Junior Network Engineer

The Washington Commanders are seeking a Junior Network Engineer to help operate and maintain network connectivity, including wired and wireless networks, across headquarters, the practice facility, and the stadium. This is an entry-level engineering role. The Junior Network Engineer carries out monitoring, configuration changes, and troubleshooting within established standards and under the guidance of senior engineers. The role reports to the Senior Manager of Network Engineering. This position spans network operations and monitoring, supervised configuration and changes, troubleshooting, cabling and hardware, documentation, and game-day network support. Key Responsibilities

• Monitor network health across all three sites using the club's network monitoring tools and flag issues before they affect users.
• Assist with capacity checks, performance monitoring, and routine maintenance windows.
• Carry out switch, wireless, routing, and VPN configuration changes under supervision and within established standards.
• Support DNS, DHCP, and IP address management tasks, and follow the change process for every network change.
• Assist with firmware updates, patching, and configuration backups for network devices under supervision.
• Provide first-level troubleshooting for wired and wireless connectivity, VLAN, and VPN issues and escalate as needed.
• Help identify and escalate network security concerns, and support root-cause analysis on incidents alongside senior engineers.
• Work with carriers, internet service providers, and vendor technical support to resolve connectivity issues.
• Log, track, and resolve network incidents and requests in the ticketing system.
• Support structured cabling, patch panels, switch, router, access-point, and network-appliance installation, and hardware maintenance and replacement.
• Assist with wireless coverage checks and access-point placement across offices, the practice facility, and the stadium bowl.
• Keep network diagrams, device inventory, IP records, and change records current and accurate.
• Document recurring fixes and standard procedures so the team can rely on them.
• Participate in after-hours and weekend on-call support as needed.
• Support secure, high-capacity connectivity for games and events, and join the event roster.
• Be present and available onsite during games and major events.

Required

• Associate's or bachelor's degree in Information Technology, networking, or a related field, or equivalent experience.

• Zero to two years of experience; internship or hands-on lab experience counts.

• Foundational understanding of TCP/IP, subnetting, routing and switching, VLANs, VPNs, DNS and DHCP, wireless networking, and basic network security.

• Comfort working on a command line and a disciplined, detail-oriented approach to documentation.

• Willingness to work game days and events, including nights, weekends, and holidays.

• Ability to lift and rack equipment, work on ladders or lifts for access-point and cabling work, and travel between the three sites. Preferred

• Networking certification such as Cisco CCNA or CompTIA Network+.

• Hands-on experience with enterprise switching, wireless, and firewalls.

• Familiarity with network monitoring tools and structured cabling standards.

• Exposure to sports, live-event, campus, or large-venue networking.