Washington Commanders Eye Breece Hall in Blockbuster Trade Proposal
The Washington Commanders already made a somewhat surprising running back trade to begin this season. This week, the Commanders received encouragement to make another even bigger move — acquire New York Jets running back Breece Hall.
Pro Football Network’s Josh Weil named Hall a blockbuster trade candidate for the Commanders on October 6. Weil proposed Washington trade a 2026 fourth-round pick to the Jets for Hall and a 2026 seventh-rounder.
“The Washington Commanders have found a gem in Jacory Croskey-Merritt. With Austin Ekeler out for the season, they don’t have much experience behind him, so they should consider a move,” Weil wrote. Along with his knowledge, bringing in Breece Hall from the Jets brings a whole new dynamic to the offense, as Croskey-Merritt isn’t used in the passing game much, whereas Hall can be strong in all facets of the game.
“Having a two-headed monster like this will both lower the workload of Croskey-Merritt and bring a hungry player with free agency looming to get his first taste of playoff football. Hall takes this offense to a level that can help them execute even more consistently, and make them a real threat to the Eagles’ hold on the division crown.”
As Weil explained, adding Hall would give the Commanders a 1-2 punch again in their backfield. Washington opened the season with Jacory Croskey-Merritt and Austin Ekeler as their top two running backs.
However, the team lost Ekeler to a season-ending torn Achilles during Week 2.
Without Ekeler, Croskey-Merritt has led the league with a 6.6 yards per carry average. Crosky-Merritt has posted 283 rushing yards and four touchdowns along with five catches for 54 yards.
Hall, who the Jets drafted in the second round of the 2022 NFL Draft, has 351 rushing yards. He’s averaged 5.3 yards per carry this season.
What Breece Hall Could Bring to Commanders
Hall is becoming an afterthought with the winless Jets. After the team drafted him at No. 34 overall in 2022, he quickly burst onto the scene with a 5.8 yards per carry average in his rookie season.
But a torn ACL and meniscus cut the running back’s first NFL season short. Hall was solid while remaining healthy in 2023 and 2024, but he failed to eclipse the 1,000-yard rushing mark in either campaign while playing in a struggling Jets offense.
Hall, though, could be a terrific complement to Croskey-Merritt. Not only would he give the Commanders more depth, Hall’s a better pass-catcher than the seventh-round rookie.
In 2023, Hall had 76 catches for 591 receiving yards. Thanks to his pass-catching ability, he has reached at least 1,350 yards from scrimmage each of the past two years.
Having another back such as Hall will also help Croskey-Merritt avoid hitting the rookie wall. Croskey-Merritt is on pace for 163 touches this season. He only had one such season at the top level in college.
Commanders RB Depth Entering Week 6
Without Ekeler, the Commanders have used veteran Jeremy McNichols and 2023 sixth-rounder Chris Rodriguez as their depth running backs. Both backs have been efficient when carrying the ball.
But neither has a lot of touches. In fact, quarterback Jayden Daniels is second to Croskey-Merritt for Washington in rushing yards.
Adding Hall would give the Commanders another dimension to their ground attack and important depth. Acquiring Hall would be an aggressive move, but it would be an appropriate one since Washington advanced to the NFC Championship Game last season.
It is worth wondering, though, how much better could the Commanders really get on the ground with any running back addition through a trade. Entering Week 6, Washington sits ranked first in rushing yards and yards per carry.
The Commanders are also eighth in points scored and 13th in total yards.
Julius Wood Returns to Cowboys' Practice Squad After Drug Suspension and Injury Setbacks
After he went undrafted out of East Carolina in 2024, defensive back Julius Wood has several offers on hand, including from the Cowboys. With good reason–during his time with the Pirates, he’d started 24 straight games and developed a reputation as a hard-hitting safety who twice led the team in tackles from the defensive backfield and was a first-team All-American Athletic Conference selection.
Wood ultimately chose to sign on with Dallas, and said at the time, “I feel like it was the situation, the roster aspect — that was the most important — being able to compete. Really, it came down to where I feel like was the best fit. … I felt like the Cowboys, in my heart, was the place I needed to be at.
He spent that summer with the Cowboys but was, ultimately released at the end of camp. Wood did sign on with Tennessee, though, and was put on the active roster, playing nine games, mostly on special teams.
On Tuesday, though, Dallas announced that Wood is back, as the team wrote on Twitter/X: “The @dallascowboys signed DB Julius Wood to the practice squad.”
Julius Wood Suspended in 2024
Wood’s NFL career got off to an ignominious start with the Titans because, after making appearances in the kicking game and getting five snaps as a defensive back, the NFL suspended him for the use of performance-enhancing drugs. It was a six-game suspension.
But Wood has turned the page on last season, and is back with a chance to help the Cowboys out of a desperate situation with their defensive backs. Malik Hooker is out with a toe injury and has been placed on IR, which will keep him out for at least four games, though perhaps longer.
The team started Juanyeh Thomas in Hooker’s place in Week 5, and elevated Alijah Clark from the practice squad, opening a spot for Wood.
Cowboys Hoping to Get Healthy
The injury-ravaged Cowboys are 2-2-1 and sorting through the timetables of getting players back in the next two weeks. The hope is that their interior offensive linemen–at least Tyler Booker and Tyler Smith–will be on the field in Week 6. There’s hope that CeeDee Lamb will return in either Week 6 or 7, too.
“It’s still early. I think we’ll find out more in the next couple of days. I think we’re trending in the right direction on a few guys,” coach Brian Schottenheimer told reporters.
“I’m seeing progress on all the guys. Whether they’re able to make it to this weekend? We’ll see, but I do think we’re closing in on some good markers for these guys in the next couple of weeks.”
