Daily Slop – 21 Feb 25 – Is Brian Robinson Jr.’s role with the Commanders in jeopardy this offseason?

A collection of articles, podcasts & tweets from around the web to keep you in touch with the Commanders

Commanders links

Articles

Commanders.com

2025 Combine breakdown | Defense

Washington’s positions of need: CB, EDGE

The Commanders gave up part of their draft capital to acquire Marshon Lattimore last season, and he will be part of their plans for the position for the foreseeable future. Mike Sainristil showed growth as an outside corner as a rookie and should be more involved in Year 2. However, it’s clear that the defense still needs more help at that spot, regardless of whether the team decides to bring back Benjamin St-Juste. Both the draft and free agency will be light on high-end talent, but it’s possible the Commanders could find depth by adding one or two players.

Dorance Armstrong had a strong season but only signed a one-year deal with Washington last offseason. Similarly to cornerback, though, the Commanders could do with more help at the position regardless of whether Armstrong re-signs with them. There will be more options in the draft, and many analysts are predicting that the Commanders will use their first-round pick to bolster their pass rush.

One player to watch: James Pearce Jr., EDGE, Tennessee

Pearce certainly has the talent to be an effective NFL pass-rusher. He’s explosive and powerful, which led to him recording 17 sacks in his final two seasons with the Volunteers. He’ll need to bulk up a little bit to be a bigger presence in the run game, but his quickness and ability to get around blockers should help him become an immediate contributor to a team’s pass rush.

---

Bullock’s Film Room (subscription)

Commanders Free Agent Fits: Cornerback

Taking a look at a couple of cornerbacks that the Washington Commanders could potentially target in free agency

High Profile: Charvarius Ward, 28

Ward is probably the name I see most Commanders fans talking about. He has an obvious connection to the Commanders in that general manager Adam Peters was in San Francisco when the 49ers signed Ward to a three-year, $42 million contract back in 2022. The former undrafted free agent had a breakout year in 2023 with a career high 23 pass break ups and five interceptions. Unfortunately, Ward had somewhat of a down year in 2024 but his season was heavily disrupted by the death of his daughter.

At 29 years old, Ward isn’t the youngest profile but he does have a ton of experience in the league and the Commanders have lacked that in the secondary for a while. In terms of what he can bring to the field, Ward offers the ability to line up in press coverage and be physical with receivers at the line of scrimmage.

Good Value: Byron Murphy, 27

While Ward will be 29 by the start of the 2025 season. Murphy only just turned 27 last month. That means there should be much more longevity to signing someone like Murphy compared to Ward. Murphy’s fit with the Commanders would be somewhat of a projection. The Vikings did play some man coverage but typically played more zone and match concepts while disguising a lot of their looks. But that doesn’t mean Murphy isn’t a fit.

He does have some of the traits the Commanders are looking for. He finished joint third in the NFL for interceptions in 2024, with six takeaways. He was also top 10 for passes broken up, showing he has ball skills to get his hands on the ball. The Commanders preach turnovers with Dan Quinn and Joe Whitt Jr. constantly using phrases like “the ball is life”, so that ability to get his hands on the ball will naturally grab their attention.

---

Riggo’s Rag

5 Commanders players on the hot seat entering pivotal 2025 offseason

The heat is on…

Brian Robinson Jr. – Commanders RB

Brian Robinson Jr. started the season impressively. The running back looked physical and developed a knack for finding the end zone. Unfortunately for the player, things regressed significantly at the worst possible time.

Robinson dealt with some nagging injuries that impacted his performance levels. The Washington Commanders’ offensive line also suffered health issues and the ground game suffered as a result. While the former third-round pick is capable in between the tackles, he lacks that game-changing explosiveness typically associated with the league’s best.

There’s a growing sense that Robinson’s status could be in jeopardy. This won’t be via release, but rather being demoted from the No. 1 spot in favor of a better option.

This is an exceptionally deep draft class for running backs. Adam Peters will recognize this during his comprehensive assessments. If he’s got the luxury to add another weapon to the backfield alongside Jayden Daniels — perhaps even earlier than most fans anticipate — he won’t think twice.

Robinson will take on the challenge. He’s overcome plenty of adversity since entering the league, so this is just another one to tackle with his customary determination. But with the Alabama product heading into the final year of his rookie contract, the margin goes from slim to non-existent if the Commanders choose a running back via the draft.

---

Sports Illustrated

Commanders’ star rookie QB Jayden Daniels ranked inside PFF’s top 20 players of 2024

The success that the Commanders found in 2024 can’t be overlooked and the start of that happened when John Harris became the owner of the team just a couple of seasons ago. Harris immediately got to work in his new role and, this past offseason, made great hires in the front office and the coaching staff in Adam Peters, Dan Quinn, and Kliff Kingsbury.

Daniels’ 2024 performance was electrifying as he now rivals Lamar Jackson for the best dual-threat quarterback in the league, and it was good enough to earn him the 20th spot in Pro Football Focus’ top 101 NFL players from the 2024 season.

---

Podcasts & videos

---

---

NFC East links

Bleeding Green Nation

Report: Cam Jurgens underwent procedure for his back injury

Jurgens’ back injury is something that he was playing through in the playoffs. It caused him to miss a start in the NFC Championship Game against the Washington Commanders. Jurgens was kept active as an emergency backup to Landon Dickerson in that game, however, and he ended up having to play with Dickerson unable to return after halftime. Kudos to Jurgens for toughing it out and then being able to play in the Eagles’ Super Bowl LIX win as well.

Taking over for Jason Kelce, Jurgens was named to the Pro Bowl in his first season as the Eagles’ full-time starting center. He was ranked 10th out of 28 centers graded by Pro Football Focus in 2024 (minimum 50% of snaps played).

2025 currently marks the last year of Jurgens’ rookie contract. The Eagles will likely be interested in signing him to a long-term extension this offseason

---

Blogging the Boys

Dallas Cowboys guard Zack Martin will reportedly retire from NFL

After much speculation, Tom Pelissero announced today that Zack Martin is officially going to be retiring from the NFL.

With Martin officially retired, the Cowboys will be searching for a new starting right guard, but more importantly a leader in the locker room in Brian Schottenheimer’s first year as head coach. Martin and DeMarcus Lawrence, who also has a questionable future with the team, were the longest-tenured members of the club.

Over the Cap

Zack Martin Set to Retire

With Martin informing the team of his retirement plans, the Cowboys will now release Martin on March 12th or 13th with the Post June 1 Designation. This will keep Martin’s salary cap charge, $10.655 million, on the team’s salary cap until June 2nd. Once processed, the Cowboys will take on a $9.4 million dead money cap charge in 2025, creating $1.255 million in cap savings. Additionally, the team will take on a $17.06 million dead money cap charge in 2026.

---

Big Blue View

Daniel Jeremiah says Cam Ward ‘more equipped’ to QB New York Giants

NFL draft analysts have generally looked down on this year’s quarterback class, saying the top guys are not as good as the ones who were available in the draft a year ago. NFL Network draft insider Daniel Jeremiah put his perspective on that Thursday during a pre-Combine Zoom call with media.

Jeremiah has Cam Ward of Miami as his top quarterback, and said he had Ward “with the same grade as Bo Nix, so that would put him behind the top four for me, so he would be in the fifth range.”

Jeremiah said Shedeur Sanders of Colorado would have been QB7 on his board a season ago.

Jeremiah said that given a choice between the two quarterbacks he would prefer to “chase the up side” provided by Ward. He added that “fit” will be important in how teams evaluate the two quarterbacks.

“I think Shedeur is — when you look at the things he does well, the accuracy, anticipation, toughness, he just keeps getting up after taking a beating,” Jeremiah said.

“But some of the other things that Cam has, [Sanders] doesn’t have, which is just a little bit more twitch in his body. He [Ward] has a more live arm.”

“I think he’s more equipped to play in that division, in that stadium, in that environment that you’re going to get with the weather.”

---

NFL league links

Articles

The Athletic (paywall)

Which NFL Draft 2025 prospects will show off at the combine? Revisiting Bruce Feldman’s Freaks List

Based on a lot of the intel I’ve gathered during the past year, including plenty I’ve heard in the past month, here are the 40 players The Athletic is most intrigued to see perform in Indianapolis. As you will notice, I expect many defensive players to shine.

---

Pro Football Talk

NFL, other leagues support bill regarding drones near stadiums

“Local law enforcement already protects the perimeter of these events,” Cotton told Thompson. “We already expect them to stop a dump truck that would cause harm, so we need to also give them the tools to protect the airspace from weapons and biological threats.”

The NFL supports the bill, as does the MLB, the NCAA, and NASCAR.

During the 2023 season, the NFL had more than 2,800 drone incursions into restricted airspace around stadiums during games. The FAA provides a bubble of 3,000 feet and three nautical miles, starting an hour before the game begins and ending an hour after it concludes.

“Many drones around large athletic events are hobbyists or enthusiasts or practical jokers,” Cotton told Thompson. “But we can’t take the risk of fan lives because some of these drones can be equipped to carry explosives or most chillingly can be equipped with some kind of biological weapon.”

Again, it’s a no-brainer, and it’s hard to imagine the bill not making its way through both houses of Congress and being signed into law.

---

Pro Football Talk

Scouting Combine’s future in Indianapolis remains tenuous

The Scouting Combine has been an Indianapolis institution for decades. And for good reason. Indy is the perfect host for the event.

But it’s not the most profitable. And some within the league’s power structure continue to agitate to take the Combine on the road.

The talk has lingered for years. But coaches, General Managers, scouts, players, and agents prefer the fact that it’s convenient, it’s efficient, and for the most part it’s not overwhelmed by bells and whistles that can get in the way of the work to be done.

As explained by Ben Fischer of Sports Business Journal, other cities remain interested in hosting the event. And if/when the league decides that the late-February offseason tentpole could become a significant profit center if it’s moved, the owners wouldn’t hesitate to pull up the stakes.

---

Discussion topics

Pro Football Focus

PFF 101: The top 101 players from the 2024 NFL season

66. WR Terry McLaurin, Washington Commanders

McLaurin clearly liked Jayden Daniels throwing him the football, as he racked up over 1,300 yards and 16 touchdowns, including the postseason. His 84.8 receiving grade is his best since 2019 and places him 14th among qualified wide receivers. McLaurin was also one of just five qualified wide receivers who finished with a perfect 99.9 deep receiving grade.

41. LB Bobby Wagner, Washington Commanders

The ageless wonder, Wagner makes the PFF 101 for the eighth time in his career and served as the veteran leader for a Commanders team that made a Cinderella run to the NFC Championship Game.

The 34-year-old’s 88.3 PFF grade during his first year in Washington was third among all linebackers in the NFL as he led all linebackers in pass-rush grade (90.9) while placing second in run-defense grade (91.2). Wagner is one of the 10 greatest linebackers who’s ever played the game and is once again a free agent this offseason.

20. QB Jayden Daniels, Washington Commanders

Leading the Commanders to the NFC Championship Game, Daniels delivered a stellar rookie season, earning a 90.6 overall grade — fifth among qualified quarterbacks and placing him among the best rookie passers of the PFF era. He led the NFL with a 1.5% turnover-worthy play rate and was the most elusive quarterback in the league, forcing 52 missed tackles as a runner. While Washington must add more support around him to compete for a championship, Daniels was everything they could have hoped for in his debut season.

---

All aTwitter

---