The Defensive Line Keeps Getting Shorter Before Dallas

Frankie Luvu's groin strain is the latest entry in what has become a long injury log for Washington's front seven. The Commanders were already thin up front heading into Week 2 — Jer'Zhan Newton is on injured reserve after pectoral surgery, Deatrich Wise Jr. remains on the PUP list, and Daron Payne is listed as questionable — and now one of their more reliable edge presences is compromised too. Luvu finished last season with 86 tackles and 3 sacks across all 17 games. Losing even a portion of that at Dallas is a problem.

The depth chart behind him is not a comfortable place to look. Javontae Jean-Baptiste leads the DL rotation on paper, with Joshua Josephs and Jeffrey M'ba behind him. K'Lavon Chaisson and Odafe Oweh are both questionable. Dorance Armstrong is questionable as well. That is a lot of uncertainty concentrated in the same unit, going on the road against a Dallas offense that will test edge discipline early.

The broader context here is one I've been tracking since training camp: this defense was undermanned before the season started, and each week has added another layer. Washington went 1-5 in close games last season, and the front four's ability to generate pressure in the fourth quarter was a real factor in that. A short-handed rotation at AT&T Stadium doesn't fix that tendency.

The next ten days are mostly about availability. If Payne, Chaisson, and Oweh can all clear their injury designations, Washington has something workable. If two or more of them sit, the Commanders are asking a lot of players who haven't proven they can carry a full game's load in a division matchup.