Commanders Encouraged to Switch Up Defense in Trade Blockbuster Move

It’s June, and summer is ahead, but wait, does that mean we still have months until football? Sadly, yes, but the good news is that the preseason if just two months away. For the Washington Commanders, they’re being encouraged to make a trade before the start of the new season.

Moe Moton of Bleacher Report has released a feature where he names one blockbuster trade each franchise should make before the 2026 season starts. “We could get more transactional fireworks this summer,” he says in the piece, “or at least see moves that we expected teams to make, like the Brown deal, before final roster cuts on August 30.”

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For the Commanders, he thinks they can part with defensive tackle Daron Payne.

“In March of 2023, the Washington Commanders signed Daron Payne to a four-year, $90 million extension following his breakout season in which he registered 11.5 sacks, 25 pressures, 64 tackles (18 for loss) and five pass breakups,” he says in the piece. “Payne earned his lucrative new deal with those numbers, but he hasn’t come close to matching that level of production since then.”

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It’s for real that Payne still has trade value, but that could change, so it’s a good idea for the Commanders to trade him away now, if that’s what they want to do. They’re building a totally new defense line, so an overhaul like this is possible.

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This story was originally published June 10, 2026 at 9:23 AM.