For the first time in a long time, the Washington Commanders have a bright future. Rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels dazzled this season and led the team to the NFC Championship game. However, many forget some of the struggles that happened early in the season. One of the issues the team had was injuries at the kicker position. Austin Seibert missed most of the season with a hip injury, and the team had to find a replacement quickly. The team took a chance on Zane Gonzalez, who hadn’t had a regular season appearance since 2021. He was solid for the last two months and the playoffs, leading the team to re-sign him ahead of free agency.
Washington Commanders Re-Sign Zane Gonzalez
Before the 2024 season, Zane Gonzalez was last seen on the field in 2021, kicking for the Carolina Panthers. The Washington Commanders signed him as an injury replacement, but he earned his spot on the team. In the regular season, he went 5-7 in field goals and was a perfect 19-19 on extra points. It was likely his playoff performance that earned him a new contract. He was 7-8 with a long of 52 in the playoffs and perfect on extra points. The details of the contract are not currently known.
We’ve seen teams struggle to find a kicker. Many good teams have seen a carousel of players at the position, leading to games being lost because of missed field goals and/or extra points. The Washington Commanders have opened up a Super Bowl window. Daniels is on a rookie contract, and the team is going all-in. They already traded for Deebo Samuel and are looking to be aggressive in free agency yet again. Locking down the kicker position is huge for a team looking to win it all.
Final Thoughts
The Washington Commanders will be busy this offseason. One of the biggest advantages in sports is a quarterback on a rookie contract. They already showed they could take down the elite teams in the NFC and are hungry to get back there again. What else does the front office have up its sleeve in free agency?
