In this week’s Reacts survey, we asked three questions.
Confidence
The first was the standard question about confidence in the team’s direction that we have been asking for years. An overwhelming 97% of survey respondents answered that they are, indeed, confident in the team’s direction.
When we asked this question ahead of the opening game of the 2024 season, just 43% of fans expressed confidence in the team’s direction. What a difference a year makes!
No doubt, last year’s 12-5 record and 2 playoff
wins went a long way towards building up that confidence.
The confidence is reflected in the answers to the other two questions in this week’s survey that asked respondents to predict Washington’s record at the end of September, and to predict the team that would be leading the NFC East at the end of the month.
Commanders’ September wins & losses
94% of respondents predict a winning record or the Commanders, with about 2 of every 3 respondents predicting 3 wins, and another 1 in 5 expecting Washington to be undefeated at the end of the month. Only 2% of respondents expect the Commanders to be below .500.
Based on comments, the opponent perceived to be the most likely to inflict a loss on the Commanders in the first quarter of the season is the Packers. Washington travels to Green Bay for one of its two road games this month; that game is on Thursday night, just 5 days after the season opener.
NFC East leader after 4 games
Interestingly, nearly 60% of respondents predict that the Commanders will lead the NFC East at the end of the month. For that to happen, Washington would have to beat the Giants today.
With the Eagles having already beaten the Cowboys, they are the only team that could challenge Washington for the #1 spot this month if Washington wins at least 3 games. For Washington to finish September a the top of the division, Philly would either have to lose more games than Washington in Weeks 2-4 (Philly plays @Chiefs, Rams @Buccaneers), or the Commanders would need to have the tie-breaker advantage.
In any case, only 2% of respondents picked Dallas or New York to lead the division after 4 games. Nearly everyone voting in this poll seems to buy the narrative of the NFC East being a 2-horse race.
Point spreads
- Fan Duel has the Commanders favored by 6.5 points today, with an over/under of 45.5 points.
- At the moment, the Packers are early 3.5-point favorites for the Thursday night matchup in Week 2.
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