Position Group Breakdown: Tight Ends

June 24, 2026

by Alex Zeese

Washington’s tight end room iis positioned to play a huge role in David Blough’s offense in 2026. With Washington looking to be a more run-focused team, a team that plays from under center more frequently. Expect to see a lot of two tight end sets on the field as compared to what we saw in 2025. The team really only made one move at the position, but it was a major change at the top of the depth chart, along with the coaching philosophy shift. Last season Washington used two tight ends on 37% of snaps, 12th most in the league. While the highest percentage usage were the Ravens and Browns, both at 51%, I would fully expect and even hope that we see the Commanders near the top of that stat next season. With so many questions about the receiving core, more tight end usage will be vital to this team’s success.

Gone from the team:
Washington will not have future hall of fame tight end Zach Ertz this season. The 35 year old was of course the team’s top tight end in 2025. He played 52% of the offensive snaps, finished 2nd on the team in almost every category with 72 targets for 50 catches, and 4 TDs, but wound up in 3rd place in total yards with 504, behind receivers Terry McLaurin and Deebo Samuel.

The loss of Ertz leaves huge shoes to fill, not just because he put up good numbers on the field but also because he was a veteran leader in the locker room. He was brought in to set the right tone and as someone who knew Kliff Kingsbury‘s offensive system . It’s unfortunate that his career looks like it’s over due to a terrible injury at the end of the year. Ertz has said he wants to play one more season but is currently a free agent.

Also gone from the team is Lawrence Cager, the 28 year old journeyman from Georgia who played one all important snap last season.

Returning from last season:

John Bates
Was drafted in the 4th round, and is now in his sixth season. Last year Bates played 45% of all snaps. He has been the go to blocking tight end since he came to DC and is seen as one of the best in the NFL, a rarity in the modern NFL. Last year he didn’t contribute very much in the passing game, with just 11 catches and 103 yards and a touchdown.

Ben Sinnott
Sinnott was probably overdrafted two seasons ago by the team, but he had some solid improvements in his overall performance from his rookie season to last year. Here’s a breakdown to compare:
Snaps on offense: 2024- 311, 2025- 341
Targets/Catches: 2024- 5/5, 2025- 13/11
Yards: 2024- 28, 5.6 yards per catch, 2025- 114 10.4 yards per catch

It is nothing to write home about but it does show you that the young man is developing.  Sinnott seems to have figured out a role for himself on the roster last year, which is more of an H-Back role. He’s also a good run blocker like Bates.

Colson Yankoff
The special teams specialist had 246 snaps on special teams, 5th most on the roster, and that’s mostly why he is on the team. He did sub in on offense a bit and ended up with 2 receptions last year for 18 yards on 108 plays.

The new kids in town

Chig Okonkwo
Chig was the big signing for Washington’s offense last season. The 27 year old was reasonably productive last year for the Titans with 56 catches and 560 yards. He’s been notably consistent since Tennessee drafted him 4 years ago, averaging 504 yards, and has had 54, 52 and 56 catches the last three seasons.

What’s wild is that he’s been this good while the Titans have mostly had hot garbage at quarterback for most of his career, such as Ryan Tannehill, Joshua Dobbs, Malik Willis, Will Levis, Mason Rudolph, and Cam Ward. I did some math; once you take out Tannehill’s final few games of his career in Tennessee, the Titans have had a team passer rating of 75.67.

All that is to say that with some decent quarterback play, Okonkwo could be looking at a breakout season. When you see yearly numbers as steady as his you can safely say his floor is another 500 yard season. However he’s never had the chance to play with quarterbacks as talented as Jayden Daniels or Marcus Mariota. This could be a breakout year for him.

Anthony Firkser
Early on in his career Firkser was a solid backup tight end in the NFL. In his first four seasons he had 106 catches 1107 yards and 5 touchdowns, but after that his play fell off. From the 2022 season on, he became a journeyman changing teams each season. The 31 year old is looking for one more bite at the NFL apple.

Quentin Moore
Moore was an undrafted rookie who came to Washington out of the University of Washington. At 6’5” and 260 pounds, he is technically the biggest player of the group. In college he was not a particularly big offensive weapon, with just 13 catches and 168 yards in his 5 year career. He did make the 2025 Big-10 All-Academic team.

While there was really only one major move at this position group, the swapping of Ertz’s  reliable short yard possession target abilities for Okonkwo’s downfield big yards after catch skills will give this offense a very different feel next season, The team should keep up the same level of overall production at the top of the tight end group. At this point I think John Bates is what he is, a great blocker who’s only going to give you 10ish catches a year. The thing that remains to be seen is if Sinnott can continue to develop and produce more to become a true second weapon at the position. If he can he go from 11 catches to something in the mid 20’s this season, that would be a good sign for the team.