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I tried my very hardest to avoid doing writing Studs, Duds, and Hat Tips this week. It is actually getting quite depressing putting these together given the way this team is performing in the 2022/23 season. What was ticketed as being the season in which Washington makes a significant leap forward is quickly turning into a train wreck. Yes, we are just four games into the season and there is a lot of football to play still. Unfortunately, in the case of the Washington Commanders, "a lot of football left to be played" could very well turn into "a lot of EVEN WORSE football left to be played!" That's the scary part as we head into the spookiest month of the year, October. Let's get right to our review of the Dallas game.
Studs:
1. Washington Fans - we got steamrolled for the most part against Detroit, Philadelphia, and to a lesser extent, Dallas. Three weeks of putrid football has put this team a minimum of two games behind every other NFC East team in the standings...and we are only four weeks into the season! In many ways, sitting at 0-2 in the NFC East makes it feel as though the season is already over. We are hopeful for better fortunes each and every September and by mid-October, it always feels as though we are already taking stock of who might be available for us in the draft. It's an unhealthy and disappointing way to watch football. Kudos to everyone here for taking gut punch after gut punch from this team and continuing to stand tall. You are all great fans!
Duds:
1. Dan Snyder - Twitter is filled with people who want Ron Rivera and his entire coaching staff sent packing for good. It's hard to argue with that line of thinking sometimes, given how unprepared the team appears to be every Sunday. Neophyte articulated it best though when he stated that this team is fundamentally rotten at it's core. At that core stands none other than Dan Snyder, the common denominator through all the misery we have had to endure as fans of the burgundy and gold...and black?!?!
2. Coaching Staff - the team decided to go with what they call their "Battle Black" outfit this past Sunday at Dallas. As a lifelong fan of this team, like for many of you, Dallas Week is probably the most sacred game on the schedule every season. The team sure didn't give off the vibe that Dallas Week matters anymore, or that they were ready to go to battle. On Sunday, I saw little, if any, passion, emotion, excitement, or attitude. The team (coaches down through to players) looked lifeless. It feels like a large crop of guys are just there collecting a pay cheque, and going through the motions. They are all standing there seemingly in acceptance of futility. People are looking for answers, waiting and hoping that somebody else will step up and make a difference - and that includes the coaches. Certainly not a good look and a potential warning sign that maybe Rivera's ship is sinking even amongst those in the locker room.
3. Defensive Secondary - William Jackson III is soon going to be associated with the likes of Jeremiah Trotter, Albert Haynesworth, Adam Archuleta, etc., and be regarded as another in the long line of wasted free agency money in Washington. He obviously struggles mightily in zone schemes, but even when given the opportunity to go toe to toe this past weekend in one-on-one contests with receivers, he got burned several times with costly penalties. As for Kendall Fuller, well, he too seems to be stuck in a major funk in 2022. It's painful to watch this secondary work, who currently sits dead last in the NFL with 10 passing TDs surrendered through the first four games of the season. A big change in the defensive secondary is likely a top 1 or 2 priority in the offseason.
4. Offensive Line - so maybe Brandon Scherff was THAT good. The interior of our offensive line has been an absolute colossal failure in 2022. At the Tackle spots, Charles Leno, who was Mr. Underappreciated and Mr. Consistent all last season, as well as what looked like a promising Sam Cosmi, have both seemingly regressed as well. Wentz wasn't sacked as often at Dallas as he was the two previous weeks, but for the year, the Commanders have now given up the most sacks in the entire NFL with 17. John Matsko looked like a wizard the last couple years, moulding a patchwork and often injured group of guys into a consistent unit. Right now, we are lost. Guys are getting beat in one on ones up front, and if I didn't know any better, I would have sworn that Matsko was on a sabbatical. I can't help but watch this unit lately and think of that famous Vince Lombardi NFL Films clip where he shouts, "what the hell is going on out there?!" The harsh reality right now is that many pieces of our starting o-line are castoffs in certain regards, guys that other teams let walk. Maybe they were on to something...
5. Carson Wentz - our QB was brought in to help us win these kinds of games. We went 0-4 vs. the teams that are viewed as being superior to us in the NFC East a season ago. Wentz was supposed to allow us to catch the Eagles and Dallas in 2022. Sure, he often has no time in the pocket, but he is also doing little to be the difference maker he was touted as being, and that held true on Sunday at the Cowboys. With the score 15-10 for Dallas late in the 3rd, and the Washington defense hanging in there a bit, I thought it would have been a good time to give Heinicke a series or two to see if he could have added a spark. Would it have made a difference? Maybe. Maybe not. At this point though, Wentz is giving us little to no return on the investment.
6. Officiating - Washington has played an undisciplined brand of football in 2022. The referees certainly did not seem willing to cut them any slack on Sunday. On the day, Washington had 11 penalties for 136 yards called against them, to Dallas' 4 penalties for 20 yards. The refs didn't decide the game by any stretch of the imagination, but they definitely missed a few pass interference/defensive holding calls that easily could have been called against the Cowboys over the course of the day. It just adds a bit more salt to the wound I guess.
Hat Tips:
1. Daron Payne/Jon Allen - I would hate to see where this defense would be right now if either of the two weren't available. They seem the only two on defense that are taking any sort of pride in their craft. Sunday at Dallas was evidence of such, as both men were active on the interior all day.
2. Jahan Dotson - 4 touchdowns in your first 4 weeks sounds like a pretty good start to your NFL career. Unfortunately, it sounds like Jahan will be out for a few weeks due to injury, but hopefully he can pick up from where he left off when he returns to the lineup.
3. Johnathan Williams/JD McKissic - I have personally always liked when we get McKissic involved in the run game. He had 8 carries for 40 yards on Sunday and had a couple really nice gainers. As for Johnathan Williams, he racked up 48 yards on only 5 carries. The run game was actually one of the few things to be proud of on Sunday, and Williams and McKissic certainly provided a spark and some much needed chunk plays.
That's it for another forgettable week.
What are your thoughts? Agree? Disagree? Who did we miss?
A traditionally physical Titans team is up next on Sunday. Do we show up or play dead...
Studs:
1. Washington Fans - we got steamrolled for the most part against Detroit, Philadelphia, and to a lesser extent, Dallas. Three weeks of putrid football has put this team a minimum of two games behind every other NFC East team in the standings...and we are only four weeks into the season! In many ways, sitting at 0-2 in the NFC East makes it feel as though the season is already over. We are hopeful for better fortunes each and every September and by mid-October, it always feels as though we are already taking stock of who might be available for us in the draft. It's an unhealthy and disappointing way to watch football. Kudos to everyone here for taking gut punch after gut punch from this team and continuing to stand tall. You are all great fans!
Duds:
1. Dan Snyder - Twitter is filled with people who want Ron Rivera and his entire coaching staff sent packing for good. It's hard to argue with that line of thinking sometimes, given how unprepared the team appears to be every Sunday. Neophyte articulated it best though when he stated that this team is fundamentally rotten at it's core. At that core stands none other than Dan Snyder, the common denominator through all the misery we have had to endure as fans of the burgundy and gold...and black?!?!
2. Coaching Staff - the team decided to go with what they call their "Battle Black" outfit this past Sunday at Dallas. As a lifelong fan of this team, like for many of you, Dallas Week is probably the most sacred game on the schedule every season. The team sure didn't give off the vibe that Dallas Week matters anymore, or that they were ready to go to battle. On Sunday, I saw little, if any, passion, emotion, excitement, or attitude. The team (coaches down through to players) looked lifeless. It feels like a large crop of guys are just there collecting a pay cheque, and going through the motions. They are all standing there seemingly in acceptance of futility. People are looking for answers, waiting and hoping that somebody else will step up and make a difference - and that includes the coaches. Certainly not a good look and a potential warning sign that maybe Rivera's ship is sinking even amongst those in the locker room.
3. Defensive Secondary - William Jackson III is soon going to be associated with the likes of Jeremiah Trotter, Albert Haynesworth, Adam Archuleta, etc., and be regarded as another in the long line of wasted free agency money in Washington. He obviously struggles mightily in zone schemes, but even when given the opportunity to go toe to toe this past weekend in one-on-one contests with receivers, he got burned several times with costly penalties. As for Kendall Fuller, well, he too seems to be stuck in a major funk in 2022. It's painful to watch this secondary work, who currently sits dead last in the NFL with 10 passing TDs surrendered through the first four games of the season. A big change in the defensive secondary is likely a top 1 or 2 priority in the offseason.
4. Offensive Line - so maybe Brandon Scherff was THAT good. The interior of our offensive line has been an absolute colossal failure in 2022. At the Tackle spots, Charles Leno, who was Mr. Underappreciated and Mr. Consistent all last season, as well as what looked like a promising Sam Cosmi, have both seemingly regressed as well. Wentz wasn't sacked as often at Dallas as he was the two previous weeks, but for the year, the Commanders have now given up the most sacks in the entire NFL with 17. John Matsko looked like a wizard the last couple years, moulding a patchwork and often injured group of guys into a consistent unit. Right now, we are lost. Guys are getting beat in one on ones up front, and if I didn't know any better, I would have sworn that Matsko was on a sabbatical. I can't help but watch this unit lately and think of that famous Vince Lombardi NFL Films clip where he shouts, "what the hell is going on out there?!" The harsh reality right now is that many pieces of our starting o-line are castoffs in certain regards, guys that other teams let walk. Maybe they were on to something...
5. Carson Wentz - our QB was brought in to help us win these kinds of games. We went 0-4 vs. the teams that are viewed as being superior to us in the NFC East a season ago. Wentz was supposed to allow us to catch the Eagles and Dallas in 2022. Sure, he often has no time in the pocket, but he is also doing little to be the difference maker he was touted as being, and that held true on Sunday at the Cowboys. With the score 15-10 for Dallas late in the 3rd, and the Washington defense hanging in there a bit, I thought it would have been a good time to give Heinicke a series or two to see if he could have added a spark. Would it have made a difference? Maybe. Maybe not. At this point though, Wentz is giving us little to no return on the investment.
6. Officiating - Washington has played an undisciplined brand of football in 2022. The referees certainly did not seem willing to cut them any slack on Sunday. On the day, Washington had 11 penalties for 136 yards called against them, to Dallas' 4 penalties for 20 yards. The refs didn't decide the game by any stretch of the imagination, but they definitely missed a few pass interference/defensive holding calls that easily could have been called against the Cowboys over the course of the day. It just adds a bit more salt to the wound I guess.
Hat Tips:
1. Daron Payne/Jon Allen - I would hate to see where this defense would be right now if either of the two weren't available. They seem the only two on defense that are taking any sort of pride in their craft. Sunday at Dallas was evidence of such, as both men were active on the interior all day.
2. Jahan Dotson - 4 touchdowns in your first 4 weeks sounds like a pretty good start to your NFL career. Unfortunately, it sounds like Jahan will be out for a few weeks due to injury, but hopefully he can pick up from where he left off when he returns to the lineup.
3. Johnathan Williams/JD McKissic - I have personally always liked when we get McKissic involved in the run game. He had 8 carries for 40 yards on Sunday and had a couple really nice gainers. As for Johnathan Williams, he racked up 48 yards on only 5 carries. The run game was actually one of the few things to be proud of on Sunday, and Williams and McKissic certainly provided a spark and some much needed chunk plays.
That's it for another forgettable week.
What are your thoughts? Agree? Disagree? Who did we miss?
A traditionally physical Titans team is up next on Sunday. Do we show up or play dead...
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