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
Washington Post (paywall)
Hail or Fail: DJ Moore just caught another touchdown pass
Hail: Darius Slay
The Eagles cornerback shared some encouraging words for Commanders rookie cornerback and fellow former Mississippi State bulldog Emmanuel Forbes Jr. after Forbes’ second consecutive ugly game prompted Washington to bench him in the fourth quarter. Slay, a second-round pick of the Lions in 2013, told Forbes to keep his head up and that he was also benched as a rookie. “Keep working u go be great!” Slay wrote on social media.
Slay, who whiffed on an attempted tackle of then-Vikings running back Adrian Peterson in his debut, resulting in a 78-yard touchdown, went on to become a five-time Pro Bowler.
Keep your head up Forbes I was bench back to back games my rookie yr. Keep working u go be great!
— Darius Slay (@bigplay24slay) October 6, 2023
Fail: Greg Stroman’s revenge game
Stroman, a seventh-round pick by Washington in 2018, had one interception in 16 games for the Burgundy and Gold before being released the following year. The former Stonewall Jackson High and Virginia Tech cornerback signed with the Bears late last season. In his return to FedEx Field, he intercepted Sam Howell to set up a Bears touchdown in the second quarter and later registered his first career sack. It was that kind of night.
Fail: Home-field advantage
The fans have done their part, with Thursday’s game marking the third consecutive (legitimate) sellout at FedEx Field since Josh Harris bought the team. How have the Commanders responded to the support? With an ugly comeback win over Arizona in Week 1, a 37-3 loss to the Bills in Week 3 and their most embarrassing “L” of the Ron Rivera era. Washington has a pair of road games against the Falcons and Giants before returning home to face the Eagles. Expect to see a lot of green in the crowd.
Sports Illustrated
Did Washington Commanders Cheat vs. Bears with ‘Sideline Spy’? NFL Explains Sideline Controversy
Did Washington Commanders Cheat vs. Bears with ‘Sideline Spy’? NFL Explains Sideline Controversy
We don’t mean to be insulting here, but we’ve largely ignored the accusations that insisted that during Thursday night’s game between Chicago and Washington, there was a Commanders “sideline spy’’ positioned behind Bears offensive coordinator Luke Getsy. … ostensibly using a “Commanders phone’’ to video Getsy’s play-calling decisions.
And why have we ignored the accusations? OK, we will go ahead and take the risk of being insulting by saying it: The accusations are stupid.
“It was one of the two uniform inspectors assigned to the game, Ravin Caldwell,” chief NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy said.
What is a “uniform inspector’’? He has a part-time gig with the league to police the players to make sure they’re not cutting their jerseys into half-shirts or wearing their socks at the right height, basically. And that’s about it.
And they are commonly former players – as is the case with Caldwell, who played for Washington from 1987-1992. So, Caldwell still celebrates his affiliation with Washington in the form of a phone case. But he doesn’t influence games – outside of saggy socks and stuff.
Riggo’s Rag
5 winners and losers from the Commanders embarrassing loss vs. Bears in Week 5
The Commanders laid an egg with the entire NFL world watching…
Loser No. 1 – Joey Slye – Carolina Panthers K
As previously stated, it looked like the Washington Commanders were on course to make it a one-possession game in the second half. Sam Howell and Eric Bieniemy had figured things out and moved the ball impressively, but their newfound momentum was brought to a complete halt by kicker Joey Slye.
The inconsistent veteran missed a critical field goal attempt that sapped the life out of FedEx Field. It also breathed new life into the Chicago Bears, who pulled away soon after to put the result beyond all doubt.
This has been the tale for Slye from the moment he stepped onto an NFL field. Ron Rivera’s loyalty to the player stemming from their time together on the Carolina Panthers is commendable, but this might be the final straw.
Loser No. 3 – Cody Barton – Commanders LB
I’m getting pretty tired of writing about subpar performances from Cody Barton. The free-agent signing has been a complete abomination through five weeks, displaying inept traits in key areas that leave a gaping hole at the defensive second level.
The Washington Commanders are struggling to contain the run despite displaying four-man fronts for the most part. Barton’s lack of gap discipline and anticipation are primary factors behind his poor production, which is matched by indifferent closing speed to the point of attack in pursuit of the runner.
Commanders Wire
An ugly stat from Ron Rivera’s tenure with the Commanders
As fans, players and coaches lament the continued slow starts for Washington; another stat shows an ugly truth about the Commanders under Rivera.
Check this out, courtesy of Twitter user “Ref the District,” who is a Washington fan.
In the Ron Rivera era Washington has trailed or been tied at halftime in 41 of 56 games: 73%!!!
Read that again. Ron has coached 56 games in Washington and has led at halftime in only 15 of those games pic.twitter.com/svMgZNX2sE
— RefTheDistrict (@RefTheDistrict) October 6, 2023
Wow. This is alarming. Including the one playoff game, Rivera has coached in 56 games for Washington. He’s either been tied or trailed in 41 of those games. That’s an ugly number.
You could excuse this if it were one season. But we are in year four, and this is a trend. And sometimes, these deficits are big, such has been the case multiple times already this season.
PFF
NFL offensive line rankings ahead of Week 5
17. Washington Commanders (No change)
Projected Week 5 starters:
- LT Charles Leno Jr.
- LG Saahdiq Charles
- C Nick Gates
- RG Sam Cosmi
- RT Andrew Wylie
- Left guard Saahdiq Charles continues to struggle in pass protection. He gave up seven pressures against the Eagles. Over the past two weeks, Charles has allowed pressure on 11.5% of dropbacks, which is the fourth-highest rate among guards.
- Washington’s offensive line is one of just four units this season that has allowed more than 10 sacks.
Best player: Sam Cosmi
- Cosmi struggled against the Philadelphia pass rush. After giving up two pressures over the first three weeks, he allowed three pressures against the Eagles in Week 4.
Podcasts & videos
Washington Commanders Caught Napping Thursday Night in 40-20 Loss to Chicago Bears
“This was, by far and away, the most disgusting effort by the defense all season long”
Here is @kevinsheehanDC‘s complete Commanders game take which includes a few things he liked and a ton he did not like from the loss to the Bears https://t.co/sx0chVZIMi
— The Team 980 (@team980) October 6, 2023
Jahan Dotson Stays “Making Plays” in Big Moments | Next Man Up Podcast | Washington Commanders
Fletcher and Moss catch up with lock-down S Kam Curl | The Player’s Club | Washington Commanders
NFC East links
Big Blue View
How can the Giants fix Daniel Jones and their broken offense?
Here are some thoughts on what has gone wrong, and some suggestions for ways to make it better
What they wanted to be in 2023
One of the cool kids. They want the big plays. They want the high-flying offense. They don’t want to be just a plodding, grind it out, play it close to the vest, make sure we make fewer mistakes than the other guys do offense.
They wanna have fun! They want to throw the ball around the yard. That’s why they traded for Darren Waller. It’s why they drafted Jalin Hyatt. It’s why they selected Wan’Dale Robinson a year ago.
They want to be a quarterback-centric team.
In my view, it is one of the reasons they drew a line in the sand with Saquon Barkley. They may love him, but they don’t want their offense running through him.
What they are
As I said at the top, they are broken.
The offensive line, minus star left tackle Andrew Thomas, is in shambles. Pro Football Focus ranks the Giants’ line as the worst in the league. By PFF grades, the Giants are 31st in both run and pass-blocking. Injuries and poor performance have led to the Giants playing a different line each week, a trend that is likely to continue Week 5 vs. the Miami Dolphins.
They have a quarterback who is regressing. Jones has already thrown more interceptions than he did a season ago, tied for league-worst with six. He is on pace to throw 8.5 touchdown passes. Almost all of his advanced numbers are career-worsts. A few examples:
- Interception percentage (4.6)
- Passing success rate (37.9%)
- Passer rating (69.7)
- QBR (36.9)
The explosive plays they wanted aren’t happening. To this point, they have eight, 28th in the league and a pace that would lead them to 34 for the season. That’s better, sort of, than last season’s league-worst 28, but not what they were looking for.
The rushing attack, with and without Saquon Barkley, has been ineffective. And probably under-utilized. The Giants are one of six teams in the league without a run of at least 20 yards.
Darren Waller, perhaps through no fault of his own, has not had the expected impact on the passing attack. He is on pace for 63.75 catches on 97.75 targets for 650.25 yards. During his two dominant seasons with the Raiders, he averaged 131 targets, 98.5 catches and 1,170.5 yards. The latter is, of course much closer to what the Giants hoped for.
NFL league links
Articles
Washington Post (paywall)
Jonathan Taylor, Colts end standoff by signing contract extension
“I can only say Jonathan is very excited to play football for the Colts,” team owner Jim Irsay said during a conference call with reporters. “We’re going forward together. And he’s very excited about this year and the years to come with [rookie quarterback] Anthony Richardson and the franchise.”
The Colts activated Taylor from the physically unable to perform list Saturday. The 24-year-old is eligible to play Sunday at home against the Tennessee Titans in what would be his season debut.
Taylor’s extension means he is under contract through the 2026 season and is slated to make more than $46 million over that span. He was in the final season of a four-year rookie contract that pays him $4.3 million this season. Irsay confirmed the terms of the extension, which includes $26.5 million in guaranteed money.
Tweets
Here’s the Week 4 fines roundup. https://t.co/Ww4nV2SjQD
— ProFootballTalk (@ProFootballTalk) October 8, 2023