Daily Slop – 7 July 25 – ESPN predicts a falloff in Terry McLaurin’s receiving production in ‘25

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

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Riggo’s Rag

Brian Robinson Jr. set for payday Commanders likely won’t match

Brian Robinson Jr. is getting another chance to lead the charge next season. The talented running back started impressively before tailing off last time around. Some fans were hoping for Peters to address the backfield with more urgency, but the Commanders believe those who were around last season will improve once the offensive line gets stronger.

That represents a huge confidence boost for Robinson, especially considering he’s yet to eclipse 800 rushing yards in any of his three seasons so far. But make no mistake, the pressure is on to make significant strides in the final year of his rookie deal.

Robinson is on the hunt for a new contract next spring. The only way to get that is by cementing his status as an integral part of the team’s plans. Paying running backs is becoming a trend again after it was phased out once upon a time, but the former third-round pick out of Alabama’s outlook could legitimately go either way right now.

According to Spotrac, Robinson is projected to command an annual salary of $8.26 million on a four-year, $33.05 million deal. This would rank No. 13 among all NFL running backs. But looking at the way Peters has gone about his business since becoming general manager, there’s absolutely no chance he’ll be paying that sort of money.

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ESPN

Eleven players who will score fewer TDs in 2025

Terry McLaurin, WR, Washington Commanders

2024 TDs: 13

2025 Projected TDs: 7

McLaurin hauled in 13 TDs (second most among WRs) in 2024 after totaling 24 during his first five seasons. He handled 14 end zone targets (tied for eighth in the league) and caught a league-high 10 of them, which is impressive but also unsustainable. McLaurin has finished exactly 19th at the position in targets three seasons in a row and has never finished higher than 15th in catches. He’ll need more volume to repeat his big TD total.

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Sports Illustrated

How Commanders’ continuity could spark a breakout 2025 season

The Washington Commanders kept their coaching staff intact, setting the stage for a potential breakout season built on rare NFL continuity.

Amazingly, the Commanders were able to retain all of their coaches, including offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury who led an offense run by a rookie quarterback to being the fifth-highest scoring unit in the league in 2024.

Washington even added to its staff, bringing in assistant special teams coordinator Brian Schneider who comes over from the San Francisco 49ers’ organization.

Everyone talks about the importance of Kingsbury’s return in regards to quarterback Jayden Daniels, as they should. But Daniels isn’t the only player who benefits from the staff’s return, and some of those benefits have been seen even before we reach training camp.

Second-year receiver Luke McCaffrey, for example, entered his first NFL offseason with a clear plan and intent on where to work and improve his game. Coming back for OTAs and mandatory minicamp to the same staff and scheme, McCaffrey was able to show off that work, playing faster in year two because of his improved ability and comfort level within the program.

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Commanders Wire

3 ex-Washington stars among the best players ever not to win a Super Bowl

CBS Sports recently ranked its list of the top 30 players never to win a Super Bowl. This list included current players, quarterbacks Josh Allen (Bills) and Lamar Jackson (Ravens). The rest of the list featured multiple Hall of Famers and some soon-to-be enshrined in Canton, Ohio. Three former Washington players made this list, with one coming in at No. 3. Please note that the players ranked are from the Super Bowl era, which began in 1967.

No. 22: CB Champ Bailey

Best chance: One of the best cornerbacks of his era, Bailey didn’t play in a Super Bowl until his final season. Unfortunately for Bailey, his Broncos team didn’t stand a chance against the Seahawks, who recorded one of the most lopsided wins in Super Bowl history.

No. 15: RB Adrian Peterson

Best chance: Peterson’s 122 yards and three touchdowns in 2009 NFC title game wasn’t enough to lift the Vikings past the Saints, who edged Minnesota in one of the greatest championship games in history. A crucial interception by Brett Favre late in regulation prevented the Vikings from attempting a game-winning field goal. The Saints took advantage in overtime, winning the game and capturing the franchise’s only Super Bowl title two weeks later.

No. 3: DE Bruce Smith

Best chance: Smith’s safety in Super Bowl XXV gave Buffalo a 12-3 early lead over the Giants. But the Bills would score only one more time and ended up on the short end of closest Super Bowl ever. Down 20-19 with eight seconds left, Smith and his teammates locked arms on the sideline as Scott Norwood’s 47-yard field goal attempt sailed wide right.

The NFL’s all-time leader with 200 sacks, Smith and the Bills would play in the next three Super Bowls while becoming the only team to play in the big game four straight years. But they were defeated each time by a combined score of 119-54.

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Podcasts & videos

NFC East Preview: Can DEEPER, improved Commanders Dethrone Eagles?

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ESPN

Dyami Brown excited to contribute to Jaguars elite WR group

“That’s just staying focused and locked in,” Brown said. “At the end of the day, all I can do is go study where I need to study and keep performing, stay on top of the little details, the fundamental things. Can’t get tired of those things, and at the end of the day, I just want to be the player that I can be.”

For the first four years of his career, Brown was an underachiever. The Commanders drafted him in the third round in 2021 after he caught 106 passes for 2,133 yards and 20 touchdowns in his final two seasons at North Carolina with quarterback Sam Howell. Yet, Brown caught only 29 passes in 47 games in his first three seasons with the Commanders and never emerged as the complement to Terry McLaurin, who posted 1,000 yards receiving each season.

It wasn’t until the final six weeks of 2024 that Brown started to come on, catching 16 passes for 159 yards to finish with career highs in catches (30) and receiving yards (308). He had the same number of catches as McLaurin (14) and outgained him by two yards (229 to 227) in Washington’s three playoff games, which included five catches for 89 yards and a touchdown in the Commanders’ 23-20 upset of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Coen was on the Bucs’ sideline as their offensive coordinator and he thought Brown would be a good fit for what he wanted to do in Jacksonville.

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All aTwitter

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