The Daily Slop – 8 October 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
Washington Post (paywall)
An offensive line in flux and more X-factors for Commanders vs. Giants
Losing right guard Sam Cosmi to a concussion in Week 2 created a domino effect for Washington’s offensive line. Nick Allegretti, who started the first two games at center, slid over to right guard to replace Cosmi. In his place, Lucas Patrick
— who only signed with the team three weeks ago — started at center. Then Allegretti was benched and replaced by Matt Gulbin at right guard.
Quinn said that wasn’t a permanent decision — and highlighted that Allegretti had been nursing a hip injury — but it was performance-based, nonetheless. Cosmi returned to practice Wednesday wearing a noncontact jersey. If he plays Sunday, that still leaves the Commanders with a decision at center.
There are three options: Stick with Patrick, go back to Allegretti or give Gulbin a shot.
Given how poorly Gulbin played last week, he feels like the least likely option. Patrick, meanwhile, has outplayed Allegretti — particularly in pass protection. Allegretti has allowed a pressure rate of 7.8 percent (146th among offensive linemen with at least 50 pass blocking snaps according to the analytics platform TruMedia). In comparison, Patrick has given up a pressure rate of just 2.7 percent (36th).
To read more of this article, CLICK HERE
The Athletic (paywall)
The 5 NFL teams most impacted by injuries in 2026, with the New York Giants at the top
We are not simply looking at which team has been hit with the most injuries; positions factor in greatly, as does the expected timeline of the absence. How expectations have changed is also a big part of it. For example, De’Von Achane is a great player, but he plays running back on a Miami Dolphins team that was one of the worst in the NFL with him, and remains one of the worst without him.
5. Washington Commanders: We aren’t just going by quantity for this list but the Commanders’ Wednesday injury report had 23 players on it, [BiB: To be fair, only 17 were limited or DNP; the other 6 practiced in full but were listed because they’d been on the Week 4 report] with 11 limited participants and six players who did not participate. They lost Daniels (again) for the short term in Week 2, then lost backup quarterback Marcus Mariota a couple of weeks later. For a team that was in the conference championship game a couple of years ago and is breaking in two new coordinators, injuries to this extent are a big hurdle.
1. New York Giants: The Giants are the only team that has lost their starting quarterback for the season, which almost automatically puts them in the top spot. New York is 3-1, which is a pretty place to be heading into Week 5, but the team’s ceiling in 2026 is greatly reduced with Jameis Winston or J.J. McCarthy compared to what it would [have been] with Jaxson Dart. Dart’s season-ending knee injury could also have residual effects on the franchise beyond this season. Losing Brian Burns for the season just cements the Giants in the top spot.
To read more of this article, CLICK HERE
ESPN
Commanders’ Jayden Daniels fully practices; expected to play on Sunday
Daniels will wear a brace that will keep his left elbow slightly bent, with the idea that it can prevent another dislocation.
During the portion of practice open to the media, Daniels took snaps from center Lucas Patrick in warmups and threw with more zip than last week. In other drills, a coach, kneeling, would hand the ball to Daniels, who took it with both hands and would pitch it to a running back.
Quinn said they would incorporate drills in practice to help him roll to the ground the way a running back would when clasping the ball.
But when asked if he’d run the same as in the past, [Daniels] responded, “Is it the fourth quarter? If it’s the fourth quarter, we’ve got to do something to win, right?”
He later said, “There’s ways you could talk about different ways of protecting myself. But I don’t, I don’t get hit in practice, so I wouldn’t know till Sunday.”
To read more of this article, CLICK HERE
Commanders Roundtable
3 key matchups to watch when Giants visit Commanders on Sunday
Washington’s Secondary vs. a Giants Offense Sorting Out Its QB Room
After weeks of getting torched through the air — surrendering a league-high seven touchdown passes in the first two games — the Commanders’ secondary had its best showing of the season in London. The defense held the Colts to 257 total yards and forced two turnovers. It wasn’t dominant, but the improvement was real, and the timing matters heading into a matchup where Washington’s back end should have every advantage.
Jameis Winston will be New York’s starter, and he’s everything you’d expect: experienced, capable of making smart throws, and prone to the kind of turnover-generating decision that keeps defensive coordinators up at night. Meanwhile, John Harbaugh has officially listed J.J. McCarthy as the backup, with the coaching staff noting his promotion is “definitely on the table.” Neither quarterback inspires fear heading into this game, even after getting blown out by McCarthy last season.
Washington’s corners need to carry the momentum from London into this one. If the secondary can hold Winston to underneath throws, force the Giants into third-and-long situations, and capitalize on the turnovers that tend to follow him around, the Commanders’ defense can keep this game in reach while Daniels shakes off the rust. The secondary’s trajectory this season has been upward. Sunday is a chance to prove London wasn’t a fluke.
To read more of this article, CLICK HERE
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The Athletic (paywall)
NFL Week 5 ATS picks
Last week’s record: 7-8-1 against the spread, 2-3 on best bets
Season record: 26-36-2 against the spread, 6-14 on best bets
New York Giants at Washington Commanders (-3.5) | 1 p.m. ET Sunday, Fox
Picking against Jameis Winston last week was a mistake — he always comes through when you think he is finally toast. It’s the next week that he reminds you how terrible he is. The Commanders get a boost from the return of Jayden Daniels — their offensive line has actually been better of late and might protect him — and the emergence of rookie Sonny Styles as one of the league’s exciting young stars.
The pick: Commanders
Bill-in-Bangkok: This week, I agree with Vic Tafur, and I have a much better record than he does:
To read more of this article, CLICK HERE
Commanders.com
Commanders vs. Giants preview | A test within the division
To read more of this article, CLICK HERE
Sports Illustrated
6 Winners, 5 Losers From the Commanders’ First Four Games
Sonny Styles
Washington clearly had high expectations for Styles when they used the No. 7 pick on him, but there is still a difference between drafting someone that high and immediately asking him to become a major part of an NFL defense.
Styles hasn’t needed much time.
Through four games, he has 20 tackles, a sack, an interception, and a forced fumble, with his best performance coming against Seattle
He has already played every defensive snap in multiple games, which may say more about how Washington views him than any individual statistic does.
The rookie treatment is basically over at this point. Styles is being asked to play like someone Washington expects to be around for a long time, and so far he has looked ready for it.
Josh Conerly Jr.
Young offensive tackles are going to have rough moments, and Josh Conerly Jr. has certainly had some of his own, but the fact that Washington’s right tackle position hasn’t become a weekly conversation is probably a pretty good sign.
Conerly was handed the job immediately, struggled as a rookie last season, and has taken a step forward in Year 2, earning a 70.1 pass-blocking grade from PFF through four games while allowing nine pressures over 169 pass-blocking snaps. There is obviously plenty for him to clean up, and nobody should be declaring the position solved after a month, but that’s not really the point.
Washington’s offensive line has already dealt with injuries, different combinations, and plenty of problems elsewhere. Conerly has stepped into one of the hardest positions for a young player to handle and hasn’t given the Commanders a reason to start looking for another answer.
That’s a win.
Offensive Continuity
David Blough probably couldn’t have drawn up a worse way to start his first season as an offensive coordinator if the goal was to actually establish some rhythm. Daniels injured his elbow against Dallas and hasn’t returned yet. Mariota stepped in, helped Washington beat Seattle, and then injured his knee against Indianapolis. That suddenly left Athan Kaliakmanis taking his first regular-season NFL snaps in London.
Then add Terry McLaurin, Sam Cosmi, Rachaad White, and the other injuries that have forced Washington to keep adjusting personnel around whoever is playing quarterback that week. Injuries are part of football, but Washington spent an entire offseason building an offense around certain players and has barely had a chance to see them all function together. At some point the offense still has to produce regardless of who’s available, but it’s hard to establish an identity when it keeps changing.
To read more of this article, CLICK HERE
The Athletic (paywall)
Ranking first-time offensive play-callers so far
5. David Blough, Washington Commanders
Points per drive: 1.78 (22nd)
EPA per play: -0.11 (26th)
Explosive play rate: 8.1 percent (27th)
Blough has certainly been tested this season. The Commanders oddly released center Tyler Biadasz in the offseason and Pro Bowl left tackle Laremy Tunsil tore his triceps in camp. Losing two offensive linemen of that caliber is especially hard on a team that wants to play under center more.
Jayden Daniels also went down with an elbow injury in Week 2 and his backup, Marcus Mariota, hurt his knee last week. Offensively, the Commanders went from playing under center on just 11.3 percent (last in the league) last season to 31 percent (27th) this season. The Commanders have run the ball with average efficiency from under center (15th in rushing success rate) but they’re much more explosive in shotgun when the quarterback is a threat to keep the ball (ninth in explosive run rate from shotgun).
Daniels and Mariota have been awful passing the ball from under center. On under-center dropbacks, Daniels EPA per dropback is -0.13 (30th) and Mariota’s is -0.73 (38th). Blough will be tested even if Daniels comes back this week because his mobility will be limited [Bill-in-Bangkok: His mobility? The brace is on his left elbow, now his left knee]. However, the Commanders parted ways with Kliff Kingsbury and went to Blough because they want Daniels to play from under center and become more of a pocket passer. The next few weeks will be a big test for Blough to show signs that he can help Daniels reach that goal and be productive doing just that.
To read more of this article, CLICK HERE
From Too Deep Zone:
Many teams have switched to under-center formations, and the various tactics that go with them, in the latest effort to imitate the McVay-Shanny family of offenses. Well, many NFL quarterbacks never played primarily under center in prep, college or the NFL. Many linemen rarely blocked for a quarterback taking seven-step drops from under center. Many running backs rarely lined up behind a quarterback and read blocking patterns under such situations. How many NFL players are now being asked to do things they didn’t do very often before because some former QB3 who worked for a guy who once worked for a Shanahan decided it was cool? The Rams and 49ers have been using such tactics for years and can at least draft with their under-center scheme in mind.
To read more of this Too Deep Zone article, CLICK HERE
Pro Football Focus (premium content)
Grading all 32 NFL first-round rookies after Week 4
Pick No. 7: WashingtonCommanders: LB Sonny Styles
- Overall Rookie Grade: 76.9 (Rank: 4/10)
- Principal Opponent: JonathanTaylor
- Week 4 Snaps: 49
- Week 4 Grade: 74.3
Styles put together a second consecutive solid performance despite all of the chaos surrounding him in Washington. He finished this week’s loss to Indianapolis as the Commanders’ second-highest-graded defensive player while making seven total tackles and three stops. He also allowed just two yards across three targets as the primary coverage defender.
To read more of this article, CLICK HERE
The Athletic (paywall)
A stat that tells a different story for every NFL team
New York Giants
Record: 3-1
Despite being a top-10 blitzing defense, the Giants rank 32nd in pressure percentage at 22.1 percent.
Dallas Cowboys
Record: 2-2
The offense has been as advertised this season, ranking tops in the NFL in three-and-out percentage, with only 13.9 percent of their drives featuring quick exits. They’re top-three in total offensive EPA, points scored and total touchdowns, among other categories. The defense has been on the opposite end, ranking bottom-three in total defensive EPA, third-down conversion and dead last in opponents’ scoring percentage per drive.
Philadelphia Eagles
Record: 2-2
Despite facing a blitz on 34.8 percent of dropbacks, the sixth-most in the league, the Eagles’ average time to throw is 3.32 seconds, which is the longest in the NFL. Among quarterbacks who have started all four games, Jalen Hurts has the fewest passing yards and the second-worst sack percentage at 9.5 percent, barely better than Malik Willis’ 9.6 percent.
Washington Commanders
Record: 1-3
The Commanders target wide receivers at a league-high 72.1 percent. Relatedly, they target the tight end in the passing game a league-low 13.2 percent.
To read more of this article, CLICK HERE
Podcasts & videos
Small Ways To Exploit This GIANTS Defense! | Film Breakdown Show | Washington Commanders | NFL
NFC East links
Bleeding Green Nation
Cam Jurgens trade: Eagles send center to Ravens for draft picks
With Jurgens gone and Lane Johnson retiring, the Eagles’ offensive line is clearly in flux. That’s not really ideal in the short-term. But Roseman’s trade signals that the team has a long-term focus in mind. While I don’t think the Eagles are ready to completely throw in the towel on the 2026 season, the Jurgens trade seems like an acknowledgement that 2026 might just be a down year for this franchise.
Safe to say no one saw this coming.
Coming off a down season in 2025 where he inexplicably still made the Pro Bowl, the Eagles were hoping Jurgens would bounce back in 2026. Along with fellow starting offensive lineman Landon Dickerson, Jurgens made an offseason trip to Medellín, Colombia for stem cell therapy. After beginning the season at his normal center position, the Eagles decided to move Jurgens to left guard with Dickerson massively struggling and landing on injured reserve after Week 1. To no surprise, Jurgens massively struggled at a new position where he had no previous experience. There were calls for the Eagles to bench him in favor of Willie Lampkin.
Jurgens was expected to miss Week 5 after self-reporting a concussion. But no one expected him to be off the Eagles’ roster entirely.
To read more of this article, CLICK HERE
Bleeding Green Nation
Is the Nick Sirianni era already over?
Andy Reid’s Dream Team went 7-1 over the final 4 games of 2011 and first 4 of 2012. He then went 1-11. Chip Kelly was 19-9 entering December 2014, he went 7-12 and didn’t finish 2015. Doug Pederson needed a 4 game win streak at the end of 2019 to make the playoffs, in 2020 he won 4 games all season.
Since starting last season 8-2, Sirianni is 5-7. When a head coach fails, there’s plenty of organizational blame to go around, it doesn’t happen in a vacuum. But the owner isn’t going anywhere, and the GM isn’t going anywhere either. The 2026 Eagles are looking like what the end of a coaching tenure looks like.
[T]he past two Eagles drafts are looking closer to the end of era hauls than they are depth providers. Makai Lemon hasn’t shown anything and the coaching staff doesn’t know what to do with him. Jihaad Campbell is still more theory than reality. Drew Kendall has done a nice job in a couple of games but already 4 of the 8 day three picks from 2025 are on other teams or out of the league.
New play caller failure
This has doomed Eagles coaches. A coach can’t really control injuries and bad draft picks, but coaching is coaching.
It was apparent early on that Brian Johnson wasn’t up to the job, it was apparent early on that Kevin Patullo wasn’t up to the job, and it sure looks like Sean Mannion isn’t either. The decision to move on from Jeff Stoutland has backfired. There’s only so many bad coaching hires one can make before their credit runs out.
Jeffrey Lurie has a quick hook
This is the 32nd full season under Jeffrey Lurie. Only twice has a head coach survived a losing season that wasn’t his first: Ray Rhodes’ 6-9-1 in 1997, he would be fired the next year; and Andy Reid’s miserable 2005. That’s a very short leash by Lurie, but none of the firings were mistakes. Ray Rhodes (Packers) and Chip Kelly (49ers) were immediately hired as head coaches but were one and done. Doug Pederson was fired after three seasons in Jacksonville. The Eagles won a Super Bowl before Andy Reid did.
Sirianni has never been beloved by his players. The heavier the hand he’s had in the coaching staff the worse the results, and not just on offense. His in-game coaching has been inconsistent at best. The Eagles started taking on water last season. If they are sinking to the bottom, there is no lifeboat for Sirianni.
To read more of this article, CLICK HERE
From Too Deep Zone:
I don’t think Jalen Hurts or anyone else is comfortable in Sean Mannion’s Packers-flavored offense. I also have no reason to trust Mannion. He was a third-string quarterback four years ago. He spent two years getting mentored by a coach whose offense reaches the red zone, then takes a wrong turn at Albuquerque. The Eagles may have settled for a coordinator that Sirianni didn’t consider a threat to his authority. And I have no interest in being “patient” with an offense, as an analyst or as a fan, when the whole point behind the coordinator change was to get a veteran-heavy offense back into Super Bowl contention ASAP.
I would strongly advise Jeffrey Lurie to fire Nick Sirianni and completely restructure the coaching staff, particularly on offense. Then I would draft offensive linemen in bundles.
The Eagles have one of the NFL’s youngest rosters and $43 million in paper cap space for 2027. The defense showed that it can still be excellent when not on the field all afternoon in Week 4 against the Rams. The Eagles need new ideas and a new mentality more than they need new guys.
To read more of this Too Deep Zone article, CLICK HERE
Over the Cap
Looking at the Salary Cap Impact of Lane Johnson’s Retirement
While this move comes four games into what looks like it will be a disappointing season for the Eagles, the overall impact of the decision should not be too far reaching for the Eagles. The Eagles had reworked a contract with Johnson in March of 2025 where they paid him an extra $8 million for the 2025 and 2026 seasons and give Johnson the chance to return in 2027 if he wanted to do so. His original contract was set to end in 2027 and the new one really just had 2027 as a paper year with the likelihood that they were moving on anyway.
The Eagles have generally pushed the cap charges as much as they can in their contracts and this one is no different, having used yearly option bonuses. In terms of prorated bonus money that is 100 earned the Eagles will need to account for $14.659 million this year and $25.53 million from future years. These are easily manageable numbers.
The question is how do the Eagles account for an option that should have been exercised this year for $21.7 million. By retiring Johnson is in breach of contract and likely will forfeit most of the bonus. Thus far about half of the bonus was likely paid to Johnson and the other half was to be paid in December. The team could opt to let him keep the first half of the bonus, maybe a portion of the bonus for games played or take back most of the bonus entirely. If Johnson does keep the bonus in full that would be added to the charges bringing the number for this year to $18.99 million and next year to $42.89 million which is a pretty big number.
The Eagles do have options with the timing as to when they take all of these cap charges. While Johnson has announced his retirement there is no reason the Eagles have to process that now. If he is keeping the bonus the team could simply keep him on the roster this year, have a 52 man roster, and then retire him on June 2 of 2027. That would allow the team to keep his cap charges this year intact, take $16.6 million in dead money in 2027, and then take $26.276 million in 2028. This would more or less play out the same as his original contract where he was going to be designated a post June 1 cut in 2027.
To read more of this article, CLICK HERE
Upcoming opponent – Giants
Commanders next game is at home vs NY Giants on Sunday at 1:00 pm
Big Blue View
NY Giants’ CB Deonte Banks is NFC Defensive Player of the Week
Deonte Banks has been named NFC Defensive Player of the Week after his game-saving interception for the New York Giants in Sunday’s 36-24 victory over the Arizona Cardinals.
Banks intercepted Arizona quarterback Jacoby Brissett on fourth-and-goal at the 4-yard line, returning the ball 98 yards for a touchdown.
Banks said after the game that he had called his shot during the week.
“They was giving me a tight end and a receiver set all day. I’ve been thinking a slant all day and they haven’t been giving it to me,” Banks said. “That time I just knew they were going to give it to me. It was just a matter of time because they kept running it.
“I knew I was going to take it. I’ve been calling it all week. I’m going to pick a slant this week.”
To read more of this article, CLICK HERE
Big Blue View
NY Giants at Washington Commanders, NFL Week 5: News, injuries, analysis, more
The Giants have the better record, but are still 3.5-point underdogs on the road, per FanDuel Sportsbook. All three of the Giants’ victories have come at MetLife Stadium.
In each of the last two weeks, the Giants have won games on last-second interceptions. In Week 3, Jevon Holland intercepted Cam Ward of the Tennessee Titans to seal a victory. In Week 4, Deonte Banks intercepted Jacoby Brissett of the Arizona Cardinals on a game-ending fourth-and-goal.
