Commanders' Newest Linebacker is Emerging as an Early Favorite

The Washington Commanders had a rough season in 2025 with a 5-12 record, but it was largely due to injuries.

The core of this team is strong, and when Jayden Daniels and the team are healthy, they’re a force in the league. But going into the draft, they had holes to fill, and one of them was the linebacker position.

So, it came as no surprise when the team drafted Ohio State’s Sonny Styles to take care of their linebacker needs.

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Ben Solak of ESPN approves of the pick. In a feature with his thoughts on the various picks from the draft, he names Styles a possible Defensive Rookie of the Year.

“Bobby Wagner was a tackle vacuum for the Commanders, but can Styles do the same as he steps into his shoes?” he asked. “It’s a towering task, but Styles also has the DB background and unique frame (6-foot-4, 243 pounds) to make far more plays in the passing game than the average starting linebacker.”

He adds: “Riddling out whether Styles can get 100% of the snaps in Week 1, with Frankie Luvu and Leo Chenal also on the depth chart, is the key to defining just how strong of a candidate he is. But the blend of tackle production and pass coverage might be too much for voters to ignore.”

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Why This Pick Rocks: What Sonny Styles Brings to the Commanders

So, why does selecting a stellar linebacker in Styles matter so much to the Washington Commanders? For a team that’s already solid in its core roster, it doesn’t take much to push it over the edge from being a good team to a great one.

Adding Styles does just that. Adding that strong element to the Commanders’ defense could easily push them to the next level, and that will show when the 226 season kicks off.

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This story was originally published May 3, 2026 at 5:46 PM.