Hogs Haven
Following a dismal season, and a brief period of reflection, the Washington Commanders quickly parted ways with Kliff Kingsbury. The list of possible replacements to lead Jayden Daniels into 2026 was long, with more than one writer or analyst predicting that with his job on the line, Dan Quinn would not risk selecting a rookie candidate for the position:
Quinn ultimately proved them wrong as he selected an internal candidate, David Blough. While the young coach has multiple years of experience leading NFL offenses as a quarterback, Blough only has two years of coaching experience and none calling plays. While there is a certainly an air of hope surrounding the hire, there is also some significant trepidation as well. Adam Peters and Dan Quinn have gambled a lot on the potential wunderkind, so it would be in their best interest to provide Blough plenty of support in his inaugural season.
Part of the effort will involve working to retain key members of the coaching staff, especially veteran run game coordinator and running backs coach Anthony Lynn, but the Commanders front office may also take additional steps to ensure his success. The expectation for Blough this season will be to unlock the full potential of the team’s draft picks, but adding more playmakers to the offense can only increase Blough’s odds of success. Adam Peters does have several picks in the draft and a substantial amount of cap space to use in this endeavor, but the challenge comes from the dearth of talent on the other side of the ball. The defense is also in dire need of playmakers and serviceable depth across the board.
Peters will have to be judicious with the resources he allocates to David Blough’s offense, so with that in mind, let’s take a look at three potential free agents that might catch his eye as possible fits for David Blough’s new offense.
We start with a player that doesn’t necessarily raise the ceiling of the Commanders WR room but does offer Blough a familiar face. Raymond and David overlapped one another on the Detroit Lions roster in 2021, under the direction of Anthony Lynn, and again in 2023 under offensive coordinator Ben Johnson. Kalif spent multiple years in Ben Johnson’s offense, enjoying a career year in 2022, recording 47 receptions for 616 yds and 1 TD while earning second-team All-Pro honors for his performance on special teams.
Only staff inside Washington’s organization know exactly what type of scheme David Blough is going to run, but it is a safe bet that Raymond will be familiar with a good portion of the play calls and associated concepts. The veteran may prove valuable in installing a new playbook for a young WR room. Also, while his best days might be behind him, Raymond still offers value as a versatile wide receiver that can play the X, Y, and slot roles in Ben Johnson’s offense and be a plus in the return game. Raymond is not...
