There is a lot going on in Ashburn, VA, as the Commanders are now over a full week into training camp. Unlike previous camps run by head coach Dan Quinn, this one seems a lot different in everything from access to vet rest days.
What has been an entertaining start is expected to ramp up even more as we head towards joint practices next week against the Dolphins. That’s especially true after Wednesday afternoon’s once-year pact with receiver Stefon Diggs.
Before we look forward to all that on a Thursday
off date on the training-camp calendar, let’s look back at my observations as we get into Week 2.
Who has been running with the first team?
Camp is a time to mix things up and see what guys can do when they are in certain situations. There is certainly a LOT of rotation going on, but from a first-team glance, this appears to be the way things have played out very early in camp, though the receiver should change with Diggs coming aboard.
Offense:
- QB: Jayden Daniels
- RB: Bill Croskey-Merritt
- WR: Terry McLaurin
- WR: Treylon Burks
- WR: Luke McCaffrey
- TE: Chig Okonkwo
- TE 2 (12 personnel): Ben Sinnott
- LT: Laremy Tunsil
- LG: Chris Paul
- C: Julian Good-Jones (while Nick Allegretti has been out)
- RG: Sam Cosmi
- RT: Josh Conerly
*Antonio Williams and Brandon Coleman have also gotten some work with the first team.
Defense:
- EDGE: Odafe Oweh
- DT: Daron Payne
- DT: Javon Kinlaw
- DT 3 (when in an odd front): Tim Settle
- EDGE: K’Lavon Chaisson
- ILB: Frankie Luvu
- ILB: Sonny Styles
- SAM (walked-up): Leo Chenal
- CB: Mike Sainristil
- CB: Amik Robertson
- S: Nick Cross
- S: Jeremy Reaves
- S: Will Harris
*Sainristil has been seeing time on the outside and in the slot. Before his abrupt retirement, Witherspoon was the other outside corner when Mikey was in the slot, with Rasul Douglas seeing some time mixed in with the first team on the outside.
The Green Dot
There was talk that rookie Sonny Styles or Leo Chenal would get the green dot for defensive communication. After a week of camp, however, it appears Frankie Luvu is communicating the defense.
As The Athletic reporter Nicki Jhabvala says below, it’s still early and things can change once live action is upon us in September, but as of now, this is where things stand.
Camp standouts:
- Luke McCaffrey: The third year wideout continues to stack good practices. He was a beast on Tuesday, having arguably the best practice of all the Commanders, and scored again Wednesday in team work on a dime from quarterback Jayden. He’s working both inside and outside and has been said to look good wherever he’s lining up.
- Ben Sinnott: The increased playing time is certainly benefitting Sinnott. He’s working with the ones in 12 personnel and coordinator David Blough is using him in a variety of different ways, including in-line and as an H-back.
- Bill Croskey-Merritt: Bill is noticeably bigger and is bringing that physicality with him during runs, however, it’s his hands out of the backfield that have stood out early on.
- Odafe Oweh/K’Lavon Chaisson: The EDGE duo have been as advertised, and MORE! Camp observers have spoken of the explosion to which both players get off the ball and there have been plays every day where the whistle needs to be blown to protect the quarterbacks.
- Sonny Styles: The way he triggers is just different! He’s a true sideline-to-sideline defender who brought the wood a few times during padded practice. Teammates have raved about his preparation, fluidity and overall athleticism.
- Frankie Luvu: Observers have stated that Luvu looks like the 2024 version, not the one we saw struggle last season. He’s been looking great on timely blitzes.
- Sam Cosmi: Fully healthy now, Cosmi is said to be bullying guys out there, especially during Monday’s padded practice one-on-one session.
- Nick Cross: Cross has been all over the field, and there were many times when observers said if it was live action, he would have blown the play up. He’s going to have a big role for this new defense.
- Colston Yankoff: Yankoff, who has seen more time with the first and second groups with John Bates being out, has made the most of his opportunities. That’s especially in the passing game; hauling in a few really impressive catches in traffic.
- Josh Josephs: The rookie has impressed with his length, get-off and even coverage ability working primarily with the second group.
- Antonio Williams: Observers have commented on how smooth Williams is and how quickly he can uncover. He’s been with the second group a lot and backup quarterback Marcus Mariota has missed him on a few occasions where he’s been wide open. On Wednesday, during the second padded practice, he absolutely TOASTED the third- and fourth-string defense for an easy touchdown.
- Rasul Douglas: Douglas showed up the first two days of camp, when observers said he was all around the ball. He had a pick-six on Day 2 and supposedly looked pretty good during padded practice.
- Mike Sainristil: It’s been a mixed bag for Sainristil in coverage, but observers have said he’s constantly working, and it seems when he gets beat, he comes back and makes some plays. His leadership has been lauded by some of the coaches.
- Jeremy Reaves: Coaches have praised his effort and communication in this new defense.
Who has struggled?
There is a lot of praise early in camp, so the observations on who has struggled have been limited. Below is some of what I have heard early on.
- Marcus Mariota: Observers have said he’s not seeing things as quickly and hasn’t pulled the trigger on some throws he should have made.
- Quan Martin: Martin has been running with the second team after being a starter the previous two seasons. I’m not hearing that he’s been particularly bad, but he may have lost his starting job early on. He did get stiff-armed into another galaxy today by Fatman Allen.
- Jalen Lane: Lane had some early drop issues, but it seems he has cleared those up over the past few sessions. Consistency will be key for the second-year pro.
- Carlin Viggers: The young corner made some plays during the first day of camp, but recent reports are that he’s struggled staying with receiver in his zone.
- Josh Conerly: I don’t know how much struggling Conerly has actually done considering Washington has been in pads just two days, but MANY reports out of practice cite both Oweh and Chaisson getting into the backfield quickly, and I don’t believe Tunsil’s name was mentioned as someone who has been blowing a lot of pass sets.
Competition between Blough and Jones
We knew this would be a theme all camp, but it’s so refreshing to hear that coordinators David Blough and Daronte Jones are out here playing 3D chess against one another during sessions. Iron shapes iron so this is absolutely music to my ears, especially after putting up with two very predictable offenses and defenses over the past two seasons.
Blough has also been getting into his bag of tricks, as he looks for ways to slow down Jones’ furious rush. Wednesday, he had, by all accounts, three trick plays, including a pretty hook-and-ladder between Jayden, Terry and Burks.
