Daily Slop – 7 Aug 24: Commanders-Jets joint practice on Thursday; first preseason game on Saturday

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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Articles

Commanders.com

Commanders sign C/G J.C Hassenauer, waive T Alex Akingbulu, release TE Armani Rogers

The Washington Commanders have signed interior offensive lineman J.C. Hassenauer to the active roster. In corresponding moves, the team has also waived offensive tackle Alex Akingbulu with an injury designation and released tight end Armani Rogers.

Hassenauer, an undrafted free agent from Alabama, has played played in 45 games, all with the Pittsburgh Steelers, with seven starts from 2020-22. He began his NFL career with the Atlanta Falcons before joining the Birmingham Iron in the AAF.

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Washington Post (paywall)

Day 10 takeaways: Joe Gibbs and Darrell Green send fans off with a bang

For first time in 14 seasons, a new name could be added to Washington’s top-15 list of touchdown scorers in franchise history. A recent graphic from Stats Perform showed wide receiver Santana Moss was the last player to break into the club — in 2010.

Terry McLaurin, the club’s active leader with 25 touchdowns, could pass Dick Todd, the two-way fullback who retired in 1948 with 34 career scores.

Washington released its first depth chart. Don’t read too much into it because the team listed 12 starters on both offense and defense, and Coach Dan Quinn joked that the head of public relations helped make it.

But the chart formalized Jayden Daniels as the quarterback, rookie Brandon Coleman as the left tackle and several key position battles, such as outside corner, where Michael Davis and Benjamin St-Juste were listed as starters ahead of Emmanuel Forbes Jr.

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Washington Post (paywall)

Jayden Daniels is starting QB on Commanders’ first unofficial depth chart

Third-round rookie Brandon Coleman is the leading left tackle and, like Daniels, will start in the team’s preseason opener.

Daniels will start Washington’s preseason opener against the New York Jets on Saturday at MetLife Stadium, but Quinn said he hopes to get all four quarterbacks reps.

To be clear, there’s no mystery about who will start Week 1 at the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sept. 8.

The rest of the Commanders’ depth chart offers a clearer view of how Quinn and his staff envision the roster.

Rookie offensive tackle Brandon Coleman, whom the Commanders drafted in the third round out of TCU, is listed as the starter on the left side over Cornelius Lucas. Coleman also will start against the Jets.

“He and Jayden have earned that right to start in this first preseason game,” Quinn said.

The wide receiver corps could have as many as four spots available behind Terry McLaurin and Jahan Dotson. The No. 3 wideout on the depth chart is Olamide Zaccheaus, a sixth-year veteran who has been strong in camp. Dyami Brown, Luke McCaffrey and Jamison Crowder (in no order) round out the top six at the position.

Perhaps the biggest surprise on defense is in the secondary, where 2023 first-round pick Emmanuel Forbes Jr. is listed as a reserve, behind Benjamin St-Juste. The Commanders — as most teams in the NFL do nowadays — will play the majority of their snaps in sub-packages with five defensive backs (nickel). So Mike Sainristil, a second-round rookie, will start as the extra defensive back in those packages, called the “star” position in Quinn’s defense. Michael Davis is the other starting cornerback, but there is still plenty of competition that could shuffle the group again before Week 1.

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The Athletic (paywall)

Commanders rookie QB Jayden Daniels to start preseason opener vs. Jets

The snaps taken and smarts displayed by the 23-year-old dual-threat quarterback throughout the offseason program already impressed the coaching staff.

“Yeah, I love the process. I love how (Daniels) approaches each day, how he handles the good, the bad, all the installs,” offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury said. “He must study it like crazy at night, because every morning when we get here and he walks through (plays) with us, he nails it. You just appreciate the work he’s putting in. He’s paying the cost to try and get where he wants to get. And that’s all you can ask from a young player.”

The impression made by Daniels goes beyond on-field work.

“I had high expectations for him coming in,” Quinn said, “but I would say he’s definitely surpassed even my expectations of the readiness, the command. I knew he was going to be cool, knowing the system, he’s just got that way about him. You do see the other players gravitate toward (him). They recognize how hard he’s worked at it.”

Quinn downplayed the broad depth chart’s importance in terms of the Week 1 forecast — questions along the offensive line remain — but was pleased that members of the 2024 draft class justified prominent placement. Other rookies listed with the first team on the depth chart are third-round left tackle Brandon Coleman and second-round slot cornerback Mike Sainristil.

“If I had a real depth chart right now, there’d probably be 15 starters because I’m not quite certain between this person and this person,” Quinn said. “So that’s why it’s not as big a deal internally. … These things sort themselves out.”

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ESPN

Commanders QB Jayden Daniels ‘earned’ right to start vs. Jets

Quinn said that Mariota has done a good job in camp and that “this was not something to do.”

Commanders offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury said he likes Daniels’ approach and how he has handled the installation of plays.

“He must study it like crazy at night because every morning when we get here and he walks through with us, he nails it,” Kingsbury said. “So you just appreciate the work he’s putting in. He’s paying the cost to try and get where he wants to get, and that’s all you can ask from young player.”

Daniels said Sunday that he’s looking forward to facing a defense ranked in the top five in numerous categories last season. But, he said, he’s also looking to see how he and the offense handle the basics.

“How sharp can we be? How fast can we execute our offense? Limit the pre-snap and post-snap penalties,” he said. “Go out there and try to execute at a high level. It’s my first one ever, so I don’t know what I’m getting myself into, so it’d be a surprise for me, but just go out there and have fun.”

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Commanders.com

Training Camp Notebook

— Olamide Zaccheaus has established himself as one of the key pieces on the receiving corps. He has looked impressive since camp began, both in one-on-one drills and team periods. He was Daniels’ first target during an 11-on-11 session, resulting in a nice gain near the middle of the field. Later in practice, he sprinted for the end zone long after the play was over to show some extra effort.

— Speaking of nice catches, Brian Robinson provided another example of how he can thrive as a pass-catcher by making a one-handed catch from Daniels before turning upfield.

— It’s also time to start giving Brycen Tremayne serious consideration as one of the players deserving of a roster spot. He has routinely come up big on explosive plays downfield, and he had another on a pass from Daniels. Tremayne — 6-foot-4, 212 pounds — is the biggest and tallest receiver currently on the roster. If he does end up making the cut, he could provide the Commanders with a different skill set in a position that is full of smaller, quicker wideouts.

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Pro Football Talk

Zach Ertz: Don’t say Jayden Daniels is going to be good, he’s good now

“A lot of times you talk about rookies like, ‘This guy is going to be good.’ Jayden is good now,” Ertz said.

Ertz said he’s trying to teach Daniels everything he knows as a veteran who has already played in Commanders offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury’s system, but Ertz said the reality is this is already Daniels’ offense, and it’s up to the rest of the offensive players to get on Daniels’ page.

“It’s really what he sees, and I’m trying to learn his perspective,” Ertz said. “I’ve got to be able to play on his timing, play on his speed, and get open.”

That’s awfully good news for a Commanders franchise that desperately needs a franchise quarterback. Ertz thinks they’ve found him.

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Podcasts & videos

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Bram Weinstein talks Jayden Daniels, Jets Joint Practice & Voicemails | Get Loud | Commanders

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Photos

Commanders.com

PHOTOS | Commanders begin Week 3 of camp

The Commanders were back on the practice field at the OrthoVirginia Training Center. Take a look at the top photos from Monday.

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NFC East links

Big Blue View

‘Things I think’: Promising two days of work for Giants vs. Detroit Lions

Tuesday’s second day of joint practices against the Detroit Lions was not nearly as successful for the New York Giants as Monday’s practice was.

The secondary had another communication issue that led to a long Detroit touchdown pass. The Lions’ top-notch offensive line clearly had the better of it at the line of scrimmage. The Giants’ offensive line was a bit leakier today than on Monday, and there weren’t as many big completions.

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ESPN

NFL training camp 2024 live updates: Latest on roster battles

NFC EAST

Dallas Cowboys

There’s not a Cowboy who knows Dak Prescott better than Ezekiel Elliott. They were drafted together in 2016 and quickly became the best of friends.

Elliott was asked how he thinks Prescott would handle going into the season without an extension beyond 2024.

“I think a guy like Dak, who’s been through so much adversity in his life, every time [he has] stepped up to the plate and answered the call,” Elliott said. “I don’t think it will affect him at all. He’s such a strong person mentally. … Honestly it might bring the best out of him, which I know Dak is going to give us his best anyway, but you get what I’m saying.” — Todd Archer

(Last update: Aug. 6)

New York Giants

It’s hard to be at a Giants practice and not notice Malik Nabers. And that has nothing to do with him throwing haymakers, which also happened Tuesday. The rookie wide receiver is dominating, even during the past two days against the Detroit Lions. In total, Nabers was targeted 18 times in live drills (11-on-11 vs. 7-on-7) over the two practices. He caught 17 of those, including another long pass down the left sideline when he jumped over the defender for a touchdown. It’s not a surprise to the Giants. “What he’s showed all camp,” coach Brian Daboll said of what he learned from Nabers this week. “Competitive. Knows what to do. Been playing at a high level in practice. [We’ll] see if that translates to the games. I have a lot of confidence in Malik.” — Jordan Raanan

(Last update: Aug. 6)

Philadelphia Eagles

Quarterback Jalen Hurts has not thrown an interception through nine training camp practices. That’s particularly impressive when you consider he is still in the process of learning a new system under offensive coordinator Kellen Moore. “He’s been phenomenal,” Moore said. “He’s done an awesome job continuing to evolve and build this thing as we go. I think the communication has been critical. It’s been awesome.” Hurts will push the ball downfield but the quick game has been a featured element of this offense so far, with Hurts distributing to his bevy of playmakers. His connection with A.J. Brown was on display Tuesday, with Hurts hitting him in stride on multiple slant patterns. — Tim McManus

(Last update: Aug. 6)

Washington Commanders

Jayden Daniels has naturally been the big focus of Washington’s rookie class, but two others are listed as starters on the Commanders’ initial — and unofficial — depth chart. Second-round corner Mike Sainristil and third-round tackle Brandon Coleman are listed as starters. Coleman has been working as the No. 1 left tackle, though he did not work during 11-11 drills on Tuesday for unspecified reasons. “He’s a tremendous athlete,” offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury said. “We like his progress.” The Commanders’ line is in a bit of flux. Right guard Sam Cosmi hasn’t practiced since Friday because of an illness, and right tackle Andrew Wylie remains sidelined with what he simply says is “tightness.” Meanwhile, on defense, Sainristil has impressed the coaches. “He doesn’t walk around like a rookie,” defensive coordinator Joe Whitt Jr. said. “He asks good questions, has a good presence and maturity.” — John Keim

(Last update: Aug. 6)

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Pro Football Talk

Report: Patriots remove themselves from trade talks for Brandon Aiyuk

The Patriots are out of the running for Brandon Aiyuk, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports.

The team had the framework of a deal in place with the 49ers for the star receiver pending working out a long-term contract agreement with Aiyuk. But Matt Maiocco of NBC Sports Bay Area said Aiyuk did not show interest in going to New England.

The Browns also have the framework of a deal in place with the 49ers, and the Steelers resumed talks with San Francisco on Tuesday to try to work out trade terms.

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