Commanders aren’t picking up Chase Young’s fifth-year option

It’s a time of change for the Washington Commanders, and it’s also a time of uncertainty. 

We know that owner Daniel Snyder is selling the franchise. He’s reportedly come to a deal with an investment group led up by Philadelphia 76ers and New Jersey Devils owner Josh Harris, but Canadian billionaire Steve Apostolopoulos hasn’t ruled himself out, either. 

How that ends up is anybody’s guess, but we know Snyder is on the way out and someone else is coming in. Speaking of on the way out, it seems as if defensive end Chase Young could be on his way out of Washington if he doesn’t stay healthy and perform well in 2023.

ESPN is reporting that Washington is not picking up Young’s fifth-year option, which means that he could become a free agent after this season if the Commanders don’t engage in contact discussions.

While Young certainly has superstar potential, and the Commanders do have a ton invested in him considering the fact that he was the second-overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft, this fact isn’t extremely surprising.

For as good as Young can be (he had 7.5 sacks, four forced fumbles, and three fumble recoveries his rookie season), he’s without a doubt had injury concerns in his young career.

He suffered a torn right ACL in 2021 that stole the final seven games of that season from him. A ruptured patellar tendon extended the time it took him to return to the field, meaning he only played in the last three games of the 2022 season — notching just five tackles and one quarterback hit.

“That’s the thing that will drive a big part of the conversation,” Rivera had said in April regarding how the knee injury would impact the club’s decision whether or not to pick up Young’s fifth-year option “As we continue to work through this and talk about it, it will be about seeing him and watching him. Again, we get started April 17, so we’ll continue to work through these things — talk to the doctors, talk to the trainers, strength and medical — and just kind of get a feel for where he is. Then we’ll be able to make a decision and we’ll go from there.”

It would seem as if Washington isn’t confident in Young’s ability to make a full comeback to elite form, but the 6-foot-5, 264-pound defensive end will have this season to prove them wrong. Then, he can either re-sign with Washington, or cash in elsewhere as a free agent.