- Coach Dan Quinn said Monday the surgery has no date, and NFL Network reported Tunsil will miss much of the season.
- Tunsil hurt the triceps in a one-on-one pass-rush drill against Odafe Oweh at Saturday’s practice.
- Tunsil’s March extension pays $30.1 million a year, the richest average any NFL offensive lineman has signed.
- Brandon Coleman moves to left tackle, and Washington does not expect to shop free agency.
ASHBURN, Va. – Washington Commanders left tackle Laremy Tunsil needs surgery on his left triceps and is sidelined indefinitely, five months after signing the extension that made him the NFL’s first $30 million-a-year offensive lineman.
Surgery Has No Date, And No Timeline
Tunsil went down Saturday, Aug. 8, in a one-on-one pass-rush drill against edge rusher Odafe Oweh. The club calls it a triceps injury requiring surgery and has not set a date for the procedure. NFL Network reported Saturday that the triceps is torn and will cost Tunsil at least a significant portion of the regular season. The Commanders have not used the word torn.
Quinn confirmed the surgery Monday, Aug. 10, and said Washington will not put a length on the absence until the procedure is done.
“It’s always tough to talk about a player missing time, and especially a great player like LT,” Quinn said. “He is really on the top of his game right now. Both in the run and pass, this is an equally strong player, and so it’s a big deal.”
A $60.2 Million Extension, Five Months Old
Tunsil signed a two-year, $60.2 million extension on March 9, with $52.65 million fully guaranteed. The $30.1 million average made him the highest-paid offensive lineman in the league, past the $28.5 million a year the Los Angeles Chargers had given Rashawn Slater.
That price is a franchise stating what it thinks blind-side protection is worth, and a starting left tackle is one of the roster inputs that moves a team’s season number in legal sports betting markets. Washington acquired Tunsil from Houston in the 2025 offseason and got 14 starts out of him before an injury ended his first Washington season three games early.
Coleman Allowed Two Pressures On 87 Snaps In Relief
Those last three games are the most recent evidence on Coleman, and they are the reason the Commanders are comfortable. Coleman replaced Tunsil at left tackle down the stretch and allowed two pressures on 87 pass-blocking snaps, roughly one every 44 snaps.
Coleman is a 2024 third-round pick out of TCU, 67th overall. He won the left tackle job as a rookie, started 12 games there and protected Jayden Daniels through the run to the NFC Championship Game, finishing with the seventh-best offensive grade among rookie tackles at Pro Football Focus.
The arrivals of Tunsil and Josh Conerly Jr. pushed him inside to guard in 2025. He then missed most of training camp with an injury, which helped Chris Paul win the left guard job and left Coleman in a backup role until the late-season call-up. He spent a month of this offseason working with Tunsil in Alabama.
The honest read is that Washington’s blind side is now a 12-start sample from two years ago plus three late-season games. That is a real body of work for a third-year lineman and a thin one next to a five-time Pro Bowler, and it is the sort of open question that follows a team across the legal NFL betting board all season rather than settling in a week.
No Outside Help, By Design
Quinn said he talked the situation through with general manager Adam Peters and that Washington does not expect to look to free agency right now. Coleman gets the extended look at left tackle, and veteran Andrew Wylie stays in the backup swing tackle role rather than sliding out to start.
“He’s played a lot of winning football at left tackle here, and we know that he’s ready for it,” Quinn said of Coleman. “He’s put in an excellent offseason, and the team is very confident in him.”
What Happens Next
The surgery has no scheduled date, and the Commanders will not put a timeline on Tunsil’s return until it is done. Washington hopes to have him back at some point this season.
