Adam Peters Gives Permission To DT To Seek Trade

Jonathan Allen

Just learning this morning that Adam Peters has allowed DT and team captain, Jonathan Allen to seek a trade. Allen has one year left on his contract in which none is guaranteed, which means there would be a positive effect on the cap. Do we need that buffer? We have the 3rd highest amount of cap space, but the bigger portion would be the return on a trade.

Trade Value

What would Jonathan Allen's value look like on the market? Probably the toughest call to make is what trade value does a player have. First you have to look at the comparisons. Games played, injuries, age, production, scheme fit, contract demands, strength of roster and other intangibles.

Allen is a significant leader in the locker room and on the field. He consistently puts his best effort on the field for every game. He just turned 30 years old and is coming off a major pectoral injury, but recovered quicker than the expected timeline. If the injury did not occur, the risk factor would be much lower.

Jon Allen has always been a pivotal part of the defense and consistently put up solid numbers. Never a double digit sack pass rusher, and was more involved with the run defense. And you have to factor in the effectiveness of having DaRon Payne right next to him on the line.

Step Up

The Commanders were able to draft a DT in the second round of the 2024 draft which might have been strategic considering where Jonathan Allen was in his contract and career possibilities. That man was Johnny Newton, who was a productive DT from Illinois with a bigger body mass and potential for productivity next to Payne in the line up.

Johnny Newton

One of the best experiences behind the NFL Draft and getting drafted is the ability to go out and feel wanted on the free agency market. Giving Allen the freedom to seek a trade is very similar because it allows him to control the situation and decide if he really wants to leave Washington or not. But its not a complete control effort considering teams have to give up trade capital to acquire Allen.

The downside to this scenario is, if a trade partner comes with an offer you can't refuse, then Allen could end up in a worse situation than he is in Washington. But considering he has been given permission to seek a trade, he could find a destination like Kansas City which puts him in position to chase a championship.

Productivity

Career Stats - Jonathan Allen

Player Comparisons

The comparable I can go off of right now are free agents within the same age and years played. Currently, the closest comparable is Sheldon Rankins, Cincinnati; B.J. Hill, Cincinnati; or DeMarcus Walker from Chicago.

All 3 of those guys are relatively the same age and their career stats are similar but may not be as good as Jon Allen's has been for the Commanders. DeMarcus Walker was limited in his playing time early in his career while with Denver, but changed that around in the last 2 years with the Chicago Bears.

Sheldon Rankins has 1 more year of experience on Jon Allen, but is coming off an injury that sidelined him for 10 games this season. His average sack totals per season are not as high as Allen's but his tackles are also below Allen's.

B.J. Hill was drafted by the New York Giants, but seemingly started off like a solid defensive lineman, but the next 3 years saw a severe reduction in playing time. He started 13 /16 games in 2018 and amassed 6 sacks with 48 tackles, but only started 5 games in 2019, 0 in 2020, and 2 in 2021. In 2021, he had signed with the Bengals and had his best season to date, while starting in only 2 games with 6 sacks and 50 total tackles.

Compensation

Adam Peters - General Manager

Based on those player comparisons, and the production Jon Allen provides, Jon Allen has been more durable, even though there was rumor of arthritis in his shoulders which made his stock drop in the draft, and more productive than any free agent defensive lineman.

First of all, he cannot be traded within the division and he should be traded outside of the conference. Allen has been such a leader and true Commander, you don't do him wrong by sending him to a team like Cleveland, or Jacksonville, Tennessee or Las Vegas.

Business is business, but when you treat a guy dirty, it usually comes back to get you at some point. Especially the guy that has fought and died with this team through the worst of times.

In terms of draft picks - 2025 2nd round pick, somewhere in the top 20 of the round, and a 2026 3rd or 4th round pick at a minimum.

His first call should be to Baltimore, in my honest opinion.