NFL Trade Rumors
A former third-round pick out of West Virginia by the Eagles in 2017, Rasul Douglas’ big breakout came in 2021 with the Packers. After washing out in Philadelphia and spending a year in Carolina, he was languishing on the Cardinals’ practice squad when Green Bay came calling due to injuries suffered at the cornerback position.
Given an opportunity, Douglas exploded onto the scene, making his mark in a primetime showdown with the Cardinals in which he had the game-sealing interception in the end zone. All told, Douglas had 57 tackles, five interceptions — including two pick-sixes — and a forced fumble en route to an extension in Green Bay.
Since then, Douglas has been one of the most consistent cornerbacks in the league. The Packers traded him to the Bills at the deadline in 2023 and he spent last season with the Dolphins, but through all of that he’s been a quality starting cornerback. He finished last season 24th among qualifying corners in PFF grade despite playing in the largely inept Miami secondary, and his stats haven’t dipped at all even as he’s gotten older.
Douglas will turn 31 before the season and might not be in his prime anymore, but he can still be valuable to a team that needs a starting corner. I’d expect him to sign a one-year deal somewhere in the $6 to $8 million range. That would put him in a rough contract tier with the likes of Keisean Nixon, Donte Jackson, Josh Jobe, and Greg Newsome II, which feels appropriate.
Who’s starting opposite Trey Amos? The Commanders had the worst coverage unit in the NFL last season and while they’ve added a few more options, they still don’t have many. Amos had a promising enough rookie season in 2025 to be optimistic about what he could be in year two, but aside from him there are a bunch of question marks.
Mike Sainristil is the other entrenched starter at cornerback in Washington — he’s played in the slot so far in the NFL, but he might move to the outside in 2026. That would be to pave the way for free agent signee Amik Robertson to start in the slot, who’s probably their third-best corner. The other option is to keep Sainristil in the slot and start Ahkello Witherspoon on the outside, but that doesn’t inspire much confidence.
Sainristil on the outside is a complete unknown. It makes more sense to keep him in the slot and sign Douglas to play the other outside cornerback spot opposite Amos. Douglas would’ve been the Commanders’ best cornerback last year and he’s an upgrade over both Witherspoon and Robertson anyway. Signing him would let Sainristil stay in his natural position in the slot and give the Commanders a lot more depth and optionality at cornerback.
I’ve been pretty consistently saying the Panthers need another cornerback this whole time. Jaycee Horn is a stud and Mike Jackson is coming off a season...
