The Commanders are missing a bunch of key pieces for Sunday’s home opener against the Seattle Seahawks. They ruled five players out. All of them are every-down players or significant contributors. All of them you’d consider starters.
That creates a situation where Washington needs replacements to capitalize on extra playing time or healthy top players to dominate in order to compete with the reigning Super Bowl champs.
This isn’t an easy opponent and Seattle arrives in Washington ill-timed considering
Washington’s injury situation. The Commanders must find a way to emerge victorious, which would be easier with significant contributions from these five guys (not named Marcus Mariota).
Let’s take a look at five Commanders key to victory on Sunday at Northwest Stadium:
EDGE K’Lavon Chaisson
It’s safe to say at this point that Commanders pressure is the best coverage. Washington’s pass-rushers must get home on a regular-basis to make the Seahawks offense uncomfortable, especially with quarterback Sam Darnold back and Jaxon Smith-Njigba as the NFL’s most dangerous receiver.
Chaisson has an excellent 18.6% pressure rate that leads all Washington pass rushers. He’s getting to the quarterback and being a disruptive force. A few plays from him (sacks, forced fumbles and errant throws) can change the course of Sunday’s game in the Commanders’ favor. They’ll need those in a big way after failing to generate a turnover on Sunday. Chaisson’s just the man to get them.
RB Rachaad White
Veteran running back and relatively new addition Rachaad White was the best Commanders running back in Week 2, proving the most efficient and explosive running back and receiver out of the backfield.
It’s time to roll with White especially early and see if he can’t get some momentum going with a high touch volume of carries and quick receptions. I’m not suggesting Washington bench Bill Croskey-Merritt. He’s still part of the game plan, but let’s see if sticking with a primary back can get the run game going and provide an option out of the backfield to keep that position productive against a super-though Seahawks front.
DB Quan Martin
It sure seems like Quan Martin will see significant snaps with Jeremy Reaves on Sunday due to Nick Cross’ injury. We might see Percy Butler in there some, but it sure seems like a safe bet Martin’s gonna be a feature player.
And, yeah, we know that scares the fan base to death. Even if there’s pessimism surrounding this deep tandem, Martin must prove the doubters wrong and be a productive and functional member of this secondary. A takeaway wouldn’t hurt. And definitely no blown coverages.
Yeah, that isn’t a high bar, but Martin must be an asset, especially with such an instrumental player like Cross out.
DL Daron Payne
Go read Mark Tyler’s Studs and Duds for an honest performance review of Daron Payne from Week 2. He said that Payne gave zero effort against Dallas. He had a4.8% pressure rate versus 21.1% the week before, per NFL Pro. It could’ve been a disadvantageous matchup against Dallas, but the difference also shows how good Payne can be when he’s at his best, even at this stage of his career.
Washington needs the dominant version against the run and pass to help win battles up front and keep Seattle’s point totals down.
WR Terry McLaurin
Terry McLaurin was on this list last week. Repeats are typically avoided, but it’s worth repeating here because of a second straight efficient game. He had two catches for 50 yards on nine targets against Dallas. While not every situation was on him, the Commanders and McLaurin must find ways to use the receiver’s ability on crucial downs, while find him with space to run after the catch.
He’s the team’s most dynamic skill player, and must be better than the first two outings. He can dominate a game. Doing so in Week 3 would be key.
