Washington Commanders · NT (DL) · 6 games through Nov 1, 2026 · Alabama (2018 Round 1, Pick 13)

Daron Payne

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66.4

Downfield Score v7.0Ranked #45 of 177 qualified DLs

Combined tackles: 147 solo · 7 ast
Sacks & QB hits: 15 QB hits
Tackles for loss: 21 forced fumble
Coverage: 0 PD · 0 INTPasses defended & picks
Defensive snaps: 29248.7 snaps/G
Team def. EPA / play: +0.085Schedule-adjusted · What is EPA?

Daron Payne among the 177 qualified defensive linemen: each 2026 Downfield Score, 0 to 100.

Anderson Jr.96.6
Allen95.5
Karlaftis94.1
Hutchinson92.8
Crosby92.7
Simmons92.2
Granderson91.4
Mafe91.1
Buckner90.4
Payne#4566.4

167 more scored defensive linemen

Downfield Score v7.0 breakdown

Each component is shrunk toward the 2026 positional mean before percentile ranking across 177 qualified DLs. Read score check & methodology · What Raw and Shrunk mean

Defensive snaps per game, regressed25% weight · Raw 0.78 → Shrunk 41.12

90thpercentile

Pass-rush disruption per game28% weight · Raw 0.02 → Shrunk 0.80

65thpercentile

Weighted defensive disruption per game15% weight · Raw 0.07 → Shrunk 3.88

62thpercentile

Pass-rush disruption rate, regressed13% weight · Raw 2.4% → Shrunk 2.0%

63thpercentile

Sack rate per opponent pass play, regressed7% weight · Raw 0.4% → Shrunk 0.4%

43thpercentile

Combined tackle rate, regressed8% weight · Raw 3.7% → Shrunk 3.5%

53thpercentile

Schedule-adjusted team defensive EPA / play, regressed4% weight · Raw +0.085 → Shrunk +0.029

27thpercentile

2026 game log

Every 2026 regular-season game line for Daron Payne. Click any game to open its drive-by-drive chart and box score.

Week	Date	Matchup	Result	Tackles	Solo	Sacks	TFL	QB hits	Def. snaps
Week 1	Sep 13, 2026	@ PHI	L 22-24	1	1	0	0	0	34
Week 2	Sep 20, 2026	@ DAL	L 20-37	2	1	0	0	1	37
Week 3	Sep 27, 2026	vs SEA	W 33-31	1	0	0	0	0	48
Week 4	Oct 4, 2026	vs IND	L 13-30	4	3	0	0	2	57
Week 5	Oct 11, 2026	vs NYG	T 27-27	3	1	1	1	1	63
Week 6	Oct 19, 2026	@ SF	L 17-23	3	1	0	1	1	53

College to the NFL: Alabama to Washington Commanders

Verified identity bridge linking Daron Payne's college regular-season tackles at Alabama to official NFL game lines.

Alabama (College tackles)

272016

452017

1313th pick
2018 Draft

WAS (NFL tackles)

472018

542019

522020

542021

592022

462023

412024

452025

142026 *

Open Daron Payne's college development chapters in Downfield

Career NFL seasons

Regular-season totals from official NFL game lines across 9 seasons.

Season	Club	G	Tackles	Solo	Ast	Sacks	TFL	QBH	PD	INT	FF	Def. snaps
2018	WAS	16	47	26	21	5	6	8	3	0	1	796
2019	WAS	15	54	30	24	2	3	4	2	0	0	758
2020	WAS	16	52	25	27	3	6	8	4	1	3	881
2021	WAS	17	54	28	26	4.5	5	15	0	0	0	837
2022	WAS	17	59	27	32	11.5	16	20	5	0	0	908
2023	WAS	17	46	25	21	4	11	11	4	0	2	924
2024	WAS	17	41	21	20	4	5	7	2	0	0	742
2025	WAS	15	45	19	26	3	7	8	5	0	1	607
2026 (so far)	WAS	6	14	7	7	1	2	5	0	0	1	292

Compare Daron Payne with top defensive linemen

Launch a head-to-head Tale of the Tape against another 2026 DL.

Daron Payne vs. Will Anderson Jr. (HOU)Score 66.4 vs. 96.6 Daron Payne vs. Zach Allen (DEN)Score 66.4 vs. 95.5 Daron Payne vs. George Karlaftis (KC)Score 66.4 vs. 94.1 Daron Payne vs. Aidan Hutchinson (DET)Score 66.4 vs. 92.8 Daron Payne vs. Maxx Crosby (LV)Score 66.4 vs. 92.7 Daron Payne vs. Jeffery Simmons (TEN)Score 66.4 vs. 92.2