The 2023 Washington Commanders season was supposed to feel like a massive exorcism. Out went controversial longtime owner Daniel Snyder, and in stepped the Josh Harris ownership group, bringing instant good vibes to a long-suffering fan base. On the field, head coach Ron Rivera tried to shake up a stagnant franchise by naming unproven second-year quarterback Sam Howell the starter and importing Eric Bieniemy from Kansas City to call the plays. Instead, the good feelings dissolved into a brutal 4-13 nightmare, cementing a last-place finish in the NFC East and a ticket to a total organization rebuild.

Eric Bieniemy implemented a hyper-aggressive West Coast aerial attack that routinely forgot the running game even existed, resulting in Washington leading the NFL with 636 passing attempts. Sam Howell showed guts under center, racking up 3,946 passing yards and 21 touchdowns, but he was hung out to dry by an absolute turnstile offensive line that allowed him to be sacked a league-high 65 times. Terry McLaurin remained a lone bright spot of consistency, hauling in 79 receptions to barely crack the millennium mark with 1,002 receiving yards. Running back Brian Robinson Jr. provided whatever balance he could with 733 rushing yards and nine total scores, while wideouts Curtis Samuel and Jahan Dotson chipped in a combined eight receiving touchdowns. Still, the offense finished a mediocre 25th in points scored (19.4 ppg), constantly hampered by Howell throwing a league-high 21 interceptions.

If the offense was uneven, Jack Del Rio’s defense was an absolute, unmitigated disaster, ranking dead last in both yards allowed and points surrendered (30.5 ppg). The front office essentially raised the white flag on the season at the trade deadline, dealing away blue-chip edge rushers Montez Sweat and Chase Young. Sweat had actually logged 6.5 sacks in just eight games before being packed off to Chicago. That left defensive tackles Jonathan Allen, who finished with 5.5 sacks, and Daron Payne to pick up the pieces on a completely gutted frontline. Linebacker Cody Barton paced the defense with 121 total tackles, but the secondary was repeatedly torched deep in the passing game with top draft pick Emmanuel Forbes struggled immensely to adjust to professional speed.

The year actually teased a completely different reality when the Commanders jumped out to a 2-0 start with a thrilling 35-33 comeback victory over the Denver Broncos in Week 2. The turning point arrived just two weeks later in a heartbreaking 34-31 overtime loss to the Philadelphia Eagles. Instead of building off pushing the defending NFC champions to the absolute brink, the Commanders collapsed on Thursday Night Football, getting humiliated 40-20 at home by a previously winless Chicago Bears team. After a narrow Week 9 win over the Patriots, the wheels detached completely, as Washington spiraled into a devastating eight-game losing streak to close out the year.

By Thanksgiving night, a hideous 45-10 shellacking at the hands of the Dallas Cowboys prompted the firing of Defensive Coordinator Jack Del Rio, signaling the definitive end of the Rivera era. The historical legacy of this squad is defined purely by its negative milestones: they set a franchise record by surrendering 518 total points and failed to land a single player in the Pro Bowl for the first time since 1993. When a 38-10 loss to Dallas in the season finale mercifully ended the campaign, the Harris ownership group immediately cleared out the entire coaching staff, ensuring the 2023 season would be remembered only as the rock-bottom floor required to construct a completely new era of Washington football.