Rarely do fans fall in love with seventh-round draft picks before the first preseason game – even more rarely does a seventh-round pick become a household name without stepping foot onto an NFL field.
Those rules don’t apply to Washington Commanders rookie Jacory Croskey-Merritt.
The six-year college player logged all of 13 carries for 106 yards and a touchdown during his one and only year at the University of Arizona in 2024. He broke 470 yards rushing in a season just once in college, yet Commanders fans are optimistic that he will become the team’s starting back.
The Croskey-Merritt hype train is real, and it’s about to leave the station.
“It’s the violence of the cuts… that he can get his shoulders square and get downhill fast,” Commanders Head Coach Dan Quinn said about his new back. “He’s off to a really good start.”
Despite previously being listed fourth on the depth chart, the 24-year-old took reps with the starters during a two-minute drill at the Commanders’ Tuesday training camp practice. He also looked sharp with his cuts through the line of scrimmage on Monday, the only time the players put on pads.
The young back’s impressive showings led to several Commanders reporters naming him the camp standout.
“You see the decisive cuts; on film, you see the violent nature of his runs; watching him run some pass routes, he looks pretty good,” said ESPN’s John Keim, per 106.7 The Fan’s Grant Paulsen.
“Jacory Croskey-Merritt will be the starting running back of this team by December,” declared Yardbarker’s Rick Snider. “This new kid runs hard. I like a lot of what I see.”
“I just love the way he cuts, how he violently hits the hole, I think he’s gonna be a complete running back,” added ABC7’s Scott Abraham. “I’m very encouraged. I know it’s going to be a deep running back room… but keep your eye on Jacory Croskey-Merritt.”
I grabbed some media members during practice and asked them who has stood out the most so far in training camp.
Lots of love for Jacory Croskey-Merritt. pic.twitter.com/NcYuHQ6xpk
— Grant Paulsen (@granthpaulsen) July 28, 2025
Coach Quinn and the rest of the Commanders staff have made competition their central theme since they took control of the franchise in early 2024. However, a seventh-round rookie climbing four spots on the depth chart—even if just for a few reps in a drill—is significant.
Incumbent starter Brian Robinson Jr. finished last year with 799 yards, eight touchdowns, and 4.3 yards per carry. Although he consistently produced positive plays, they were rarely ever explosive. He only had four carries of at least 20 yards, a rate of about 2.1 percent of his carries, and 19 carries of at least 10 yards, close to 1.3 per game.
In a league in which running back committees are in style, Croskey-Merritt has a glaring opportunity to earn carries early in his career.
Austin Ekeler is a scat back who provides most of his value in the passing game. Jeremy McNichols was largely used in pass protection or close to the goal line, which left rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels to provide the explosive running plays.
In Croskey-Merritt’s one appearance for Arizona before he was declared ineligible by the NCAA, he had runs of 36, 18, and 16 yards. He also took 11 carries for 97 yards and two touchdowns at the Shrine Bowl, a college football All-Star Game, on Jan. 30. He showcased his explosiveness with carries of 27, 13, 12, 11, and 10 yards.
The Commanders aren’t quick to give opportunities to young players just because they were draft picks – Jayden Daniels started last year’s training camp with the backups, while Marcus Mariota worked with the starters.
That said, the coaches have proven that they will feed their desire for competition by giving opportunities to players who earn them, a promise which Croskey-Merritt is proving once again.
“I’m very excited to see once we get into some opportunities,” Coach Quinn said of Croskey-Merritt ahead of a joint practice and preseason game against the New England Patriots next week. “Does he get tackled? Does he not? Does he run through some [tackles]?”
Despite the excitement from Commanders fans, Croskey-Merritt does not have a defined role. After he got popped in the middle of the field by Safety Tyler Owens during Monday’s practice, Coach Quinn used the play as an example of what happens to running backs who break through the line but don’t have a plan for the safety crashing down from the second level.
At the same time, the general anticipation is understandable. The Commanders’ running backs averaged 59.8 yards and 3.3 yards per carry in nine games against teams with winning records across the regular-season and playoffs last year. A dynamic alternative capable of producing chunk plays on the ground would greatly change the complexion of the offense and the way opposing defenses have to guard them.
The first real look at Croskey-Merritt in a Commanders uniform will come on Friday, Aug. 8, when the team begins its preseason campaign.
