The Washington Commanders had until May 2 to make a decision on defensive end Chase Young’s fifth-year option for 2024. Head coach Ron Rivera recently indicated the Commanders would likely wait until that date before making a decision.
Earlier this week, it was revealed that Washington was declining Young’s fifth-year option. With the NFL draft this week, the timing of the announcement was perfect from Washington. Rivera would face questions from the local media about the option, but with so much going on around the NFL, it wouldn’t be a big story nationally.
After the Commanders selected Mississippi State cornerback Emmanuel Forbes with their first-round pick, Rivera and general manager Martin Mayhew met with the media.
Rivera was asked about Young’s fifth-year option and what went into the decision:
“Well, just for the most part, it was the football decision that we made,” Rivera said. “And for the most part, it’s one of those things that we want to take care of our own. We want to go out, and we want ’em to play well. And if that’s what happens, then we have a really good problem to have, and it’s something that we’ll have to work through once we know where everything is.”
Was it Young’s knee injury that made this decision easier?
“Well, just going through the past history, the last year and a half.,” he answered. “And again, you’ve gotta take that into consideration, and we’ll see. I mean, again, we’d love for him to do what we had last year with [DT] Daron [Payne]. I mean, we want to take care of our own, and if he comes out and plays well and does the things that he’s supposed to and that he’s capable of then we’ll go from there.”
Finally, Rivera was asked if he spoke to the new ownership group about the Young decision.
“No. So it was a decision that had to be made after talking with Martin, after talking with Marty [Hurney], Eric [Stokes], and Chris [Polian],” Rivera said. “We just felt that that was gonna be the best, so I decided that’s what we were gonna do.”
While many assume this will be Young’s final season in Washington, Rivera said otherwise. If Young plays well, which he’s capable of doing and what Rivera wants, the Commanders will take care of him. And past history suggests Rivera is telling the truth.
Now, it’s all up to Young.