Commanders fire tight ends coach on the verge of training camp

As Washington Commanders players are reporting to the BigBear.ai Performance Center in Ashburn, Virginia, the coaching staff hit a small snag. Training camp practices are scheduled to start on July 29, two days away, and the team announced on Monday that it is parting ways with tight ends coach Ben Steele.

We are parting ways with tight ends coach Ben Steele. The team will have no further comment at this time.

— Washington Commanders (@Commanders) July 27, 2026

Steele played tight end in the NFL for roughly seven years before he made the switch to coaching. He started at the college level, making the jump to the NFL in 2014. He's been a coach for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Atlanta Falcons, Minnesota Vikings, Denver Broncos, and Arizona Cardinals. The Commanders hired him in March and have now let him go just a few months later.

A source close to the situation said the Commanders let Ben Steele go due to violation of team policy.

He was placed on leave after he informed the Commanders of his arrest, and the team reported it to the league.

Dan Quinn is expected to announce his replacement tomorrow.

— Nicki Jhabvala (@NickiJhabvala) July 27, 2026

It seems Steele was arrested sometime in June, which he reported to the team. That report resulted in his non-participation in minicamp as he was placed on leave. During that time, offensive assistant Wes Welker coached the tight ends. Head coach Dan Quinn is expected to announce Steele's replacement before training camp begins. It's also worth noting that former tight ends coach David Raih is now Washington's offensive passing game coordinator and can help, too.

The Commanders' tight ends' room is relatively young and in need of guidance. Losing a coach right before training camp can make for a rough go, but since Steele wasn't with the team for long and didn't take part in minicamp, the tight ends room shouldn't suffer too much of a setback. A new coach will be announced, and everything will be back on track before practices start this Saturday.

This article originally appeared on Commanders Wire: Commanders fire tight ends coach on the verge of training camp