 27-10 without him. That tells you something, this is a team that could have rushed him, but they waited with the patience. A team that is 2-4-1 could have rushed him back in, but a torn pec, the last thing you want to do is rush him back in and risk even more. And the long way has a deadline. 21 days is all the rule gives them, and he has used up 10 of them by the time this video goes up. So what changed in a week? First, the practice report. Newton practiced in full on Wednesday, November 4th, and then practiced in full all week. Quinn was at about the same day, and here is what he said. The arrow is going up and I'm very optimistic for sure. He went further. He said Newton is in crazy shape and now it's a matter of getting his technique ready to go. Then on November 6th, General Manager Adam Peters said they hope to have Newton back this week. Notice the word hope. A general manager saying hope is not a guarantee, but that's why the report on Friday matters. Johnny Newton tore his pectoral during the preseason. And going into the game versus the Rams tomorrow, the commanders have activated him off injured reserves. Now, I'll tell you exactly how it got here and what it means going into the game versus the Rams. Notice the word hope, because the general manager saying hope is not an answer. But what he said next is. The report is from Ben Standig, and it came true. The Commanders activated Newton off injured reserves ahead of the game on Sunday vs the Rams. And that is now confirmed. Newton is back on the 53-man roster. He also passed along a line that Newton said to reporters, and it's the best part of the whole story. Newton said, There probably is more responsibility on me, but the pressure is a privilege, and I'm just happy to be back. Think about that. 12 weeks off, and the first thing this guy talks about is the responsibility. And it's a real responsibility, because the room he's walking into just lost two of their best players. The week 9 report still had him questionable with the pectoral injury, but the note from Standig was right. It's done. Newton's name is not the only one in the transactions this week, and the other names show you how thin this team is. Receiver Dyami Brown was ruled out for Sunday with a calf injury, and he is being placed on injured reserves. General Manager Adam Peters said the calf does not look good. Brown has 9 catches for 94 yards on 16 targets this season. With no touchdowns, he is the number 4 receiver behind Diggs, Antonio Williams, and Burks. And sadly, the guy ahead of him is out too. Traylon Burks is out Sunday with a foot injury. Burks and Brown ruled out the same day. That is two of the top four receivers gone before kickoff. So the team goes to the practice squad. Receiver Jaden Bradley is being elevated. Bradley is an undrafted rookie out of UNLV. 6'4 and 195 pounds. Signed on May 7th. He was waived at the final cuts and then he went right back onto the practice squad. He has no catches and no targets yet this season, so Sunday is his first real chance. Ham coverage said he drew significant praise, and it's said that Terry McLaurin mentored him. And McLaurin is on injured reserves too, but they're on October 28th, the same day Newton was designated to return. And you look at the list of trends, there's a lot of injuries within this group and with that we've seen a practice squad player come up, a defensive tackle from the practice squad as well, and a guy that's been rehabbing since August. That is why Newton matters more than just one roster spot really shows. Now let's talk about who he's coming back against because the Rams is not an easy first game The Rams offense ranks 4th in the league at 385.4 yards a game. Los Angeles is 4-4, and it runs the ball for about 125.5 yards a game. Kyron Williams has 112 carries for 548 yards, and Blake Corum has 75 carries for 389 yards, which works out to 5.2 yards a carry. Washington's run defense gives up 99.1 yards a game, and in the middle of it is Barber, a call-up, and a man who hasn't played in 12 weeks. That's why I think the first thing to watch is not a sack. It's if the Rams are running up the middle through these guys. And of course, Newton will not be back at 100% heading into this game, so I'm sure the Commanders will have a snap count. But even a limited Newton had to give the Rams a completely different game plan on what they were expecting coming in on Sunday. And think about how this looks if it actually works. We have a team that, of course, is giving up 26 points a game and hopefully have a new middle of this defensive group that's going to change how we look. So here's where I stand. Newton is the main story on this defense, and everything else this week, Payne, Kinlaw, Brown, Burks, Bradley, is about who surrounds him. But the big thing to watch is his first 10 snaps. If he can get home versus the Rams, then this is going to be a perfect addition down the middle. But if you guys are enjoying updates like this around Newton, other injuries, and just the game as a whole, make sure to hit that free subscribe button. We're trying to reach our goal of 1,500 subscribers, sitting at just over 1,200 now, plus completely free and you get to stay up to date around our favorite team in the Washington Commanders. And before I go, I want you to know your guys' thoughts down in the comments on Newton and Barber going in. Is this enough? Is there a move coming up at deadline? Let me know all your thoughts down in the comments. I've been your host, Mark Pye. Take care. And I'll see you in the next one.