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
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Sports Illustrated
Commanders Training Camp Takeaways: Jayden Daniels Impresses in Every Way
The No. 2 pick in the NFL draft is proving day to day he was ready for the NFL. Plus, how the running backs and offensive line are aiding his development.
Quinn’s fingerprints are all over the team’s practices, with competition incorporated into everything, even bag agility drills (those are something to see). And what’s really powered that is the buy-in he’s gotten from the veterans. Jonathan Allen, who became a bit of a malcontent (understandably) the past couple of years, has been a torchbearer for Quinn’s program. Cosmi, Robinson, Daron Payne and Terry McLaurin (and of course Bobby Wagner) have been right there with him. And on the other side of the coin, the entire rookie class has fought for jobs. Second-rounder Mike Sainristil has shown inside-outside versatility as a corner, has pushed to play some offense and looks like he’ll be a team captain early in his career. Third-rounder Brandon Coleman is trending toward starting at tackle. Fifth-rounder Dominique Hampton is adjusting nicely to linebacker, and undrafted free agent Tyler Owens, a long, rangy safety, looks like he’ll make the team, play on special teams, and have a future on defense. Put it all together, and it’s made for a good, (I’ll use this word again) competitive camp.
The defensive acquisition that’s stood out is, for sure, Frankie Luvu. He’s not Micah Parsons, but Quinn signed him with the idea that he could be a movable piece in the front seven the way Parsons was for him in Dallas, and Luvu looks capable as a player who’s quick, explosive, and clearly at his best moving toward the line of scrimmage. Jeremy Chinn is another addition that gives Quinn some flexibility in how he lines guys up, and moves them around on that side of the ball.
[I]t’s still Year 1, and there’s a lot of work to do on the roster. The Commanders feel really good about where they’re at in the middle of the field. They know they’ve got a little further to go on the perimeter. The receiver spot is good, but at offensive tackle, defensive end and corner there remain questions that’ll probably take another offseason or two to solve. Until then, Quinn and new GM Adam Peters are trying to get the most out of camp competitions at those spots between the guys on hand.
Washington Post (paywall)
The Commanders have a problem — regardless of who is doing the kicking
Washington did not gain much clarity regarding its issues at kicker in Saturday’s preseason loss at Miami.
[The Commanders] have not made any visible progress on fixing their kicking issues since early June, when they released Brandon McManus after he was accused of sexual assault in a lawsuit — and that was obvious during Riley Patterson’s poor performance in Saturday night’s 13-6 preseason loss at the Miami Dolphins.
While it long has been probable that the Commanders will find their Week 1 kicker after final roster cuts Aug. 27, there’s no guarantee that player will be significantly better than the others they have brought in, including Patterson, Lucas Havrisik and Ramiz Ahmed.
In the past couple of years, the NFL’s competitive balance has made having a reliable kicker even more important. Since 2022, nearly 20 percent of games have been decided with points in the final minute of regulation or overtime, according to the NFL, and 55.8 percent of games have been decided by one score.
Patterson left the locker room Saturday night before reporters were allowed to enter.
The latest available kicker is Tanner Brown, who was waived by the Los Angeles Rams on Tuesday. But he has never attempted a field goal in an NFL game and offers the same uncertainty as Ahmed and others did.
Looking back, the Commanders missed out on Jake Bates. They met with the United Football League standout after cutting McManus but faced competition to sign him. The Detroit Lions won out by giving him a two-year, $1.98 million contract, and Bates has rewarded them.
But Bates isn’t in a competition. Detroit’s other kicker, Michael Badgley, is out for the season with a torn hamstring. So if the Commanders are going to scoop up another player off waivers, they have work to do.
Riggo’s Rag
Mike Sainriistil looks like an integral piece of Commanders’ defensive puzzle
While Benjamin St-Juste and Emmanuel Forbes Jr. have both given up touchdowns during the preseason, the second-round pick looks assured in coverage and is making his tackles count.
Sainristil doesn’t look overawed by the step-up in quality from college to the pros. It’s been the making of him.
Nobody should be getting too carried away. Cornerbacks take longer to adjust with finer margins than most position groups. One only has to look at Forbes’ rookie campaign which resembled an on-field car crash to see that. Sainristil already looks to have more about him – a player with immense poise, high football intelligence, and the ability to come up with the goods in big moments.
There are still grave concerns about Washington’s outside cornerback options. St-Juste, Forbes, and Michael Davis have all struggled on occasions this offseason. Sainristil’s been the one constant – something that’s increased confidence in his potential to become a legitimate star at the nickel position under Quinn and Whitt, two outstanding developers of talent within their secondary.
If Sainristil keeps up his performance levels up to now, the Commanders have a tremendous player on their hands. If he improves further with more experience, he’ll quickly become a cornerstone piece this once-proud franchise can build around en route to potential playoff contention once again.
Podcasts & videos
On video. Analyzing the week 2 preseason game. Jayden Daniels’ night; a nice change in the play action game; how his legs helped on a Brian Robinson run. McCaffrey’s night: two catches, gunner work; Tyler Owens keeps doing things. @ESPNRichmond https://t.co/DSAzeUSQEz
— John Keim (@john_keim) August 18, 2024
Tackled the Commanders’ low-scoring loss at the Dolphins with @mikesmeltz:
* Jayden Daniels shines (and lands in “Double secret probation”)
* WR2 battle
* Help wanted
* Roster talk
* Returners help explain vibes change with the coaching staffhttps://t.co/5jLeclCeWF— Ben Standig (@BenStandig) August 18, 2024
‘The Future for Jahan/Dolphins Preview/Gabby Carle Joins the Show!’ by The Bram Weinstein Show https://t.co/sSl95zJEr5
— Bram Weinstein (@RealBramW) August 17, 2024
Washington Commanders Jayden Daniels Solid Again in Preseason | vs. Dolphins Recap | Jamin Davis FF
NFC East links
Pro Football Talk
Report: Eagles RG Mekhi Becton’s injury is not serious
Eagles offensive guard Mekhi Becton left practice early with an apparent right leg injury.
But Jeff McLane of the Philadelphia Inquirer reports that Becton’s injury is nothing serious.
Becton, a first-round pick of the Jets in 2020, has been unable to remain healthy in his career. He has played only 31 of a possible 67 games in his four seasons.
The Eagles moved Becton from tackle to guard, and he is in line to start at right guard.
Tyler Steen, who was competing with Becton for the job, has an ankle injury that forced him out of the second preseason game.
The Athletic (paywall)
Giants QB Daniel Jones shaking off rust or was disaster vs. Texans a sign of what’s to come?
NFL preseason results aren’t predictive. One only needs to recall the starting New York Giants offense looking like a well-oiled machine on its lone drive last preseason for evidence of that reality.
Still, it may have settled some of the angst in a restless fan base if quarterback Daniel Jones looked sharp in his first action since tearing the ACL in his right knee last November. Instead, Jones’ disastrous start in Saturday’s 28-10 loss to the Texans likely had some fans taking a look at the 2025 draft’s quarterback class.
[E]ven if it was unsettling that the start of Saturday’s game was reminiscent of the lowest points of Jones’ five seasons, it had to be considered that he was knocking off rust after recovering from a major injury.
The preseason isn’t the time to get conservative, so coach Brian Daboll continued to call for deep passes after the shaky start. On the next drive, Jones delivered a 44-yard strike to wide receiver Darius Slayton against backup corner Mike Ford to set up a touchdown.
Perhaps Jones was thrown off by something he hadn’t experienced much in his first five seasons: quality pass protection. All of the disclaimers are warranted. The Texans didn’t play their top three edge rushers; there aren’t any exotic blitz packages in the preseason, etc. But it still was encouraging to see competent play from Jones’ protectors.
Starting left guard Jon Runyan missed the game due to a shoulder injury suffered Monday that isn’t believed to be serious. Aaron Stinnie stepped in at left guard with Andrew Thomas at left tackle, John Michael Schmitz at center, Greg Van Roten at right guard and Jermaine Eluemunor at right tackle. After two series, Schmitz, who returned to action this week after missing eight practices with a shoulder injury, was replaced by Austin Schlottmann.
It wasn’t a perfect showing, as running back Devin Singletary tallied just 20 yards on 10 carries. But one of those was an easy 1-yard touchdown when the left side of the line cleared a big hole. Most importantly, the line looked like a functional unit after so many seasons of being a dysfunctional mess.
Blogging the Boys
Cowboys at Raiders day after thoughts: The rookie offensive line renaissance is here
The rookie offensive line renaissance is here for the Dallas Cowboys.
On paper it sounded great to consider Tyler Guyton and Cooper Beebe both starting this season, but in our heart of hearts we always thought it was an ambitious endeavor to say the least.
It is extraordinarily difficult for rookie offensive linemen to have success in the NFL and that idea has been warped for all of us because our team is so good at doing it. This is not normal.
The latest example of this phenomenon is fresh in our minds as Tyler Smith started at left tackle two years ago as a rookie, abruptly so given the last minute injury to Tyron Smith, and did it with incredible ease. Surely Tyler Guyton could too, right? Oh, and Cooper Beebe!
Amazingly Guyton has looked the part to this point in camp and the exhibitions, and with the injury to Chuma Edoga, his position as the starting left tackle is all but certain even if Myles Garrett awaits on the other side of the line of scrimmage in three weeks time. But things seemed to be taking a little bit longer for Cooper Beebe to get into the fold and while that is not shocking given the enormity of playing the center position, most fans were still holding out hope that he would take a leap sooner rather than later.
NFL league links
Articles
Washington Post (paywall)
Why some NFL players are wearing Guardian Caps in preseason games
Six NFL players, including five members of the Colts, wore extra protection over their helmets during the opening weekend.
“I just feel like going through practice … it didn’t feel like it was inhibiting me or anything like that. … You just gain more protection and different things from wearing it,” Thomas said by phone last week. “So I just figured, ‘Why not?’”
The NFL said it applauds the players’ decision and would welcome anyone who opts to wear Guardian Caps during the regular season.
The NFL said in April that players’ helmet options for this season include five newly developed models that outperformed all previous helmets in lab testing that simulated on-field collisions. The league said it would waive the requirement to wear Guardian Caps during practices for players who chose one of six specified new helmet models. According to Miller, more than 200 players have switched to high-performing helmet models.
“Usually it takes a year or two for players to move from what they’re in to something that’s newly introduced. So seeing … well more than 200 players try the Guardian Cap-optional helmets means that people are aware of new technologies and want to engage with them.”
Miller said the league informed players simultaneously about the possibility of wearing Guardian Caps in games and the new, high-performing helmet models. The best helmets now give players the protection they would receive from wearing both a Guardian Cap and a traditional helmet, Miller said, without the additional weight from a cap.
“That’s a really encouraging development because it’s not easy to try something new,” Miller said. “The players involved deserve a great deal of credit. And the equipment managers deserve a great deal of credit for being open to trying something new and different. So if you’re having … well more than 200 players wearing brand new helmets and the half dozen that wore the Guardian Caps, players are very much prioritizing safety. And that is a really positive development for them and for the league.”
The NFL estimates that the force of an impact is reduced by about 20 percent if both players involved in a collision are wearing Guardian Caps. According to the league’s injury data, players at the position groups required to wear Guardian Caps experienced an approximately 50 percent decrease in the rate of concussions during preseason practices over the previous two years.
Deadspin
Raiders tab Gardner Minshew as starting QB
Las Vegas Raiders quarterback Gardner Minshew will be under center to start the team’s season opener against the host Los Angeles Chargers on Sept. 8, head coach Antonio Pierce announced Sunday.
Minshew got the nod over Aidan O’Connell, who started 10 games during his rookie season in 2023.
Pierce credited Minshew’s experience — among other things — as the reason that he was named the starting quarterback for the start of the 2024 season.
Discussion topics
Biggest detriment to the team – Ron Rivera or Bruce Allen?
— Mark Tyler(Hogs Haven) (@Tiller56) August 18, 2024