The Daily Slop – 2 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
Bullock’s Film Room (subscription)
Why the Commanders may be switching to a zone run game
The Commanders had a pretty successful run game under Kingsbury using those gap scheme runs, so why might Blough be looking to use more zone runs? Let’s break it down.
Personnel fit
The primary reason to switch a scheme, whatever that
scheme may be, is to fit the personnel that you have. When you look at a running game, the most important consideration for scheme fit are the offensive lineman available. The Commanders have built up an incredibly athletic offensive line over the past few years. Laremy Tunsil, Josh Conerly Jr. and Sam Cosmi are all excellent athletes. If Brandon Coleman wins the starting left guard spot, he’s a good athlete too.
Why highlight that athleticism up front? Zone run schemes typically require more athletic offensive lineman that are able to get defensive lineman running sideline to sideline while also being able to climb up to the second level to reach linebackers. Bigger, less agile lineman struggle to do both of those things consistently, but the four lineman named above all excel in those areas.
Commanders.com
Commanders 2026 opponent breakdown | Giants
- When is Malik Nabers coming back? Nabers’ injury that kept him sidelined for most of the 2025 season has taken longer for him to recover from than expected. The Giants still hope he can be ready for Week 1 in September, but head coach John Harbaugh said the injury itself was “not simple” and there isn’t a hard timeline for when he will be back in the lineup. What we do know is that Nabers was one of the most electric offensive players in the NFL in 2024 with 1,204 yards and seven touchdowns. The Giants did a lot in the offseason to elevate the talent level around Dart, but getting Nabers back could turn their receiver room into arguably one of the better groups in the division. Of course, it will take time for him to get back to full strength whenever he does get on the active roster, but he will be a key piece to any success the Giants have this upcoming season.
- Can Jaxson Dart protect himself? The Giants foresee a bright future for Dart, and the former first-round pick did plenty to get the franchise excited for him as their franchise quarterback. He had stretches where he was accurate with the football and only had five interceptions. He’s a threat with his legs, as he led the team in rushing touchdowns with 487 rushing yards. He also plays with reckless abandonment, which can be fun to watch but also puts his health at risk. He missed two games with a concussion, which led to Jameis Winston taking over in Weeks 11 and 12. Going forward, perhaps Dart’s biggest challenge will be learning how to balance his aggressive style with playing safer and staying on the field. Granted, it’s a lesson all players have to learn, but the Giants need to find a long-term answer at quarterback. They believe Dart could be that answer, but that can’t happen if he’s on the sideline for multiple games every season.
Commanders Roundtable
Bill Croskey-Merritt built for a bigger role for Washington in 2026
Everything about this offseason suggests the work has been done. The physical transformation is visible to anyone who has been at Ashburn. The mental approach has shifted too — Croskey-Merritt has been more decisive in practice, working specifically on his decisiveness through the line and his ability to keep first-down chains moving rather than waiting for the big play. “That’s where I feel like I’ve grown most in my game,” he said at mandatory minicamp. “I just gotta keep working and just being way better than last year. That’s my only goal — just winning and being a whole different version of myself.”
The Commanders have been clear that the backfield is a committee — Quinn said he doesn’t know whether they have a single “main guy” or even need one. White handles the third-down receiving role. Kaytron Allen projects as the short-yardage bruiser. McNichols sticks around for special teams. But Croskey-Merritt is the only back on the roster who was guaranteed a spot heading into this offseason, and the job of lead back is his to lose.
Commanders Wire
Previewing the Commanders’ tight ends ahead of training camp
New additions at tight end in 2026
- Chig Okonkwo: After spending his first four seasons with the Titans, the former University of Maryland TE signed with the Commanders as an unrestricted free agent. He catches the ball (194 receptions in four seasons). OC David Blough will no doubt be scheming to get the ball to Okonkwo.
- Anthony Firkser: Firkser is age 31 and has appeared in only seven NFL games. In eight NFL seasons, Firkser has been with the Titans, Falcons, Lions, Jets, Chiefs, and Lions again.
- Quentin Moore: Moore was undrafted out of the University of Washington this year. He stands 6-5 and weighs 260. He and Firkser may battle for a spot on the Practice Squad.
ESPN digs into the NFC East
NFC East: Can Cowboys, Giants or Commanders unseat Eagles?
What has been the most underrated move by your team?
Commanders
Washington made so many moves it’s hard to call many of them underrated — but a lot of the so-called splash ones have been discussed a lot: signing linebackers Odafe Oweh, K’Lavon Chaisson and Leo Chenal and drafting Sonny Styles. But I’ll go with signing veteran safety Nick Cross. Coordinator Daronte Jones’ system, if he copies what he did in Minnesota as pass game coordinator, calls for a lot of safety involvement — and having one who can be versatile. With the Vikings it was Josh Metellus, who would be moved around quite a bit. For Washington, that will be Cross. He was a bit overshadowed in the spring, but his importance could be evident in the fall. — Keim
Who wins the NFC East in 2026, from each reporter’s perspective?
Giants
The Cowboys? It’s weird to even say that considering how putrid their defense was last year. But Dallas has an explosive offense and a new defensive coordinator who, if he’s even competent, should be able to get something out of this Cowboys defense. He actually has some pieces to work with up front, too. Really, there is probably a realistic path for all four teams to win the NFC East this season. It’s a sneaky tough division for 2026. — Raanan
What is the biggest concern for your team?
Eagles
The offensive line has long been a strength of this franchise but took a step back last season, largely because of injury. Center Cam Jurgens and left guard Landon Dickerson never quite looked like themselves. Both went to Colombia this offseason to receive stem cell treatment in hopes of returning to form. All-Pro tackle Lane Johnson, meanwhile, was sidelined for the last eight games with a Lisfranc injury. Johnson and Dickerson pondered retirement in recent months. When healthy, this line is capable of historic achievements as demonstrated in ’24 with running back Saquon Barkley’s record-breaking season. But there are a couple of warning signs that the group may be in decline. The group needs to rebound to lead what has been mainly a run-dependent attack. — McManus
Podcasts & videos
NFC East Preview & Predictions | The Mina Kimes Show ft. Lenny
NFC East links
Blogging the Boys
Cowboys and Eagles dominate roster strength comparison across NFC East
If you sign 10 players with an average rank of 40, but lose 10 players with an average rank of 60, you’ve weakened your roster.
The Eagles faced a tough task in replacing four players with a positional ranking above 80, chief among them A.J. Brown, and from a Top 35 perspective were only able to replace those four “blue” players with four “green” players (60-80). As a result, the snap-adjusted rank declined quite a bit, from 57.4 for the players lost to 50.8 for the players gained.
[T]he Commanders…actually did quite well at the top of their acquisitions, with four players at 80 or above, but then added a lot of roster fillers, which resulted in a drop from 56.4 for the players lost to 49.4 for the players gained.
NFL league links
Articles
NFL.com
Caleb Williams will boost completion percentage in 2026 ‘just to shut everybody up’
Williams was then asked if something like his completion percentage, which even Johnson has said he’d like to see improve, was something critics might be correct about.
“I throw the ball away the most to try and keep us in advantageous positions because I know coach will go for it on fourth down,” he responded. “So, I’m not fearful of only having three downs. I also know our ability and how explosive we are, so I’m not fearful of, like I said, throwing out of bounds, dirting it. I obviously scramble and people count my scramble seconds of holding the ball, but it’s a bunch of different things that I can go into that I know that people speak about. Stats aren’t always something that you should look at. You should look at how they win games.”
His completion rate ranked 32nd out of 33 eligible passers in 2025, per Pro Football Reference, ahead of only J.J. McCarthy’s 57.6.
Even as he views some of those incompletions as part of how he runs the offense, Williams did admit he would like to increase that figure.
“Obviously I want to get that up, get the completion percentage up, but some of the things that I do on the field, it negatively impacts that,” he said. “But we’ll get it up this year just to shut everybody up and help everybody to understand.”
Pro Football Talk
6-foot-9, 268-pound Aussie Ben Te Kura quits rugby to pursue NFL career
Ben Te Kura, a 6-foot-9, 268-pound 22-year-old, was released from his contract by the Brisbane Broncos, who announced that they are respecting his wishes to begin training in America now in preparation for potentially playing in the NFL in 2027.
“I’m very grateful to the Broncos for everything they’ve done to support me in pursuing an opportunity in the NFL,” Te Kura said.
Te Kura is expected to bulk up and attempt to make it to the NFL as an offensive tackle. Te Kura’s agent compared him to Jordan Mailata, who went from playing rugby in Australia to becoming one of the best left tackles in the NFL.
For Australian rugby players who have the talent to make it in the NFL, the financial incentives to make the move are enormous: Mailata is on a three-year, $66 million contract. The highest-paid player in the National Rugby League makes a little under $1 million USD a year.
