Who would’ve thought the Commanders would be that team in 2024? Like, legit top-10 offense, defense finally showing up, and Jayden Daniels—yeah, the No. 2 overall pick from LSU, shattered expectations by breaking Andrew Luck’s record for offensive yards and led Washington to a 12-5 regular-season finish. The guy finally snapped Dan Quinn’s Commanders’ almost two-decade playoff win drought—like it took forever, but he actually did it. And now?

Well, the Commanders are now signaling a new era of competitiveness in Washington. They’ve already traded for the veteran Deebo Samuel and Laremy Tunsil to bolster their offensive line. To make it more interesting, the word on the street is that the Commanders are now signing the former Dolphins WRs coach, Wes Welker, to their coaching staff.

Yes, you read that correctly. Welker, who was just elected to the New England Patriots‘ Hall of Fame last week, is now expected to join the Commanders as their personnel analyst for the front office and coaching staff. ESPN’s NFL reporter, Mike Reiss, announced the news through his official ‘X’ handle.

“Wes Welker, who was in the news last week as a worthy nominee for the Patriots Hall of Fame (672 catches over 6 regular seasons + another 69 in playoffs), is in the news again this week,” Reiss reported. “Welker, the former Dolphins WRs coach, has landed on the Commanders staff, per sources.” See, the 43-year-old Welker knows a thing or two about wide receiver coaching, considering the ex-Patriots WR played in the NFL for 12 seasons.

After hanging up his cleats as a two-time All-Pro wide receiver, the man coached for the Texans, 49ers, and the Dolphins. Welker served as an offensive assistant for the Texans back in 2017 and ’18 before joining the Niners as their receiving coach from 2019 to 2021. Welker served as a wide receiver coach for the Dolphins in the last three seasons. Fast forward to now, and he’s ready to join the Commanders’ offense, which is nothing but thriving under the head coach, Dan Quinn.

Because let’s be real—they’ve already acquired Deebo to pair him with Terry McLaurin as the best receiving options for the second-year QB, Daniels. Deebo’s job? Well, the HC didn’t spill every detail, but he made it clear that the team is going to lean heavily on what Deebo does best—his versatility. “Inside, outside, in the backfield. All the spots,” Quinn said at the annual league meeting.

“Fortunately, you know, Kliff [Kingsbury] is really equipped at that, too. He’s had to be unique with the featured players to put them into their best spots. So really pumped to have him here.” That said, the Commanders now have a legitimate option to go ahead with one of the strongest O-line for the 2025 season. But the big question: Will Jayden Daniels rise or slip under the veteran players?

Tension looming over Jayden Daniels ahead of his second season

Nobody really knew what to expect when Jayden Daniels walked into Washington. Rookie QB, big shoes to fill, all that pressure—yeah, the usual. But he didn’t just show up—he straight-up lit it up in his rookie year. The guy completed 69% of his passes, throwing for 3,568 yards and 25 touchdowns, with only 9 interceptions. Oh, he also added 891 rushing yards and 6 rushing TDs.

The catch? Well, the second-year QB is facing predictions of a sophomore slump from an anonymous NFL executive. Why? See it this way: the Commanders are surrounding Daniels with veteran players like Deebo and Tunsil, instead of organic growth. That said, the anonymous exec believes that surrounding a young QB with veterans may limit his development.

If we’re not wrong, the Patriots ditched the veteran wide receivers, DK Metcalf and Devante Adams, when they became available through trade and free agency. The reason? Simple, the Patriots were, “exceedingly wary of the negative impact a demanding veteran wideout could have on (Drake) Maye.” Despite having a standout season where Daniels led the Commanders to the NFC Championship round, the QB is now being compared to C.J. Stroud as the Texans’ QB struggled in his second season.

That said, if the QB failed to replicate the same success in his second season, it would lead to the Commanders’ struggles after recording a successful season in 2024. And Dan Quinn surely doesn’t want that.