Baltimore Sports Today

Baltimore Sports News Continuously Updated

Daily Slop – 7 Jun 24: One-on-one with Washington Commanders position coaches

by


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

The Athletic (paywall)

Veteran LB Bobby Wagner teaching Commanders winning ways through lessons learned

Looking back at those initial steps in Wagner’s now-projected Hall of Fame career, what stands out most to Schneider is that the player he selected 47th overall out of Utah State was always a boss.

“I don’t remember him not being a leader,” the longtime executive said.

The middle linebacker position lends itself to taking control by verbally relaying every defensive play to teammates. Ken Norton Jr., Wagner’s position coach in Seattle and a Super Bowl-winning linebacker, frequently reminded his young apprentice about the leadership requirement. Conversations with linebacker legends Ray Lewis and Mike Singletary hammered home the point.

The Commanders signed the still-productive, yet aged Wagner — he turns 34 on June 27 — this offseason. Coming off a 4-13 season and seven years removed from its last campaign with a winning record, Washington kicked off a full-blown organizational reset. Among its decisions was signing the 10-time All-Pro to help establish a winning approach by sharing the lessons learned throughout his career.

“This is a rare competitor,” Washington coach Dan Quinn said.

Commanders.com

Jamin Davis having ‘a lot of fun’ working off the edge

Linebacker Jamin Davis, Washington’s first-round pick in 2021, is one of the many players trying something new in practice. His new defensive coaches are trying him out as a stand-up pass-rusher in certain situations, and he loves it.

“I’m having a lot of fun with that so far,” Davis told reporters June 5.

Davis’ place in Washington’s defense has been a quandary the team has struggled to solve since he first joined the team out of Kentucky. He started out as a middle linebacker before moving to the outside, which seemed to be more of a fit for his skill set. He was on pace to have a career year, but a shoulder injury forced him to miss the final four games of the season.

Now, with a new coaching staff and philosophy in place, Davis is making another change — one that his coaches believe will give him the best chance to succeed.

Niners Nation

Report: The 49ers were poised to draft this tight end in the 2nd round over Renardo Green

But…he was off the board, and Renardo Green was “Plan B.”

According to Eric Branch of The San Francisco Chronicle, the Niners had their eye on a tight end in the second round, and not Renardo Green:

“The lack of production behind Kittle, 30, is why the 49ers closely studied the position in this year’s draft class and likely would have used their second-round pick, No. 64 overall, on Kansas State tight end Ben Sinnott if he had been available.”

Sinnott ended up going to Adam Peters’ new destination, the Washington Commanders— which is fitting. Sinnott would have undoubtedly allowed the 49ers to run more 12 personnel (one running back, two tight ends/wide receivers), be an upgrade over the backup tight ends, and could have eventually taken over for Kyle Juszczyk at fullback once his contract expires in 2025. You could see the vision with drafting Sinnott.

Green isn’t the worst consolation, as his experience and competitiveness should make him a valuable asset to the secondary. Still, it’s always fascinating to hear these post-draft reports come out to see who the 49ers were considering and what positions they had their eyes on.

This report comes one day after the signing of former Commanders tight end Logan Thomas—presumably the player Sinnott replaced in Washington. The addition of Thomas, paired with the interest in Sinnott, is the team telling us they’re not expecting much from Cameron Latu in Year 2.

Bullock’s Film Room (subscription)

Notes on an OL practice drill from Commanders OTAs

Breaking down a quick practice drill from the Commanders OTA session on Wednesday

The Commanders had their final voluntary OTA session of the offseason on Wednesday in front of the media. The team never allows the media to film too much and give away too many secrets, but there’s always a few clips that do the rounds on twitter. One of those clips from this practice came from Scott Abraham of ABC 7 News.

Now this is just a routine drill for the offensive lineman, but I had a few thoughts I wanted to share. First off, the drill itself and why they’re doing it. The drill sees the offensive lineman line up in their regular stance with a coach holding a bag directly in front of them, a second coach holding two target gloves slightly outside and a third coach with two more target gloves even further outside. When the drill starts, the lineman shuffles out to the second coach and punches the target gloves. He then slides back inside to punch the bag before shuffling all the way outside to punch the outside target gloves. After punching the two target gloves on the outside, the lineman shuffles back inside to land one final punch on the bag before ending the drill.

This is a good drill because it focuses on multiple things at the same time. The first is the ability to redirect feet. The lineman has to be able to shuffle outside, back inside, outside again and then back inside again. This replicates what it can be like in pass protection, where you initially set outside before having to redirect inside as part of a stunt and perhaps even have to redirect once more back outside. From that regard, you’re looking to see the lineman move smoothly, keeping their center of gravity over their feet and changing direction quickly and efficiently.

Keeping their center of gravity over their feet is key and the added challenge here is they have to punch bags while moving. Ideally you want to see the lineman keep their backs straight so they bend at the knee rather than the waist when they punch. This prevents them from lunging when they punch and losing their balance.

The final part of the drill is the punches. The first coach has a normal bag, but the two other coaches have target gloves like boxing trainers would have. This is a small but important detail. You want the offensive lineman to be able to have individual hand usage. What this means is that you want the lineman to be able to separate their hands and be able to punch with each one individually rather than relying on a two-handed punch. Two-handed punches can be powerful, but they’re also quite dangerous. They tend to force the lineman to lunge at a defender, which can lead to loss of balance and make it easy for a defender to beat them if the punch doesn’t land directly. It also makes it easier for the defender to knock down both hands with one club or swipe move, leaving the lineman with no back up option, so a drill that forces independent hand usage is a good one to practice. This is especially true for rookie Brandon Coleman, who tends to use two-handed punches.

NFL.com

State of the 2024 Washington Commanders: Jayden Daniels must show he has what it takes to succeed

Where does your squad stand ahead of the 2024 NFL season? Adam Rank sets the table by providing a State of the Franchise look at all 32 teams, zeroing in on the new faces to know, one significant fantasy spin and the stakes at play in the campaign to come.

Members of the Commanders organization, Commanders fans around the world and those who kind of liked when the club was known simply as “The Football Team” …

2024 will be a year of transition in our nation’s capital. And I’m not talking politics. The Commanders, one of the city’s most cherished institutions, recently changed ownership, and a brand-new coach and quarterback were installed this offseason. Years ago, there was a man who came to Washington preaching hope. And that is what Commanders fans have right now: hope.

Washington traded away Sam Howell, who led the NFL with 21 interceptions last year, and snagged Jayden Daniels with the second overall pick in the draft. The Commanders have had 12 starting quarterbacks since 2018, which is the highest total in the NFL in that span, and they’re about to name a new Week 1 starting QB for the seventh consecutive season. Presuming Daniels gets the gig, though, this will be the first time in years Washington fans actually feel true hope (there’s that word again!) at the game’s most important position. In 2023, Daniels led the FBS with 4,946 total yards and won the Heisman Trophy. He threw for 40 touchdowns last year, with just four interceptions. And he added 10 rushing scores. Daniels is the first quarterback drafted by Washington with a top-10 pick since Robert Griffin III in 2012, and he’s delivering the same type of excitement that RGIII did back then. I know a lot of fantasy people will be drafting him like they drafted Anthony Richardson last year. Hopefully, unlike Griffin and Richardson, Daniels enjoys a clean bill of health in Year 1.

Podcasts & videos

Commanders OTA’s Week 3 (6-6-24) Hear From Commanders TE Coach David Raih | Commanders Catch

Commanders OTA’s Week 3 (6-6-24) Hear From Commanders DL Coach Darryl Tapp | Commanders Catch

OTA’s Week 3 (6-6-24) Commanders Defensive Pass Game Coordinator Jason Simmons | Commanders Catch

Washington Commanders OTA’s Week 3 (6-6-24) Hear From Commanders LB Coach Ken Norton Jr.

Photos

Commanders.com

PHOTOS | OTA practice, 06/05

The Washington Commanders were back on the field after a week off to continue their OTA practices. Check out the top photos from the afternoon.





All a’Twitter