Commanders To Sign DT Tim Settle

Tim Settle will return to Washington in 2026. The veteran defensive tackle has agreed to a Commanders deal, Mike Garafolo of NFL Network reports.

This will be a three-year pact with a base value of $24MM. The contract could max out at $25.5MM. Settle played in Washington from 2018-21, and he will now return to the fold.

The Commanders will be quite different for Settle this time around. They weren’t even the Commanders when he last played in the nation’s capital. Joining the team during Ryan Kerrigan‘s OLB era, Settle later teamed with the team’s four younger first-round D-linemen — Jonathan Allen, Daron Payne, Montez Sweat, Chase Young. All but Payne are gone, and the 2018 first-rounder is in a contract year. Washington traded Sweat and Young in 2023 and cut Allen last year.

Working alongside the foursome during its lone full season of health together (2020), Settle tallied five sacks that season. That 2020 campaign undoubtedly helped Settle cash in as a free agent. He signed a two-year, $9MM Bills deal. Buffalo, however, gave Settle a pay cut during the 2023 offseason. He then signed a two-year, $6MM Texans deal.

A starter in DeMeco Ryans‘ defense, Settle is seeing by far the biggest payday of his career. The Texans’ dominant defense assuredly helped the veteran cash in. Ryans used Settle as a full-time starter in 2025, but Settle’s more productive season came a year prior. He totaled a career-best 10 tackles for loss and matched his career high with five sacks in 2024. ESPN’s run stop win rate metric also viewed Settle as sporting the league’s fifth-best mark in 2024.

Settle will join Payne and 2025 free agency addition Javon Kinlaw at D-tackle in Washington. This has the makings of a quality two-deep, with former second-round pick Jer’Zhan Newton in place as a backup. Newton has not made a big impact yet, however, and this Settle signing may further interfere with the Illinois alum.

Adam La Rose contributed to this post.