The Washington Commanders special teams are in line for a huge upgrade in 2026.
The Commanders signed three-time all-Big Ten kicker Drew Stevens as an undrafted free agent, according to CBS Sports, in a move that could bolster their special teams after Washington’s kicking game struggled in 2025.
Washington ranked 29th in the NFL in field-goal percentage last year (76.9%) and cycled through three different placekickers in 2025. As a result, the Commanders were 2-5 in one-score games, with three of those losses coming amid their eight-game losing skid that dropped Washington out of playoff contention.
A season after competing for the NFC championship, Washington went 5-12 and only finished ahead of the New York Giants (4-13) and Arizona Cardinals (3-14) among NFC teams.
The Washington Commanders Intend to Let Drew Stevens Compete for the Placekicking Job
Jake Moody ultimately took the placekicking job and made it his own in 2025. The highly touted 2023 third-round pick had an 82.6% success rate in 2025 with a long of 56 yards.
Still, Moody has had bouts of inconsistency throughout his NFL career, which is how he ended up in Washington in need of a change of scenery in the first place.
So bringing in a rookie like Stevens, the fourth-ranked kicking prospect per Mel Kiper Jr. who appeared in some mock drafts as a seventh-round pick, will keep the onus on Moody to kicking it straight.
Only one kicker was selected among the 257 players chosen in the 2026 NFL Draft in Pittsburgh, Florida’s Trey Smack, who was chosen in the sixth round by the Green Bay Packers. Only a handful of kickers have been picked up as undrafted free agents, and Stevens was expected to be a training-camp invite before the Commanders ultimately decided to sign him to a contract.
If the Commanders ultimately decide to stick with Moody, they could potentially waive Stevens and bury him on their practice squad to shield him from other clubs. But he would still have to pass through waivers, which means every other team would have the chance to sign him.
Who is Drew Stevens?
Stevens has an impressive resume, especially considering he spent all four years kicking at Iowa, where weather can wreak havoc on the kicking game.
But Stevens is coming off a 22-for-28 senior season where he got stronger as the season went on. Stevens was 11 for 16 on kicks from 40-plus yards and closed the season 13 for 15 over his final eight games, including a 58-yard field goal amid the snow in the fourth quarter of the Hawkeyes’ narrow 18-16 loss to Oregon on Nov. 8.
Stevens closed his four-year college career with an 80% success rate on field goals and only missed three of 47 field goals from inside 39 yards and in.
Stevens has endured his own on-again, off-again struggles with accuracy, as most kickers have. He led FBS in field-goal percentage his freshman season (88.9%) then made just 69.2% in his sophomore season.
But Stevens persevered since he made a game-winning, 44-yard kick to knock off Michigan State in Iowa’s penultimate regular-season game. He made his final five field goals and only missed one extra point in 2025.
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