Commanders Gut Defensive Interior, Send Daron Payne and Javon Kinlaw to IR

The Washington Commanders just turned their defensive interior into a ghost town. Ian Rapoport reported Tuesday that Washington is placing defensive linemen Daron Payne and Javon Kinlaw, along with running back Jeremy McNichols, on Injured Reserve.

Losing one defensive tackle is a headache. Losing two on the same day is the kind of roster math that makes defensive coordinators stare blankly at the wall. Payne’s injury is the headliner here, with reports confirming the Pro Bowler suffered a season-ending Jones fracture during a Friday practice.

"Ian Rapoport reported the roster moves on Twitter."

Payne has been the anchor of this defensive front since he was drafted in 2018. Taking him and Kinlaw off the board completely hollows out the middle of the defense. For context, trying to stop an NFL running game without your top two interior guys is like trying to stop a flood with a chain-link fence.

McNichols heading to IR removes a depth piece from the backfield, though his 34 rushing yards on 10 carries this season means the offensive game plan will not exactly need a total rewrite. The real issue is the defensive front. Anyone looking at Washington's upcoming spreads or rushing yards props for opposing running backs is going to have to factor in a massive crater in the middle of the line.

The Washington Commanders are coming off a 27-10 win over the Philadelphia Eagles, but surviving the rest of the season just got significantly harder. You can scheme around a lot of things in modern football, but you cannot scheme around getting physically moved off the ball because your starting defensive tackles are in walking boots.

Washington now has to scramble to find warm bodies to plug the A-gaps before their next matchup. Expect the front office to start working the workout circuit immediately, because right now, their run defense is running on hopes and practice squad elevations.