Veteran Cornerback Marshon Lattimore Set To Be Released By Washington Commanders
When the Washington Commanders traded for Marshon Lattimore at the 2024 deadline, it felt like a bold power move. A four-time Pro Bowler, a shutdown corner in his prime years, arriving in D.C. to help push a team that had already surprised everyone with an NFC Championship run. The vision was clear. The execution? Not so much.
On Monday, the Commanders officially informed Lattimore that he’ll be released before the new league year begins on March 11, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter. Washington saves $18.5 million in cap space. Lattimore gets his walking papers. Where will the veteran end up?
What Washington Gave Up to Get Lattimore
To understand how this stings, you have to remember the price. Washington sent third-, fourth-, and sixth-round picks to New Orleans in 2024 to acquire Lattimore. In return, they got a fifth-rounder back. Those picks weren’t just picks — the Saints used them to select Safety Jonas Sanker, Cornerback Quincy Riley, and Running Back Devin Neal.
A Tenure Of Disappointment
The numbers tell a frustrating story. After the 2024 trade, Lattimore played in just two games for the Commanders due to a hamstring injury. The 2025 season offered some hope before a torn ACL in early November ended his year.
In those 11 total games wearing burgundy and gold, Lattimore posted 1 interception. He allowed a 93.3 passer rating when targeted in coverage last season, per Next Gen Stats. That ranked as the second-worst mark of his entire career. For a player who once terrorized wide receivers across the NFC South, that number is hard to look at.
The Injury History That Defines This Era of Lattimore’s Career
Here’s the painful reality of Lattimore’s story: the player Washington thought they were getting hasn’t really existed since 2021. Since then, it’s been a relentless carousel of setbacks.
- 2022: Lacerated kidney and two broken ribs, limiting him to seven games
- 2023: Ankle injury, 10 games played
- 2024: Hamstring issues, nine games between New Orleans and Washington
- 2025: Torn ACL in Week 9, season over
He hasn’t played more than 10 games in a season since 2021. That’s four straight years of watching one of the most talented corners of his generation spend more time in the training room than on the field.
What This Means For Washington’s Cornerback Room
Don’t panic, Commanders fans. Washington isn’t exactly walking into free agency with a threadbare secondary. They currently hold the fifth-most cap space in the league, and saving $18.5 million gives them real firepower to work with.
Two young corners remain under contract. Trey Amos, a promising rookie who started before breaking his leg in Week 10, brings upside. Mike Sainristil, a 2024 second-round pick with two seasons of starting experience, adds depth. Neither is a finished product, but both have more runway than a 29-year-old corner whose body keeps betraying him.
Washington is expected to be aggressive in free agency at the cornerback position, per league sources. With this cap space cleared and the motivation to protect Jayden Daniels as he enters his third year, expect Head Coach Dan Quinn to make some noise before March 11.
The Off-Field Situation Didn’t Help
The on-field struggles were already making this decision easy. But Lattimore’s January arrest in Lakewood, Ohio, added another uncomfortable layer to an already complicated situation. Commanders GM Adam Peters said just last week at the NFL Combine that the team “hadn’t made a final decision” on Lattimore. Clearly, that decision came fast.
What’s Next For Lattimore?
At 29 years old, Lattimore isn’t done. But the era of him commanding top-tier cornerback money is almost certainly over. Whatever team takes a shot on him will do so on a prove-it deal. He was the AP Defensive Rookie of the Year. He made four Pro Bowls in his first five seasons. The talent was never in question. The durability has been the whole story for years now.
