The Daily Slop – 17 July 2026
Editor’s note: Each day, Hogs Haven compiles a collection of articles, podcasts & tweets from around the web to keep you in touch with the Commanders, the NFC East, the NFL and sports in general, with a sprinkling of other stuff. Enjoy!
Commanders links
Articles
Bleacher Report
Overlooked Rookie RBs Who Can Have a Major Impact on 2026 NFL Season
Kaytron Allen, Washington Commanders
Nicholas Singleton wasn’t the only Penn State running back who was drafted this season. After setting a career high with 1,303 rushing yards and 15 touchdowns last year with the Nittany Lions, the Washington Commanders
selected Kaytron Allen at No. 187 overall.
While speaking to reporters, the 5’11”, 216-pounder said he’s eager to try to carve out a role in Washington’s offense this year:
“I’m ready to get to work right now. I feel like I’m a competitor, and me being in the room, I feel like it’s going to make everybody better for sure. I just feel like when players around me, they got no other choice but to get better around me just because of my work ethic and how I go about playing football. I love football, so I put everything into it. And I just feel like if you’re around me, you gotta love football, or if not, it’s going to show. I feel like if they draft me, that means they want me to come there and do something special, and I’m ready for it. I’m ready for the challenge, and I’m ready to get to work, man.”
The Commanders have already shown they will hand a large role in the backfield to a rookie. Last year, Jacory Croskey-Merritt went from a seventh-round pick to the lead back in the nation’s capital.
This isn’t to say Allen will immediately usurp Croskey-Merritt in that role in 2026.
But given his punishing running style, it would not be a surprise if Allen eventually claimed a larger share of the workload.
To read more of this article, CLICK HERE
Pro Football Focus
Wide Receiver Rankings: The top 32 players ahead of the 2026 NFL season
13. Terry McLaurin, Washington Commanders
McLaurin’s 2025 season was disrupted by injuries, ending his streak of five consecutive 1,000-yard seasons. Even so, he earned a career-high 87.0 PFF receiving grade despite playing just three games with star quarterback Jayden Daniels. Assuming both stay healthy, McLaurin and Daniels have shown they can form one of the NFL’s most dynamic quarterback-receiver duos.
To read more of this article, CLICK HERE
ESPN
2026 NFL trade tiers: Players worth Round 1 picks by team
Consider what it would cost if a team decided that it was willing to trade a player at a given position, as the Cowboys eventually decided with Parsons and the Browns with Garrett. And while it’s going to be virtually impossible to rack up unlimited draft picks in the first round to get the biggest deals done — especially since the current CBA only allows teams to trade picks up to three years into the future — consider that players can stand in for draft picks in these deals, as Verse did with the Garrett swap.
This is an attempt to reflect how the league views players as opposed to my personal opinion, although my thoughts are naturally going to be part of the conversation. And I’ve had to evolve after seeing how the league has approached the past 12 months. My last cut from the first-round pick tier in last year’s article was Lawrence, and I was wrong. Even after a frustrating season, he was dealt to the Bengals for the No. 10 selection. We’ve seen teams really get aggressive targeting proven pass rushers and defensive disruptors, even if they’re older than the players who would have typically landed first-round picks in the past. I’ve built that into this year’s list, which means more players will qualify for potential first-round picks this time around.
Washington Commanders
Three first-round picks and more: QB Jayden Daniels. It wasn’t a banner year for Daniels, who dealt with multiple injuries amid a frustrating 2025 season for the Commanders. Optimists who saw an unflappable playmaker at LSU witnessed Daniels immediately revitalize a moribund Commanders franchise in 2024, but teams that were worried about Daniels’ slight frame entering the draft were given further fuel for their fears last season.
One first-round pick: OT Josh Conerly Jr., LB Sonny Styles, OT Laremy Tunsil. While the Commanders were able to extract Tunsil from the Texans without giving up a first-round pick last offseason, the much-traveled tackle played well enough to justify a bump up to a first-round tier. Conerly struggled badly early in the season as a pass blocker, but the rookie right tackle improved as the season went along and could build on that performance in Year 2. And while Styles was the seventh pick in this year’s draft, it’s tough to find many off-ball linebackers who commanded first-round picks in a trade, let alone multipick hauls. If Styles’ athleticism and instincts make him a special talent, of course, that could change.
Missing out: Edge Odafe Oweh, CB Mike Sainristil. Sainristil was one of the many Commanders defenders who took a major step backward in 2025 after impressing the prior season. I wouldn’t rule out a return to form for the third-year pro, although he would need to prove that he can hold up as an outside cornerback to justify a first-round pick as a trade return.
To read more of this article, CLICK HERE
Podcasts & videos
NFC East links
NFL.com
NFC East training camp 2026 preview: Top storylines for Commanders, Cowboys, Eagles, Giants
Cowboys
Summer bliss with Pickens and no drama in Oxnard?
Aside from some contract squabbles with George Pickens and Brandon Aubrey that were tame by Cowboys standards, this has been a drama-free offseason for Dallas. Will that change during training camp in Oxnard, California? It’s been a breath of fresh air that’s even drawn applause from one of the greatest Cowboys ever, NFL all-time leading rusher Emmitt Smith. With Dallas locked in on snapping a two-year playoff drought, the on-field focus bodes well. Avoiding major storylines might well be the biggest development of the summer for the ‘Boys. July 28 looms large for the team, as it’s when players are set to report to camp and owner Jerry Jones traditionally addresses the media in a lengthy news conference. The Cowboys have been transparent about not negotiating an extension with Pickens, who has signed his franchise tag and stated he doesn’t intend to hold out. We’ll see just how copacetic everything remains when camp kicks off.
Giants
This is Dart’s team now
At the start of last season, Jaxson Dart waited his turn behind Russell Wilson. After eventually getting handed the starting reins, the first-round pick weathered a debut campaign that saw him deal with injuries, scrutiny for his devil-may-care scrambling and the firing of head coach Brian Daboll. Daboll and interim head coach Mike Kafka took turns navigating Dart’s first season. Now it’s up to Matt Nagy to shepherd Dart’s growth. The floor for Dart is staying healthy. The ceiling is what the Big Blue faithful are most excited about. Dart’s development as a franchise signal-caller is arguably the most important factor for the 2026 Giants. Hype and hope have early expiration dates in the NFL, so Dart’s second season is already a pivotal one after the QB showed plenty of potential (24 total touchdowns) in his career-opening campaign.
Eagles
What becomes of Carter?
Jalen Carter seems to be on the brink of becoming perhaps the league’s elite defensive tackle. Hence, he’s seeking a seismic extension, which has led to trade speculation. How it all plays out is sure to be headline fodder, and it wouldn’t feel right to be without some melodrama in Philly. Furthermore, defensive coordinator Vic Fangio is back, and losing Carter would be a magnificent blow. A potential boon will be the additions of cornerback Tariq Woolen and pass rusher Jonathan Greenard. No matter the pedigree, not all players fit into Fangio’s scheme (see: Bryce Huff, Jalen Ramsey, Jevon Holland, etc.). Woolen is a physically gifted cover man who made his share of questionable plays with the Seahawks. It will be interesting seeing how the newbies fit into Fangio’s scheme, but the prevailing matter at hand for the defense is Carter’s future.
Commanders
How does overhauled defense look?
When you fall from being everyone’s NFC Championship Game darling to a 5-12 struggle bus, you can run out of fingers to point. The Commanders put a massive UNDER CONSTRUCTION sign in front of a defense that finished dead last in yards allowed. They used the No. 7 overall pick on Ohio State linebacker Sonny Styles, an athletic marvel who will draw plenty of hype as a preseason Defensive Rookie of the Year candidate. General manager Adam Peters opened the check book before turning in the card to get Styles, too. Washington broke the bank to sign pass rusher Odafe Oweh, while adding plenty more veteran starters elsewhere: nickel Amik Robertson, safety Nick Cross, pass rusher K’Lavon Chaisson, linebacker Leo Chenal and defensive tackle Tim Settle. The Commanders added veteran depth, as well. Binging on free agents isn’t always a winning formula, of course. How quickly new defensive coordinator Daronte Jones and Washington’s cast of fresh faces get on the same page will be crucial in camp.
To read more of this article, CLICK HERE
The Athletic (paywall)
NFL over/under win totals: Predictions and best bets for all 32 teams in 2026
Commanders over 7.5 (-130)
Washington won 12 games in 2024, when everything went right, and five games last year, when nothing did. So with Dan Quinn still inspiring the troops and Jayden Daniels healthy again, that makes the Commanders an 8.5-win team on average. Boom. Take the over. (This assumes they make some moves in the next month to add a receiver and a defensive back, because surely they have looked at their roster.)
Giants over 7.5 (-110)
I like to avoid crowds the older I get, but there’s no getting away from (blows trumpet) the most popular season-total bet of them all. Offensive guru Brian Daboll was pretty incompetent as the Giants’ coach and hit the bricks, and in walks Super Bowl winning coach John Harbaugh. He is going to have to tone down Jaxson Dart and Cam Skattebo — and hope Malik Nabers is back to full strength — but Harbaugh did bring along tight end Isaiah Likely to help.
Harbaugh is also being gifted a nasty pass rush on defense. A big reason why I like this one so much is I also plan to get down on Abdul Carter at 50-1 as Defensive Player of the Year. He had more maturity issues than sacks (four) as a rookie last season, but the 18 QB hits and 66 pressures were impressive.
Cowboys under 9.5 (-125)
If rookie safety Caleb Downs is a star, which is possible, we’re going to lose this one. Same goes if George Pickens isn’t a distraction all season long. The cornerbacks aren’t very good, and the offense is never as good as it should be. The Cowboys tried to address their defense and will improve on back-to-back seven-win seasons, but let’s not go wild.
Eagles over 10.5 (+120)
We might never know what happened between Jalen Hurts and A.J. Brown, but all fantasy owners care about is whether tiny DeVonta Smith can survive as the new No. 1 wideout. We’re not so sure — same with the immediate impact of rookie receiver Makai Lemon — but those are more playoff-success type questions. There is too much talent on both sides of the ball not to win 11 games, especially if Hurts bounces back under new offensive coordinator Sean Mannion to prove that he is not the problem.
To read more of this article, CLICK HERE
NFL league links
Articles
Pro Football Talk
Maxx Crosby hates the NFL’s uniform policies: “We’ve got to have more fun, Roger”
Crosby detailed how in a game with the Eagles last season, he wore pink shoes with roses on them as a tribute to his daughter, but the NFL made him take them off, during the game.
“The NBA does it right. They let the players do their own shit, rock their own colors,” Crosby said. “In the NFL you can’t wear any color that’s off the jersey, which is low-key lame. I wore pink cleats in Philly this year, I wore them for about two, three drives. They were on the sideline, my equipment guy was looking at me with a pair of my other cleats like, ‘You’ve got to come and take those cleats off because they’re bitching about it.’ I’m like, ‘Fuck that, I’m playing the rest of the series.’ It was third down in the red zone, I got a sack in those pink cleats, and then I had to take them off and I could never wear them again.”
To read more of this article, CLICK HERE
Stadium update
WUSA9
Commanders Stadium wins preliminary CFA approval, but federal design panel wants stronger entrances and more review of parking garage plans
The Washington Commanders cleared another major hurdle Thursday in their effort to return to the RFK campus, winning preliminary approval for their proposed new stadium from the U.S. Commission of Fine Arts.
But members of the federal design review panel made clear they still want significant changes to some of the stadium’s most prominent architectural features before granting final approval.
The commission voted to approve the stadium concept after reviewing revised designs from the team’s architecture firm, HKS. The updated plans focused heavily on the stadium’s east and west entrances, which commissioners sharply criticized during an earlier review in March.
Among the changes unveiled Thursday was a new balcony overlooking East Capitol Street. Team representatives said the balcony would offer views of both the U.S. Capitol and the Washington Monument.
Commissioners praised the overall design and acknowledged that the revised entrances were an improvement over what they saw earlier this year.
McCrery and other commissioners argued the entrances require a stronger architectural presence because the stadium sits at the eastern terminus of East Capitol Street, one of Washington’s most important ceremonial corridors.
Despite those concerns, the commission granted preliminary concept approval and directed the team to continue refining the east and west entrances before returning for a final review.
Project leaders said the stadium remains on schedule. Design development is expected to be completed this fall, followed by below-grade construction work beginning in early 2027. The new stadium is scheduled to open in 2030.
To read more of this article, CLICK HERE
