The Commanders 2026 preseason opener against the Dolphins went pretty much as planned. Washington gave up an opening drive score, mainly with the second-team defense against Miami’s starters. They locked in after that and didn’t allow any more points for the rest of the game in a 20-7 victory at Northwest Stadium.
What really caught my attention was the lack of sloppy play — which is usually prevalent in the preseason opener. Although coordinators David Blough and Daronte Jones kept things pretty
vanilla, the execution was good and I didn’t see a lot of bad mistakes. To me, this was the biggest win of the evening.
Below are my Studs and Duds of the game, followed by some notes.
Studs
Fatman Allen/Robert Henry Jr.
The rookie running back duo turned out to be the highlight of the evening for Washington. Robert Henry showed vision and burst while Fatman Allen showed patience and wiggle. Both men found the end zone in the opener.
Quan Martin
Martin, playing safety with the second-team defense, looked the part of a starter against Miami. He had a beautiful tackle on Dolphins running back De’Von Achane on the first drive and got an interception on the sideline early in the second quarter. He was around the football quite a bit early in the game.
Shy Tuttle/Rickey Barber
Shy Tuttle and Rickey Barber showed well throughout the evening. The duo combined for eight total tackles, a sack and a tackle for a loss to go along with multiple pressures.
Matt Gulbin
Rookie sixth-r0under Matt Gulbin played a really nice game at center, albeit against the Dolphins second- and third-string defensive line. He did a nice job working to the second level to pick off Miami defenders and his anchor in pass protection looked really good.
Duds
Sam Hartman
Quarterback Sam Hartman doesn’t look like he belongs on an NFL field. He lacks accuracy and zip on his passes, and his pocket-presence is below-average. However, he does have a potential career as a hair model.
Johnny Newton
Playing with the starters, Newton looked anything but one! He was blown off the ball by Miami’s starting offensive line and looked slow and out of place.
Julian (Not-so-)Good Jones
Washington’s starting center (by default), looked overwhelmed against the Dolphins defense. He showed a poor anchor in pass-pro and didn’t do a good job moving bodies or getting to the second level.
Commanders Notes
- Athan Kaliakmanis easily outplayed Hartman in this first preseason contest. He looked more in control of the offense, had better pocket presence and threw the ball with better accuracy and a LOT more zip. He did get sacked twice, but he’ll clen that up and get rid of the ball quicker as he matures.
- Sonny Syles had a lackluster debut. The first-round pick had a couple tackles he got in on, but there were also some times where he looked like he was jogging out there. I can’t wait to see how he looks with the entire first-team defense.
- Receiver Jaylin Lane made three catches (which led the team) for 31 yards. A good game for a young wide receiver who needs to show his hands are not an issue.
- Linebacker Leo Chenal had a quiet evening in limited playing time. He recorded one stop and whiffed on another.
- Defensive tackle Byron Cowart had a few nice splash plays during the game working with the backups.
- Receiver Antonio Williams had a nice catch on the sidelines and made some good blocks in the run game.
- Defensive back Antonio Hamilton Sr. was a special-teams demon and was flying all over the field in coverage.
- Kicker Jake Moody is going to DOINK his way out of the league.
- Linebacker Ale Kaho played a good game. He had a nice interception and played well against the run.
- Linebacker Jordan Magee flashed some of his speed and had a really nice play where he slipped under a block and got in on the tackle.
- Tanoa Togiai, playing right guard, showed nicely in his Commanders debut. I saw No. 62 on a few occasions opening up holes and sealing off defenders.
- Defensive back Tyler Owens was lined up all over the field. He was part of a two-deep look, was in the box as a money-backer and even came off the edge on a blitz.
- Tight end Colson Yankoff had a few nice blocks (also whiffed badly on one) and snagged two receptions for 24 yards.
- Defensive back Malik Spencer had his first NFL interception. I’d like to see him get some more time with the second-team defense. The potential is there.
