What a freaking win.
And what a turnaround from a week ago, whenour Week 2 Commanders report card started with: “What an absolute disaster.”
The Commanders went from a devastating loss to Dallas where Jayden Daniels got hurt to beating the Super Bowl champion Seattle Seahawks 33-31 seven days later.
What a turn. No way that happens without resolve, resilience and (come on, admit it) good coaching.
The Commanders would’ve been 0-3 without all that. While Washington still sits at 1-2, there’s a big break
between those records.
“I knew coming into this that we were going to be tested,” Commanders head coach Dan Quinn told on-site reporters during his postgame press conference. “The 0-3 test and the 1-2 test – both don’t sound great on paper but they feel a lot different. We didn’t need belief but we needed to execute it and give ourselves a real good shot at it.
“For the guys who are stepping in a being able to deliver, that’s a really big deal.”
The Commanders were not perfect by any stretch, but they were tough and competed like heck. Let’s dig into some of those performances in this Week 3 Commanders report card:
Rushing offense
We knew it was going to be tough sledding against the Seahawks front seven, which had allowed 3.7 yards per carry heading into Week 3. The Commanders were inefficient as heck, with 2.6 yards per carry.
It was important that Washington stayed committed to it, to the tune of 32 carries overall. And, when Washington absolutely had to have it on the victory-securing final drive, the run game came through. Rachaad got 19 yards on third-and-9 that forced Seattle to burn all its timeouts.
Then, on the next third down, with a chance to ice, it Marcus Mariota kept it on a read option and got the first down that led to victory formations.
That took gumption and helped secure the game.
Grade: C-plus
Passing offense
We know who Mariota is at this point. The veteran backup quarterback will get you in the right play. He’ll push the ball down the field, yet protect the football, even with an unspectacular completion percentage. That’s exactly what Mariota did, completing 19-of-31 passes for 183 yards, but…with three touchdowns and no picks.
Terry McLaurin was a monster in this one, with six catches for 77 yards and a score on nine targets. Rookie Antonio Williams had some regrettable moments (a dropped touchdown, a TD-negating penalty) that he’ll learn from.
Mariota connected with nine different receivers on the game, getting everyone involved. The Commanders allowed three sacks but generally seemed to protect Mariota well despite injuries to Sam Cosmi and a new center Lucas Patrick with Nick Allegretti moving to guard.
The stats weren’t otherworldly, but Mariota made it work when it mattered most in Sunday’s win.
Grade: A-minus
Rushing defense
We naturally think of creative pressure being the signature of a Daronte Jones defense, stopping the run may be this group’s calling card. They allowed 2.4 yards per carry against a Seahawks team that can get after it on the ground, making every run hard with a strong push up front, fast linebackers and a secondary committed to stopping the run.
These are all pluses for Washington as we move forward.
Grade: A
Passing offense
Jaxon Smith-Njigba is the known as the NFL’s best receiver for a reason. He couldn’t be stopped even when the entire DMV knew he’d be targeted, something clear on a late Seahawks touchdown drive that kept things close. The Commanders were able to pressure Darnold somewhat – they had five QB hits – but never sacked him.
The penalty on K’Lavon Chaisson – you know which one I’m talking about — was an absolute farce. Cornerback Amik Robertson was a force to be reckoned with, but secondary can’t be considered good allowing 379 yards and four passing touchdowns.
Mike Sainristil barely played but still made a fatal mistake. He’d be relegated to special teams if Washington had better options. Washington has faced three good passers to this point, but there are too many explosives, too many completions to tight ends and not enough plays on the ball to this point.
The takeaways are a plus, and interceptions by Sonny Styles and Kain Medrano’s pick six (and the magnitude of them) saves this phase from another awful grade.
Grade: C
Special teams
Drew Stevens came up huge at the end of the first half with a 57-yard field goal and punched another through from 36. Tress Way was so close to placing one within the 5-yard line had Tyler Owens not slid over the goal line, but he dropped three punts inside the 20. The return game didn’t have many shots to get going.
Grade: B
Coaching
We’ll see how things looked on film review, but my gut says offensive coordinator David Blough called an excellent game. He worked well with Mariota and found ways to get so many involved. The third-down runs mentioned above were excellent calls.
Daronte Jones emphasized turnovers and applied the pressure required to get them. He’s working with a lackluster secondary but is finding ways to stop the run consistently.
And say what you want about head coach Dan Quinn, but he got Washington through a rough week where the sky seemed to be falling and beat Super Bowl champs. That’s culture, right there.
Grade: A-plus
