To understand how important Lucas Patrick is now, you have to understand that the Washington Commanders spent the entire offseason trying to convince anyone who asked that Nick Allegretti was the team’s center after abruptly releasing Tyler Biadasz. Regardless of the reasoning or whether it was the right move, letting go of their veteran center left the team thinner at a massive position of need. Commanders GM Adam Peters insisted Allegretti was their guy until training camp, when Allegretti went down with a calf strain and stayed out.
Allegretti returned once the season started, but only lasted three weeks before becoming a late-game-day scratch with a hip/achilles injury designation. Patrick was signed by Washington on September 16; 11 days later, he would make his first start at center against Seattle when Allegretti shifted over to take the injured Sam Cosmi’s spot at right guard. Last week in London, rookie Matt Gulbin took over at right guard when Allegretti couldn’t play.
Patrick’s situation is interesting because he was with the New York Giants during their offseason program and training camp, having been released during roster cuts. Now, on Sunday, Patrick will snap the football to Jayden Daniels against the organization that released him just a few weeks ago.
Patrick had previous stints in Green Bay, Chicago, New Orleans, and Cincinnati, but was signed by New York on April 6 and then released on August 30 during roster reductions. He entered the 2026 season having appeared in 113 games, including 65 starts, 28 at center, 19 at left guard, and 18 at right guard.
Patrick has done more than just fill a hole since arriving in Washington, too. According to Pro Football Focus, he’s played 129 snaps at center, allowing just two pressures, no sacks, and hasn’t committed a penalty. His overall grade of 65.9 ranks 11th among 33 qualifying centers, which isn’t bad for a guy the Commanders picked up off the street less than a month ago. Especially considering Washington’s issues keeping a consistent offensive line together.
Quinn confirmed Friday that Patrick is now Washington’s starting center, which tells us this isn’t just a temporary move until Allegretti is healthy enough to return. Cosmi is also back this week, giving the Commanders their starting right guard again, but Patrick isn’t going anywhere for now. That’s a pretty significant change from what Peters and Quinn had planned entering training camp, especially when you consider how much confidence they expressed in Allegretti taking over for Biadasz.
There’s another part of this that interests me. Patrick’s two starts came with Marcus Mariota and Athan Kaliakmanis at quarterback, meaning Sunday will be his first regular-season game snapping the football to Daniels. With Daniels coming off an elbow injury and Washington trying to get its offense moving in the right direction, having someone who can keep the middle of the line under control is going to be important. The Giants decided Patrick wasn’t worth keeping at the end of August, and just over a month later, Washington is trusting him with one of the most important jobs on its offense against the very team that let him go.
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