Daily Slop – 10 Oct 23: Warrior: The Brian Robinson Jr. Story | Behind the Scenes of Triumphant Comeback from Shooting

A collection of articles, podcasts & tweets from around the web to keep you in touch with the Commanders, the NFC East and the NFL in general

Commanders links

Articles

Warrior: The Brian Robinson Jr. Story | Behind the Scenes of Triumphant Comeback from Shooting

---

The Athletic (paywall)

Will Commanders make any big in-season changes? Evaluating Ron Rivera, the defense and more

The DMV had a sky-is-falling period in the hours following the shocking defeat. Washington’s flat start to its third consecutive loss — it trailed Chicago 27-3 at halftime — added to the gloominess. Limited partner Magic Johnson said on social media after the game that the team “played with no intensity or fire.”

However, making an in-season move at coordinator isn’t a snap-your-fingers scenario. Real-time play-calling requires experience or ample offseason preparation. Among the defensive staff, only coordinator Jack Del Rio has called plays previously. There is no assistant on the staff who is an obvious future coordinator now that former defensive backs coach Chris Harris works with the Tennessee Titans.

What are the chances managing partner Josh Harris makes a head coaching change before the season concludes?

The franchise sale in July came too late for Washington’s new owners to enact significant football change beyond basic support. The logical assumption is Harris will explore a fresh start this offseason. The truth is, there’s no rush.

Maximizing Sam Howell’s shot at QB1 is the primary football goal for this season. Ownership’s information-gathering process and ability to absorb everything being thrown its way is the off-the-field counterpart. Other than deciding how to proceed ahead of the Oct. 31 trade deadline — Washington’s list of 2024 free agents is lengthy and notable — Harris has time. He can spend weeks prepping for possible coaching/front-office changes in December or January, especially if he wants to beat other teams from publicly studying the market.

Reminder: Washington is 4-11 in Weeks 1-5 over three-plus seasons under Rivera. Midseason turnarounds come next (12-7 in Weeks 6-12). While a surge might be around the corner, finishing around .500 at the final bell is not a desired mark in Year 4 of a regime.

---

Riggo’s Rag

Are the Commanders ownership group right to give Ron Rivera more time?

However, according to Josina Anderson of CBS Sports, majority stakeholder Josh Harris is willing to be patient before coming to any drastic conclusions in-season.

“I’m told as of today, managing partner Josh Harris’ perspective is to continue to allow things to play out when it comes to potential staff decisions, at this time, per source. Harris is a seasoned sports owner who is viewed internally as generally patient. I’m told one of Harris’ biggest concerns now though is the impact an emotional national loss may have on ticket sales—which always has to be taken into account too. Separately, when it comes to any decisions on defensive coordinator, there’s an internal impression that Ron Rivera would prefer to allow things to play out. Rivera’s relationship with Del Rio goes back a while as well. Now, while I’m told some of the other limited partners have their own thoughts—and you can read between the lines there— we’ll see how things settle as the season evolves. There is still time for better results, but the clock is ticking.”

– Josina Anderson via X

If…Harris and his wealthy team of investors decide to pull the plug, that’s the nature of the beast. Something that Rivera is already fully aware of having suffered the same fate when David Tepper bought the Carolina Panthers.

---

Sports Illustrated

Washington Commanders vs. Atlanta Falcons a ‘Must Win’ For Multiple Reasons

The Washington Commanders don’t want to be surrounded by NFL Draft talk by the end of October, but another loss could do just that, making Week 6 against the Atlanta Falcons all the more important.

For starters, Washington currently sits 11th in the NFC for playoff positioning and has a 21 percent chance of earning postseason play.

Thankfully, and to coach Ron Rivera’s point following his team’s loss to the Chicago Bears, there’s still a lot of season left to play.

A loss to the Falcons on the road next week, however, and Rivera’s squad could fall as far as 13th in the NFC, just two spots from the bottom and six from the final Wild Card spot.

So a win isn’t a mathematical must, but the Commanders will face a nearly insurmountable climb if they lose their fourth game of the year before Halloween with matchups against the Eagles, twice against Dallas, the Miami Dolphins, and the San Francisco 49ers still awaiting them.

---

Bullock’s Film Room (subscription)

Evaluating Sam Howell’s performance against the Bears

Breaking down the performance of QB Sam Howell in the Commanders loss to the Bears

Something Howell has been criticized for this year is his ability to identify blitzes, get them picked up and then move within the pocket to avoid them if need be. I think the criticism of his pocket movement is harsh. Yes there have been some rough plays but there have also been some excellent ones. Against the Bears, he did a nice job overall climbing up in the pocket when he needed to.

Here the Bears try to disguise a slot corner blitz. They line up one linebacker off the edge of the left tackle and one linebacker over the center, but both are just decoys to hide the real threat of the slot corner. The corner does slightly give himself away at the last second, trying to get a head start on the snap, but the key here is the poise in the pocket from Howell. He gets to the top of his drop and has his eyes focused down the field. He trusts running back Antonio Gibson to slide across and pick up the blitzing corner.

Gibson does indeed slide across to pick up the corner, but gets himself into a slightly odd position, perhaps expecting the corner to rush inside instead of outside. Howell does a great job making Gibson right though. He feels that pressure off the edge and calmly steps up in the pocket behind Gibson. This forces the corner to change his pursuit angle and gives Gibson the chance to simply run the corner by Howell. That’s precisely what happens as Gibson picks up the corner and Howell continues to keep his eyes down the field. As he steps up in the pocket, he spots Terry McLaurin breaking back to the ball on the outside and finds him for a nice gain.

That ability to move within the pocket in order to beat the blitz is crucial and Howell has demonstrated multiple times now this season that he is capable of doing so. He could definitely be a little more clean and decisive with those movements, he does still have a bit of a tendency to sit at the top of his drop for a moment or two too long, but we see here that he is capable of improving there.

---

Commanders Wire

Where does Commanders QB Sam Howell rank in total QBR after five games?

With five weeks in the books, where does Howell rank in ESPN’s total QBR?

Howell is ranked No. 20, with a total QBR of 48.5, just behind veterans Jimmy Garoppolo and Derek Carr. Howell is ranked ahead of standout QBs, such as Joe Burrow, Deshaun Watson, Russell Wilson and Ryan Tannehill, and young passers like Justin Fields, Anthony Richardson, Bryce Young and Kenny Pickett.

Here are Howell’s QBR numbers each week:

• Week 1 vs. Arizona: 36.4
• Week 2 at Denver: 59.7
• Week 3 vs. Buffalo: 14.7
• Week 4 at Philadelphia: 69.3
• Week 5 at Chicago: 46.9

---

Washington Post (paywall)

The Commanders’ secondary has struggled. Now it’s down a top player.

The unit has allowed explosive plays in almost every coverage scheme, for seemingly every reason and through the fault of nearly every player. Once, second-year safety Percy Butler turned the wrong way in cover-two, leaving a receiver open for a big gain, and more than twice, cornerback Emmanuel Forbes has been overly aggressive against double moves, leaving open swaths of grass.

To make things more difficult: The struggling secondary will now need to fix its problem without one of its stalwart players, safety Darrick Forrest (shoulder). Washington plans to place him, along with special-teams ace Jeremy Reaves (knee), on injured reserve, Coach Ron Rivera announced Monday, meaning they will miss at least four weeks. Both will be eligible to return after the Week 9 game at New England.

For now, Rivera said, Forrest will be replaced by a combination of Butler, who has played regularly in three-safety sets, and rookie Quan Martin. Butler struggled in the preseason, suffered a concussion in Week 1 and hasn’t taken any defensive snaps. Last season at Illinois, Martin played slot corner and deep safety, and though his versatility is promising, it’s a big question how much coaches can ask him to use it as he takes his first snaps. Butler, who was in a similar position last season, said it was difficult to learn multiple positions and play fast as a rookie.

---

ESPN

Commanders place safeties Darrick Forrest, Jeremy Reaves on IR

Washington coach Ron Rivera said both players needed further testing to determine if they’d be able to return after four weeks or if they’d be out a lot longer. Rivera said Forrest injured his shoulder while Reaves hurt his left knee in a 40-20 loss to Chicago on Thursday. The Commanders (2-3) play at Atlanta on Sunday.

Forrest had been starting at safety alongside Kam Curl. Washington’s defense has allowed an NFL-high 18 plays of 25 yards or more — and also top the league with 15 such pass plays, most a byproduct of mistakes in the secondary. Forrest started 11 games last year, finishing with four interceptions, two forced fumbles and a fumble recovery. He did not have any such plays this season.

---

Washington Post (paywall)

The Commanders’ rookie class has barely played. What’s going on?

Though it’s too early to fully evaluate the impact of Washington’s 2023 draft class, the results so far are strikingly different from those in recent years — and disappointing. The majority of the seven-player class is still developing, and the lone starter, first-round cornerback Emmanuel Forbes Jr., has struggled, costing the team in consecutive losses before getting benched.

Through Week 4, Washington’s rookies, including undrafted wide receiver Mitchell Tinsley, averaged just 10.7 snaps per game on offense and defense. Only four teams played their rookies less. If you take Forbes out of the equation, Washington’s rookies combined for just 13 offensive and defensive snaps. Sixth-round running back Chris Rodriguez Jr. played four; Tinsley, defensive end Andre Jones Jr. (seventh round) and interior offensive lineman Ricky Stromberg (third round) played three apiece.

Tackle Braeden Daniels, a fourth-round pick, is on injured reserve and won’t play this season, and fifth-round defensive end KJ Henry has been limited to 13 snaps on special teams. Second-round pick Quan Martin, a versatile safety/nickelback whom the team hoped would add depth and become a rotational piece in the secondary, hasn’t played a snap on defense, though he’s in line to get opportunities with starting safety Darrick Forrest headed to injured reserve.

More confounding: Rivera’s explanation for the rookies’ lack of playing time, which seems to stray from his belief a year ago.

“Just because you draft a guy in the second or third round doesn’t necessarily mean he’s an automatic starter,” he said last week. “When I came into the league, guys that were drafted in the second [or] third round weren’t expected to play right away.”

So what gives with the Class of 2023? At this point, it’s fair to question whether the personnel — not just the rookies but also the Commanders’ veteran acquisitions this year — fit what the team is trying to accomplish.

---

Podcasts & videos

---

---

Washington Commanders First Quarter Review | Second Quarter Preview, Season Projection, Superlatives

---

NFC East links

ESPN

Sources: Cowboys LB Leighton Vander Esch could miss 4-6 weeks

Coach Mike McCarthy said Vander Esch is likely headed to injured reserve, which means he would miss at least the next four games. After next week’s game against the Los Angeles Chargers, the Cowboys have their bye, which could put Vander Esch’s return at Nov. 19 at the Carolina Panthers or as late as Nov. 30 against the Seattle Seahawks.

He has a history of neck issues, missing seven games in 2019 and undergoing surgery after the season. He missed the final three games of last season with a neck injury. He suffered this injury with 13:59 left in the fourth quarter when he was pushed from behind and collided with Micah Parsons’ leg.

“High caution is in place here,” McCarthy said.

---

Blogging the Boys

Bad night for Mike McCarthy, Dak Prescott’s job security in demoralizing loss to 49ers

In a season with major implications for their long-term futures, neither Dallas’ head coach or quarterback showed up in a key game.

[I]f the Cowboys were satisfied with regular season wins and the occasional box of NFC East Champions hats, they could’ve stuck with Jason Garrett. They could save a lot of money and made Cooper Rush the starting quarterback.

Hiring Mike McCarthy was supposed to elevate the Cowboys from Garrett’s pattern. Paying Dak Prescott a ton of money was supposed to mean that you don’t get rolled by the NFC elite. And sure, both have had their moments. Shoving Tom Brady’s old bones into retirement last year was great! Consistently beating the Eagles in the regular season is fun. These guys wouldn’t still be here if they were utter failures.

But what happened on Sunday just can’t keep happening. The 49ers are legit, no doubt. And sometimes, certain teams just have your number and are a horrible matchup. But Dallas never looked right from the opening snap on either side of the ball. It was a team-wide letdown from QB1 all the way down the depth chart, which is just as damning for McCarthy, Dan Quinn, Brian Schottenheimer, and everyone who was charged with getting these guys ready for a big test.

You can blow out all of the NFL bottom-feeders you want, but those wins won’t help you in the playoffs. If anything, they seem to have made this team think they’re something they’re not.

Now it’s on all of them, especially Mike McCarthy and Dak Prescott, to respond to a huge reality check. Some might have thrown out the Arizona loss due to the Diggs injury, missing offensive linemen, and a general “trap game” scenario. But what happened in San Francisco was inexcusable. It was a sign that the Cowboys are farther away from contention than we hoped and that McCarthy and Prescott may not be the guys to help us close the gap.

---

Blogging the Boys

Dak Prescott plays arguably his worst game of his career in loss to 49ers

With pressure at an all-time high for Dak Prescott in Sunday night’s matchup, he failed to deliver for the Cowboys.

Frankly, Prescott looked like a deer in headlights from the opening snap. He missed TE Luke Schoonmaker on a deep pass on the opening possession, and followed it with a pass to Gallup near the boundary that wasn’t even in the field of play.

Statistically, it was one of the worst games of Prescott’s career. He threw for 153 passing yards, one touchdown, and three interceptions in the game. He posted a QBR of 46.4 and had a passer rating of 51.6.

Prescott got significantly outplayed by 49ers QB Brock Purdy, who looked like he belonged in a different tier of quarterbacks.

The Cowboys got outplayed by the 49ers in every aspect of the game. The most alarming aspect was the difference in quarterback play. Prescott looked incapable of leading his offense in the big matchup, something that shouldn’t be evident from an eight-year veteran at the position.

---

NFL league links

Articles

Pro Football Talk

26.1 million viewed Cowboys-49ers

For a blowout, Cowboys-49ers still delivered.

Sunday night’s game, per NBC, generated an audience of 26.1 million viewers. It’s lower than last Sunday’s 27 million for Chiefs-Jets, but that was a much closer game.

This week’s game was a laugher, a disaster. Non-competitive, in all respects. Not as close as 42-10 would suggest.

---

The Athletic (paywall)

Bills should re-examine London approach after sluggish performance against Jaguars

McDermott was left scratching his head about his team’s flatness despite the raucous atmosphere.

“We’ll see whatever comes up down the road in terms of us coming back here,” McDermott said, “but we need to evaluate everything because I didn’t feel like our energy was good enough early in the game. They had better energy than we did.”

The Bills decided to leave for London after Thursday’s practice in Orchard Park, arriving Friday morning in London. Rather than a usual full practice, they opted for a walk-through and other activities to help them recalibrate to the five-hour time change.

Tyler Bass kicked off Buffalo’s “home game” at 9:32 a.m. Eastern time.

Jacksonville jumped to an 11-0 lead, while Buffalo’s first four possessions ended with punts, including a pair of three-and-outs to start.

Buffalo’s defense also sputtered. Ravaged by injuries both before and after kickoff, one of the NFL’s stingiest units allowed 474 yards (fourth worst in the McDermott era) and 55.6 percent on third-down conversions (seventh worst).

Sloppier yet, Buffalo committed 14 penalties, 11 of them accepted for 109 yards (fourth worst).

---