Official Game Thread - Week 5 - Commanders @ Chargers

So road game on the west coast against a top 5-10 team, key players injured, coming off a bad loss to a much weaker opponent, it’s no wonder we are the underdogs. I would be surprised if we won this.

I hope I’m wrong. Jayden is the wildcard, I could see him willing us to a win as he has done many times, assuming we can keep it close. So there is some hope. We will soon see.
 
I don't see 'coming off a bad loss to a much weaker opponent' as a major factor - since it is true of both teams. We as fans tend to lean heavily into 'motivation' but I think it's probably over-emphasized as a factor. Teams are 'motivated' in every game with the possible exception of end of season games where teams aren't playing for anything or players are trying to ensure they don't get injured in a game that is of no consequence.

I think matchups, talent level at key positions, gameplan, penalties, and hell - even luck are much bigger factors than motivation ever is. I don't favor us today for a lot of reasons, most of which have been talked about ad nauseum. Folks talk a lot about how long trips out west for road games sets up teams for a loss. But Washington in 7-5 vs the Chargers overall, and have won 2 out of 3 on the road against them. So that aspect is probably overblown as well.
 
Boone said:
I don't see 'coming off a bad loss to a much weaker opponent' as a major factor - since it is true of both teams. We as fans tend to lean heavily into 'motivation' but I think it's probably over-emphasized as a factor. Teams are 'motivated' in every game with the possible exception of end of season games where teams aren't playing for anything or players are trying to ensure they don't get injured in a game that is of no consequence.

I think matchups, talent level at key positions, gameplan, penalties, and hell - even luck are much bigger factors than motivation ever is. I don't favor us today for a lot of reasons, most of which have been talked about ad nauseum. Folks talk a lot about how long trips out west for road games sets up teams for a loss. But Washington in 7-5 vs the Chargers overall, and have won 2 out of 3 on the road against them. So that aspect is probably overblown as well.
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This is a great point. I did believe Atlanta was a dangerous team that would play much better and the Chargers fit that profile as well. I never considered that we are that team as well.

Right now I am extremely frustrated at Terry, or perhaps more so his agent. There is little doubt in my mind his holdout resulted in this injury.
 
Darrell Green Fan said:
Right now I am extremely frustrated at Terry, or perhaps more so his agent. There is little doubt in my mind his holdout resulted in this injury.
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While there is no way to prove that, I imagine some of his teammates and coaches think the same as well as negatively affected his lackluster performances, timing and speed
 
DWinzit said:
While there is no way to prove that, I imagine some of his teammates and coaches think the same as well as negatively affected his lackluster performances, timing and speed
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As you said, it's impossible to know what his teammates think, because none of them have said "boo" about the subject.

However, my guess is they probably give Terry more latitude than fans do, because one thing all players in the NFL believe is you've got to get as much money as you can when you can get it. Each player believes that about themselves, and probably about their teammates.

And it's really impossible to tell what the root cause of the injury is. They haven't said. I do think missing a week of work with the team can't help.

All that said, I think Terry's holdout broke the good juju the team had going. It was an unnecessary story, broke up the chemistry on the field they were building, and brought a degree of individualism into the mix which wasn't there before. And, at the end of the day, he didn't get CLOSE to what it was reported he was asking for, so could there have been a shaking head about that? Sure.

I'm salty about the holdout. I don't think it was necessary, and I think it was harmful to the team's chemistry overall.
 
IdahoFan said:
Good rally tonight. Love this fan base. Tomorrow we take over SoFi.

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Way to represent and I gotta get me one of these badass hats.

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Voice_of_Reason said:
As you said, it's impossible to know what his teammates think, because none of them have said "boo" about the subject.

However, my guess is they probably give Terry more latitude than fans do, because one thing all players in the NFL believe is you've got to get as much money as you can when you can get it. Each player believes that about themselves, and probably about their teammates.

And it's really impossible to tell what the root cause of the injury is. They haven't said. I do think missing a week of work with the team can't help.

All that said, I think Terry's holdout broke the good juju the team had going. It was an unnecessary story, broke up the chemistry on the field they were building, and brought a degree of individualism into the mix which wasn't there before. And, at the end of the day, he didn't get CLOSE to what it was reported he was asking for, so could there have been a shaking head about that? Sure.

I'm salty about the holdout. I don't think it was necessary, and I think it was harmful to the team's chemistry overall.
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I am a bit salty on the hold out as well. I am certain some of his teammates are as we whether they speak of it or hold it in. That's a portion of the chemistry aspect the holdout stirred. It had to left some of the team pissed at what it would and has cost them whether a win turned loss, broken timing, how about even their potential lowered stats which on an individual level will affect their future contract negotiations.

At the end of the day, with Terry's hold out cutting going so long, I doubt a lot of them were thinking...good for him, when he signed
 
I mean this in the nicest way possible- fuck Terry and the horse he rode in on. I will root for the player because of the team but not the man. And I was as much of an admirer previously that one could possibly be. I’m not a fan of drama queens and that is now how I see him. Harsh? For sure but…

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Boone said:
I don't see 'coming off a bad loss to a much weaker opponent' as a major factor - since it is true of both teams. We as fans tend to lean heavily into 'motivation' but I think it's probably over-emphasized as a factor. Teams are 'motivated' in every game with the possible exception of end of season games where teams aren't playing for anything or players are trying to ensure they don't get injured in a game that is of no consequence.

I think matchups, talent level at key positions, gameplan, penalties, and hell - even luck are much bigger factors than motivation ever is. I don't favor us today for a lot of reasons, most of which have been talked about ad nauseum. Folks talk a lot about how long trips out west for road games sets up teams for a loss. But Washington in 7-5 vs the Chargers overall, and have won 2 out of 3 on the road against them. So that aspect is probably overblown as well.
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I think the motivation thing is real - embarrassment is a hell of a motivator for many/most… but I’m guessing it more often manifests in unseen ways. It’s a wake up call that players need to be better, so that might result in a focus on making sure their fundamentals are right, being more locked in during meetings or film study, being more communicative, fighting through fatigue, etc.
Or another way of looking at it, I think there’s a big difference between a coach saying “we need to be better with x, y, and z” vs a player feeling that they need to be better at those same things.

Lastly, with a close loss, I think you’re more likely to get “I did my part” or “if it weren’t for that bad call, unlucky bounce or so and so’s mistake, we’d have won”. With a blowout, players are more likely to take a hard look in the mirror.

All of that said, you’re right that both teams are coming off a tough loss, and you’re probably right that we put too much weight on “motivation”.
 
I am not sure why so many have been confident about this game, especially considering the injuries. Yes JD5 is back, and yes that ultimately makes the team better, but it's not like the offense was clicking on all cylinders before his injury and I don't expect that to happen today either. Couple that with a defense who still can't seem to figure things out beyond a decent run defense and I am not feeling too hot on this game. Defense definitely has to find a way to keep it close because don't think this offense is anywhere close to be able to keep up with a shoot out.
 
Yeah it doesn't look good and the Chargers just had their bad game vs the Giants.
 
I think really our only shot to win today is by running the ball for 200+ yards, so the Chargers' #5 pass offense doesn't have as much time to carve up our #27 pass defense.

Although the Chargers have the #3 overall defense, their run defense is 'only' #16, so maybe our #2 run game can make a game of it.
 
We didn't look good last week but at least we don't look like the Ravens without Lamar Jackson and 1-2 dudes on defense.
 
Chris 44 said:
Did I miss the inactives for today?
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The Washington Commanders have declared the following players as inactive for their Week 5 game against the Los Angeles Chargers.
  • No. 14 QB Josh Johnson (Emergency QB)
  • No. 17 WR Terry McLaurin
  • No. 51 LB Ale Kaho
  • No. 56 LB Kain Medrano
  • No. 74 G Brandon Coleman
  • No. 85 WR Noah Brown

Here is who won't suit up against the Commanders:
WR Derius Davis
S RJ Mickens
CB Nikko Reed
OLB Kyle Kennard
OT Joe Alt
TE Will Dissly
DT Naquan Jones

I must admit I was hoping to see OG Becton on the list
 
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