New coordinator Daronte Jones is transforming the Commanders' defense after major changes

ASHBURN, Va. (AP) — After ranking last in the NFL on defense last season, the Washington Commanders revamped that side of the ball with drastic changes to the roster and the coaching staff.

Two weeks into training camp, the unit looks completely different from a year ago. New defensive coordinator Daronte Jones is a big reason why.

Jones has spent his first six months on the job not only installing a new system but also overhauling the team's entire defensive identity.

“I can’t tell you too much of the secret sauce,” pass rusher Odafe Oweh said. “Daronte has a great defense, but it’s a complicated defense.”

Jones, 47, was hired from Minnesota after excelling under Brian Flores, who oversaw a defense known for its complex disguises and loaded fronts. Plenty of that has carried over to Washington, where Jones has deployed fronts with three, four and five linemen and mixed and matched along the way.

Strong communication between Jones and his players is vital to make this work, and he has constantly preached that to them since arriving.

“Elite communication is one of our standards,” Jones said after practice Tuesday. “Everyone being on the same page, trusting in their brother next to them — that’s what we’re working towards.”

Since hiring Jones, the Commanders have added multiple players with versatile skill sets to fit his scheme. It’s no coincidence that free agent signings like Oweh and K’Lavon Chaisson, along with No. 7-pick linebacker Sonny Styles, have stood out. They are all super athletic and can play multiple spots.

Players appreciate that Jones' system allows them to take risks.

“He’s given me a lot of freedom and understanding — picking my spots, when to take chances,” Oweh said. “I haven’t had in the past except for the Chargers."

Defensive tackle Javon Kinlaw enjoys “getting to play everywhere.”

“I’m loving it,” Kinlaw said. "I’m loving how I’m getting to just give guys different looks and be all over the place, man. I think it’s going to play to my strengths well.”

Jones has coached at every level during his two-decade coaching career, from high school through multiple college levels and the pros. He believes his teaching ability is one of his biggest strengths, which he attributes to working in the Louisiana high school system.

“When you create a lesson plan, you have to pretty much hit on everyone’s learning styles because everyone learns differently,” Jones said. "We try to do that as coaches so that you’re hitting on every player in that room.”

Jones understands that there will be ups and downs throughout camp. His defense was consistently getting the better of the offense early on, but the two sides have been much more even since the pads came on.

Measuring success is different than day-to-day results.

“From coaches, we want to see that ascending course,” Jones said. “As long as we’re not going backwards and we continue to move forward, then we’re on the right path to getting to what we want eventually.”

On Wednesday, Jones’ defense will have its first chance to face a different opponent when the Miami Dolphins arrive for a joint practice ahead of the teams' preseason game Friday night. Jones’ main priority is that his players bring the energy level and fundamentals required to be successful.

“(I) just want to see guys with great effort, guys competing, and all while doing so with great effort, great technique,” Jones said. “That’s what we’re looking for, but the competition is going to be there, so that’ll be great for us to see and just see who can do what.”

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Washington Commanders cornerback Rasul Douglas (31) works out during practice at the team's NFL football training camp, Wednesday, July 29, 2026, in Ashburn, Va. (AP Photo/Rod Lamkey, Jr.)

Washington Commanders linebacker Frankie Luvu (4) works out during practice at the team's NFL football training camp, Wednesday, July 29, 2026, in Ashburn, Va. (AP Photo/Rod Lamkey, Jr.)

Washington Commanders linebacker Frankie Luvu, center, works out during practice at the team's NFL football training camp, Thursday, July 30, 2026, in Ashburn, Va. (AP Photo//John McDonnell)

Washington Commanders linebackers Sonny Styles (52) and Leo Chenal work out during practice at the team's NFL football training camp, Thursday, July 30, 2026, in Ashburn, Va. (AP Photo//John McDonnell)

NEW YORK (AP) — Government lawyers said a Court of International Trade judge overstepped his authority by ordering the U.S. Customs and Border Patrol to issue refunds to all companies that paid tariffs that were deemed illegal in February, even those that didn't file a lawsuit in trade court.

The government filed an appeal with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit in June and filed its opening brief on Monday.

In it, government lawyers point to a case that went before the Supreme Court in June 2025, over birthright citizenship. Part of the decision in that case limited the use of universal injunctions, which apply a ruling to all people or companies affected, not just specific litigants.

Judge Richard Eaton, who is overseeing the tariff lawsuits in the Court of International Trade, has said the limits on universal injunctions don't apply in this case, but the government disagrees.

“The CIT’s universal injunctions, requiring the government to refund IEEPA duties for all importers (including non-party importers), cannot possibly be squared with CASA,” — the court case that limited universal injunctions, the government wrote it its brief.

The majority of tariff refunds have already been paid out. CBP has already processed and certified $100 billion in refunds. At issue are companies that paid tariffs that went through the customs process and entries were finalized. There's a Congressional rule that the CBP cannot reprocess tariffs for which the administrative refund process is no longer available. Those companies are free to file a lawsuit to get that money back, the government said.

“The Court of International Trade (CIT) has already entered hundreds of such orders in suits brought by importers seeking that relief, and importers who have not yet brought such suits are free to do so within the statute of limitations,” government lawyers wrote in the brief.

Barry Appleton, a law professor and co-director of New York Law School’s Center for International Law, said it appears the government has the better legal argument, but businesses, especially smaller businesses, might suffer.

“The government took this money under a law the Supreme Court said never authorized (tariffs). Getting it back should not turn on whether a business could afford to sue,” he said. “Refunding an unlawful tariff should not be a reward for litigating. ... You cannot really ask a small company to sue for money it does not know it is owed, on a deadline it has never heard of.”

FILE - The United States Court of International Trade, center, is seen in front of the Jacob K. Javits Federal building, March 18, 2015, in New York. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer, File)