Washington Commanders: Potential breakout candidates in 2023

The Washington Commanders enter 2023 as a team with the potential to do great things. However, if they are going to achieve those great things is still to be determined. For them to do great things, Washington will need some breakout performances.

Sam Howell will need to step up as the quarterback, Terry McLaurin will need to continue to be great, and the defensive line needs to keep dominating.

What about true breakouts, though? Let’s take a look at a few potential breakout candidates in 2023 and what a big season from them could look like.

We’re disqualifying rookies because they aren’t really having “breakout campaigns” if they are in their first year. Howell is also disqualified because he’s essentially a rookie (one career game).

Outside of that, star players are disqualified as well. That means we’re keeping out Terry McLaurin and the defensive line. Just about everyone else can be considered, though.

Luckily for this article, the Commanders have a lot of decent players that could benefit from taking big steps forward. That leaves us with a lot of realistic options without having to stretch too far. We’ll pick five players with varying degrees of potential and analyze them. How likely are they to truly take the next step? What would a breakout season even look like for each player? We’ll try to answer everything.

They won’t all happen, but if a few players can take that next step, Washington has a chance to be one of the most exciting teams in football next year.