Cost-cutting season continues around the NFL. Left tackle Charles Leno has been told by the Commanders that he is being released, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports. The team has since announced the move.
As Rapoport notes, Leno is set to undergo hip surgery next week. That procedure will no doubt be a factor in determining his free agent value, just as it played a role in today’s move. The 32-year-old was limited to 13 games this season (his fewest since his rookie season), and he ended the year on injured reserve due to a calf injury.
Leno began his career with a seven-year Bears stint. He initially came to the nation’s capital on a one-year pact, but he had been attached to a three-year, $37.5MM extension inked in 2022. One year remained on that contract, and he was due $12MM in 2024. With none of his base salary guaranteed, however, Leno profiled as a release candidate for this offseason.
Releasing the former Pro Bowler now will generate $7.28MM in cap space while incurring a dead cap charge of $8.25MM. Designating Leno a post-June 1 cut, by contrast, would yield $11.78MM in savings and a much smaller dead money figure. Washington would not see that added flexibility until June, though, well after the initial waves of free agency. Already armed with considerable cap space, the team will be able to handle an immediate release and remain in position to spend big on the open market.
Leno remained a consistent performer along the blindside during his Commanders tenure. He earned a PFF grade of at least 71.6 in each campaign with the team, drawing strong marks for pass protection in particular. That remained the case in 2023, when he ranked 28th overall out of 81 qualifying tackles. With the former seventh-rounder now out of the picture, though, the LT spot could see notable turnover in Washington this offseason.
Fellow veteran Cornelius Lucas – who filled in as a starter to close out the season after Leno was shut down – is a pending free agent. Both he and Leno could thus be playing elsewhere next season, leaving the Commanders in search of replacements along the blindside. Improvement up front will be a major priority for the offseason, after quarterback Sam Howell was sacked a league-leading 65 times in 2023.
The Commanders have former UDFAs Julian Good-Jones and Alex Akingbulu under contract for next season. The same is also true of Braeden Daniels, who was drafted in the fourth round last April but spent his entire rookie campaign on injured reserve. Washington will have the cap space to pursue a veteran O-lineman or two to supplement the team’s in-house options, as well as draft capital to make a long-term investment up front. Meanwhile, Leno will turn his attention to his operation and, following that, his free agent market.
This is confusing if it’s about cost-cutting. The Commanders are projected to be about $80M under the cap!
Oh, I see that it’s more about injury than cap, so I get it.
Then why not wait until June to realize more savings? Or are they planning to mortgage the farm in free agency?
He’s banged up and older, and he wasn’t anyone’s dream tackle in the best of times, but a lot of teams were settling for worse over the course of last year.
Could be a nice rotational player if he is willing to sign an incentive-laden contract.
Well his wife is on Twitter making it seem like he’s calling it quits, or at the very least immobile for a while.
Is it just me or is every team looking to improve their O line this year?
Seems to be a top priority for most teams every year (except the Jets). There’s a lot of money tied up in the O line, so players really need to produce consistently to keep those checks coming in.
Sherm hasn’t noticed where the Jets already released one offensive lineman and plan to cut 2 more.
In their last four offseasons, the Jets have spent two first rounders, a second rounder, and near top of the market guard money on their offensive line. They’ve prioritized the line. It just hasn’t gone well.
Got it, they’re just horrible at building a line, but really good at wasting money on bad players.
Tipmmann looked good as a rookie, and AVT is great when healthy, but drafting Becton over Wirfs and giving Tomlinson (who’s durable, but only played well with Shanahan) all that money were both disasters.
Commanders will also NOT extend a contract offer to: JAY LENO !!
Perhaps they will bring Conan O’Brien and Jimmy Fallon in for a workout.