The Washington Commanders are trimming their secondary as we get closer to the start of the new league year. On Monday, the club released veteran cornerback Bobby McCain, according to ESPN. This move comes after McCain inked a two-year, $11 million deal with Washington last offseason and by getting rid of him now the team clears $4.42 million off the salary cap. Before this release clears up that space, Washington was sitting just under the salary cap threshold by roughly $7.6 million.
McCain originally joined the Commanders before the 2021 campaign and became a starter within the secondary in the slot. That season, he led the team with four interceptions and had nine pass breakups to go along with 63 tackles. Last year, he continued to start in the slot and had five pass breakups with a career-high 76 tackles.
While he's been a solid contributor in the secondary, McCain did see a bit of a dip in coverage from his first season in Washington to his second, however. He allowed 78.8% of his targets to be completed for a catch in 2022 and surrendered a 111.9 passer rating. Back during his first year with the Commanders he allowed receivers to catch just 62.5% of their targets and had quarterbacks averaging a 65.5 passer rating when targeting him.
Prior to arriving in Washington, McCain spent the first six seasons of his career in Miami with the Dolphins, who drafted him in the fifth round of the 2015 NFL Draft out of Memphis.
The 29-year-old will have a leg up on finding a new home somewhere in the NFL as he'll hit free agency once his release becomes official on the NFL transaction wire, meaning he'll have a few weeks to land somewhere before the rest of the free agent pool opens up on March 15.
