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I don't know who said it - except pretty sure it wasn't Gandhi - 'first you win... then you get good'.
Let's hope so, because we won, but we are definitely not 'good'.
It's been a tumultuous 2 weeks for the new era Washington Commanders. Those swept away (raises hand) in the first great offseason of the Adam Peters/Dan Quinn era have slammed resoundingly back to Earth and reality. When your roster sucks, turning over 61% of your roster and 99% of your coaching staff ain't a bad thing, but nor does it guarantee immediate improvement.
In fact 2024 has looked, on the field, a lot like 2023. That ain't good.
Rationally, many of us have preached patience. You cannot have the kind of enormous change we've witnessed and not expect some growing pains. It's just to be expected. But as a fan, it is nearly impossible not to hope for and even imagine better results. In Week 1, the Commanders rather predictably ran head on into reality. An experienced talented QB, a stacked WR corps, and a more seasoned playoff caliber team made the Commanders look exactly like what they are - an inexperienced roster of new players including a rookie starting QB lead by a newly formed coaching staff. It wasn't pretty.
In Week 2, the Commanders faced the perennial thorn in their sides, the chronically not-very-good-but-dangerous-only-against-Washington New York Giants who were already in desperation mode with a beleagured QB and a HC on an already blazing hot seat.
It, again, was not very pretty.
And yet the signs of slow progression were there if you suspend emotionality. The offensive gameplan looked semi-coherent this week. Kliff Kingsbury called plenty of quick short passes to take advantage of his young QBs accurate arm and ability to hit open WRs. The called QB runs were still there, but reigned significantly in. Brian Robinson Jr. and Austin Ekeler continued to show they are this teams offensive stalwarts, both on rushing downs and in catching balls coming out of the backfield.
Unfortunately, the new look Commander's offense made crucial mistakes in the red zone that killed potential touchdown drives and had them settling for FGs, so much so that unheralded kicker Austin Seibert set a new franchise record for made FGs in a single game.
On the bright side, rookie QB Jayden Daniels showed guts, determination, and creativity for the 2nd straight week and helped the offense move up and down the field throughout the game. Yes - the Commanders were more or less a disaster in the red zone. That will have to change if the team is to experience anything like success over the course of the season. But between the 20's, Daniels looked very poised and made a ton of plays.
Washington's defense continued to struggle, although the effort against the Giants certainly represented an improvement over the mauling they experienced at the hands of the Bucs the week before.
We managed to eke out a win today, warts and all.
How many wins will we manage in 2024 playing at the current level? Not many I'm afraid. But the good news is, this is just the beginning. The 2024 Washington Commanders have not yet sniffed who they may eventually become.
Today should have been a relatively easy win. Instead, like Boone on the golf course, the team scrambled continuously just to have a late chance in the game. A rebuilding team cannot consistently win if it beats itself with penalties and mental mistakes in crucial moments. Nor can it overcome questionable coaching decisions.
There's a lot of work to be done. But at least on this Sunday, they can do so coming on the more positive heels of a win.
First you win... then you get good.
Let's hope so!
Let's hope so, because we won, but we are definitely not 'good'.
It's been a tumultuous 2 weeks for the new era Washington Commanders. Those swept away (raises hand) in the first great offseason of the Adam Peters/Dan Quinn era have slammed resoundingly back to Earth and reality. When your roster sucks, turning over 61% of your roster and 99% of your coaching staff ain't a bad thing, but nor does it guarantee immediate improvement.
In fact 2024 has looked, on the field, a lot like 2023. That ain't good.
Rationally, many of us have preached patience. You cannot have the kind of enormous change we've witnessed and not expect some growing pains. It's just to be expected. But as a fan, it is nearly impossible not to hope for and even imagine better results. In Week 1, the Commanders rather predictably ran head on into reality. An experienced talented QB, a stacked WR corps, and a more seasoned playoff caliber team made the Commanders look exactly like what they are - an inexperienced roster of new players including a rookie starting QB lead by a newly formed coaching staff. It wasn't pretty.
In Week 2, the Commanders faced the perennial thorn in their sides, the chronically not-very-good-but-dangerous-only-against-Washington New York Giants who were already in desperation mode with a beleagured QB and a HC on an already blazing hot seat.
It, again, was not very pretty.
And yet the signs of slow progression were there if you suspend emotionality. The offensive gameplan looked semi-coherent this week. Kliff Kingsbury called plenty of quick short passes to take advantage of his young QBs accurate arm and ability to hit open WRs. The called QB runs were still there, but reigned significantly in. Brian Robinson Jr. and Austin Ekeler continued to show they are this teams offensive stalwarts, both on rushing downs and in catching balls coming out of the backfield.
Unfortunately, the new look Commander's offense made crucial mistakes in the red zone that killed potential touchdown drives and had them settling for FGs, so much so that unheralded kicker Austin Seibert set a new franchise record for made FGs in a single game.
On the bright side, rookie QB Jayden Daniels showed guts, determination, and creativity for the 2nd straight week and helped the offense move up and down the field throughout the game. Yes - the Commanders were more or less a disaster in the red zone. That will have to change if the team is to experience anything like success over the course of the season. But between the 20's, Daniels looked very poised and made a ton of plays.
Washington's defense continued to struggle, although the effort against the Giants certainly represented an improvement over the mauling they experienced at the hands of the Bucs the week before.
We managed to eke out a win today, warts and all.
How many wins will we manage in 2024 playing at the current level? Not many I'm afraid. But the good news is, this is just the beginning. The 2024 Washington Commanders have not yet sniffed who they may eventually become.
Today should have been a relatively easy win. Instead, like Boone on the golf course, the team scrambled continuously just to have a late chance in the game. A rebuilding team cannot consistently win if it beats itself with penalties and mental mistakes in crucial moments. Nor can it overcome questionable coaching decisions.
There's a lot of work to be done. But at least on this Sunday, they can do so coming on the more positive heels of a win.
First you win... then you get good.
Let's hope so!
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He looked so good in preseason.