Commanders links
Articles
A to Z Sports
‘He’s one of our league’s best competitors’ – It’s time to admit that the Deebo Samuel trade was the steal of the offseason
People doubted Deebo Samuel’s ability to still have an impact on an offense, but he’s shown just that, and even more than expected after the Commanders traded just a fifth-round pick for him.
It shouldn’t surprise anyone who was paying any attention this offseason, but Samuel has been having his best start to a season since 2021, and he’s already scored as many touchdowns as he did all of last season. Jayden Daniels trusts Samuel because of their time spent together this season, and he’s putting
up WR1 numbers.
Deebo Samuel 2025 Season Stats
- Week 1: 7 catches for 77 yards, 1 rush for 19 yards and a TD, and 50 kick return yards
- Week 2: 7 catches for 44 yards and a TD, and 78 kick return yards
- Week 3: 2 catches for 11, 3 rushes for 18 yards, and 93 kick return yards
- Week 4: 6 catches for 72 yards and a TD, 3 rushes for 9 yards
- Week 5: 8 catches for 96 yards and a TD
Samuel is the only player in the NFL to have all of 30+ catches, 300+ receiving yards, 45+ rushing yards, and four touchdowns this season. He’s also WR7 in fantasy football right now, and doesn’t look to be slowing down.
Heavy.com
Noah Brown : Back at practice
Commanders coach Dan Quinn said Wednesday that Brown (groin/knee) will participate in practice, Tashan Reed of The Washington Post reports. Brown will resume practicing Wednesday but Terry McLaurin (quadriceps) will not, per Quinn. A pair of injuries has kept Brown sidelined for three consecutive games, but he appears to be trending in the right direction for Monday’s home matchup against the Bears. When active for Washington’s first two games of the season, Brown handled just under 50 percent of offensive snaps and tallied a combined three catches for 36 yards on seven targets.
Pro Football Network
Terry McLaurin Injury Update: Will He Play in Week 6?
Washington did not practice on Tuesday, so there was some hope that McLaurin might get some practice time in on Wednesday.
However, that didn’t happen as McLaurin didn’t practice, and his progress is still being monitored by the Commanders’ medical staff. When asked about McLaurin’s status on Monday, though, Quinn did sound somewhat positive that his star receiver could return in time for their upcoming game.
According to a post on X from ESPN Commanders reporter John Keim, “Quinn said he’s ‘optimistic’ about Terry McLaurin for this week”.
On Wednesday, Dr. Jesse Morse offered some thoughts on McLaurin’s timeline to return to the field. “So Terry McLaurin has been dealing with a quad strain and probably a sports hernia for about the last month,” Morse said in his post on X. “Now they chose not to put him on IR, but there’s a possibility that they should have.”
Morse also mentioned that these types of quad strains can be “annoying and just not healing like you want it to.” He then went on to add that McLaurin may return this week, but he’s not confident about it, even though it’s a Monday night game against the Chicago Bears at home.
Washington Post (paywall)
Mailbag: How good are the Commanders?
What’s going on with Brandon Coleman? Does he have a future here? — @nicefellow31 on X
Tashan: It’s performance-based. The offensive line clearly has been better since Coleman and Nick Allegretti were benched in Week 3 in favor of Chris Paul and Andrew Wylie. One of those players will be headed to the bench once right guard Sam Cosmi is ready to return. Barring injury, it’s hard to see Coleman reclaiming a starting job this season. Still, he remains a useful depth piece who can step in at guard or tackle if needed.
Luke McCaffrey is reported to be very good at gaining separation, with high rates of separation noted by a couple of statistical agencies. … Why is he so limited in targets on a regular basis in our offense? — Paul Sims
Tom: I’m going to have to respectfully disagree with the premise that McCaffrey is wide open all the time. Stats about average separation can be skewed by extreme openness on a few plays — the touchdown catch against the Las Vegas Raiders on a blown coverage, for instance. All told, McCaffrey has nine targets and seven catches on 44 routes run — some of which had absolutely zero chance of leading to anything because of pressure or play design. I would argue that’s actually pretty good, in terms of looks. And he has made the most of those limited opportunities while also impressing on special teams and drawing praise for his blocking.
What are your thoughts on the tight end room? … Are they not getting open? Or are they more valued for their blocking at this point? — Jim Richardson
Tom: I’m going to answer this in two parts: with regards to Zach Ertz and with regards to everyone else. On Ertz: He went without a catch Sunday for the first time since 2014. It was a bit of an aberration. But if you check his stats, he is trending very closely to what he did in the first five games last season before coming on strong down the stretch. With the rest of the room, yes, I think their blocking is more valuable. That’s hardly unique to the Commanders. Most NFL teams look at their second, third and fourth tight ends as block-first guys who contribute on special teams. And Washington has arguably one of the best blocking tight ends in the league in John Bates. Overall, I think it’s a fairly strong room.
Commanders.com
Commanders vs. Bears preview | A Monday night rematch
Pro Football Talk
Bears CB Tyrique Stevenson: Commanders Hail Mary “definitely hurt”
Bears cornerback Tyrique Stevenson was interacting with fans when that snap occurred, which meant he was late reacting to Washington’s Hail Mary try and wound up tipping the ball to Commanders wide receiver Noah Brown for a memorable game-winning catch.
Stevenson was supposed to be covering Brown, which made him a focal point of criticism coming out of the game and the Bears going on to lose their next nine games as well meant that it was all but impossible to escape reminders of the play. On Wednesday, Stevenson said “the only thing I can do from then on is show my actions have changed so I can become a better man and a better football player on the field.”
“It was harsh, it hurt my feelings,” Stevenson said, via Gene Chamberlain of the Associated Press. “That’s the best way I can explain it — it just hurt my feelings being a football player and having one of those mistakes that’s going to linger around. Even when my son grows up, I’ve got to explain that to him. It definitely hurt.”
Commanders.com
Practice notes | For Commanders, last year’s Hail Mary is ‘last year’s story’
“It was awesome; we loved it,” Quinn said before Wednesday’s practice. “But it doesn’t apply to this week’s game at all unless we get into that exact scenario and that exact situation. Then we can talk about it.”
It was inevitable that the play would become a storyline for Monday’s game. Washington and Chicago entered the game as two of the better groups in the NFC, and in many ways, it was a significant moment for both teams; the Commanders improved to 6-2 and won six of their next nine games, while the Bears lost their next nine matchups and fired their head coach before the end of the season.
But the players have moved on from the play and prefer to keep it in the past.
“I don’t want to talk about it,” quarterback Jayden Daniels said after practice. “I’ll just leave that to last year. That speaks for itself.”
The Commanders don’t have time to reminisce about last year’s game, and they’re ready to turn the page.
“That Hail Mary ain’t gonna help us win a game on Monday,” Daniels said. “So, what’s the point?”
Podcasts & videos
Jayden Daniels vs Caleb Williams on Monday Night | Film Breakdown Show | Washington Commanders | NFL
NFC East links
Pro Football Talk
Giants have lost eight straight division games, longest current NFL streak
New York has lost eight straight NFC East games. It’s currently the longest losing streak in division games for any NFL team.
It’s also the Giants’ longest losing streak in the division since 1975-76, when it was a five-team group that included the Cardinals. The Giants finished 5-9 in 1975 and 3-11 in 1976.
The 4-1 Eagles are 7.5-point favorites against the 1-4 Giants. The Eagles lead the all-time regular-season series between the two franchises, 93-87-2.
On Sunday, the Eagles lost at home to the Broncos, and the Giants lost to the Saints in New Orleans. If the Giants can find a way to reverse the recent trend against their NFC East rivals, things could get interesting in the division.
Bleeding Green Nation
Eagles-Giants Game Preview: 5 questions and answers with the Week 6 enemy
What is the Giants’ biggest strength and biggest concern right now?
The biggest strength is the defensive foursome of Lawrence, Brian Burns, Abdul Carter and Kayvon Thibodeaux. The way they dominated against the Chargers is how the Giants drew it up. To be honest, though, Lawrence has had a down year to this point and figuring out how to maximize three quality edge defenders has been tricky.
The biggest concern is the wide receiver position without Malik Nabers, as I indicated about. Dart is a rookie quarterback with moxie, talent and mobility. He has a lot to learn, though, and he needs playmakers who can help him. Losing Nabers, the best one the Giants had, is devastating. Darius Slayton is OK, but had a horrific game vs. New Orleans. Wan’Dale Robinson is a good player, but limited in what he can do. Theo Johnson has potential at tight end. The Giants, though, don’t really have anyone who can bail their quarterback out.
Big Blue View
‘5 questions’ with Bleeding Green Nation: So, the Eagles have problems? Oh, really?
The defending Super Bowl champion Eagles, who are 4-1, have rich people “why don’t we look better while we are winning?” problems.
The two teams meet Thursday night at MetLife Stadium. While Giants fans can offer no sympathy, we turned to Bleeding Green Nation’s Brandon Lee Gowton to find out about those rich people problems in this week’s ‘5 questions’ segment.
The 2024 Eagles had a clear identity. The 2025 Eagles haven’t been able to rely on the same formula that heavily relied upon Saquon Barkley. This isn’t because Barkley looks worn down. Rather, it’s the offensive line who seems to be majorly feeling the effects of a massive run game workload last season. On that note, check out this recent quote from starting left tackle Jordan Mailata via PHLY’s EJ Smith:
“To be really honest, I felt like [crap]. It was the worst I’ve ever felt in an offseason. Usually it takes maybe a week or two for the aches and pains to go away. It lasted well over a month and into OTAs. Even [the 2023 offseason after Super Bowl LVIII], that lasted like two weeks.”
Mailata seemed to be dealing with some nagging issues back in training camp. Lane Johnson has missed snaps this season. Landon Dickerson is expected to miss Thursday’s game and perhaps Week 7 as well after suffering another injury on top of the ones he already was dealing with. Cam Jurgens had offseason back surgery and recently suggested he’s not quite 100%. The healthiest offensive lineman is starting right guard Tyler Steen, who was a backup for the Eagles last year.
Even with the offensive line and running game not being what it was last year, the Eagles still have too much passing game talent to not be more effective than they’ve been. It’s perplexing how the offense has failed to get A.J. Brown more involved. One issue for the Eagles is that they’re seeing a lot more zone and Jalen Hurts is struggling against those coverages. He’s been very good against man defense.
Of course, it’s not just about the players. The coaching staff factors in here as well. New offensive coordinator Kevin Patullo has drawn a lot of ire from Philly fans. There are questions if he’s doing a good job as a first-time play-caller. I think people would like to believe it’s as simple as getting a new OC and that magically fix everything. But that’s probably not the reality. There are some offensive issues that predate Patullo in this offense. The common denominator that goes beyond him is Nick Sirianni as head coach and Hurts and quarterback.
All told, there are a number of issues here but I’m hardly ready to say they’re insurmountable. It’s possible this offense gets clicking at some point.
Blogging the Boys
An improving defense will be the key for the Cowboys to make a push for the playoffs
This season, the Cowboys’ defense has had trouble getting off the field as well as being susceptible to big plays. They are the worst in the league in the following categories…
- yards allowed per game = 412
- passing yards allowed per game = 285
- third down conversion rate = 55%
Currently, they are fourth-worst in the league, surrendering 30.8 points per game.
On the other side of the ball, we are witnessing an offense that is moving up and down the field with relative ease. The Cowboys lead the league in yards. They are top three in passing yards and top four in rushing yards per attempt. They are balanced. No team in the league has more first downs than the Cowboys. They are fourth-best in the league, scoring 30.2 points per game.
Unfortunately, all the issues on defense hinder all the great things on offense, and the Cowboys find themselves with a .500 record after five games. If the team is to turn a corner, it must find a way to improve on defense.
Upcoming opponent
Bears Over Beers: Chicago Looks For Revenge Against Commanders
NFL league links
Articles
ESPN
2025 NFL rookie running back reports
This is a special class of rookie running backs. Throughout the NFL draft cycle this past spring, there was a steady stream of comments from draft analysts and team executives alike on the talent and depth about to hit the NFL at halfback. Organizations then drafted 25 running backs in Green Bay, including four top-40 picks. By the Jimmy Johnson value chart, it was the most draft capital teams had spent on running backs in a given draft since 2018, when the Giants used the second pick on Saquon Barkley.
Through five weeks, those backs have been off to a wildly impressive start. In my quarter-season awards column last week, I mentioned that rookie running backs combined to rack up 737 rushing yards in Week 4, the most by any set of rookie backs in any week of September football since the 1970 merger. Week 3 ranked sixth by that same measure, and Week 5 wasn’t far behind. It’s rare to see so many rookie backs impacting games this early in the season. Overall, rookie runners have racked up 2,542 rushing yards through Week 5, good for the 10th most of any class since the merger.
[R]ookies have 18.1% of running back yardage so far, the fourth-highest rate for any rookie class through five weeks since the merger. (And two of the three years ahead of them are anomalies: The 1987 season was hit by a September strike — meaning many of the “rookie” backs who stepped in and racked up yardage were short-term replacement players — and the 1993 season was the only one in NFL history with two bye weeks, leading to a stretch where some of the league’s leading veteran rushers had early weeks off. Emmitt Smith, who had won the rushing crown the year before, also held out for the first two games of the year.)
Jacory Croskey-Merritt, Washington Commanders
Drafted: Round 7, No. 245
Stats: 43 carries, 283 yards (6.6 per attempt), four rushing TDs
EPA per rush: 0.18 (first of 34)
Success rate: 60.5% (first of 34)
First in EPA per play and first in success rate? That’ll play. Croskey-Merritt hasn’t been given the lead role in the same way that these other backs have so far this season, but he has been incredibly efficient and effective in the role he has played. The last back chosen in the 2025 draft, Croskey-Merritt hardly looks like a seventh-round pick. After playing just one game in his final college season because of eligibility issues, it looks like the Commanders found a real jewel who slipped through the cracks of the draft process.
Everybody would love to gain 30-plus yards on their runs and keep hitting explosives game after game, but unless you’re Barkley in 2024, that’s not going to happen. There’s real value in being a guy who can consistently gain steady chunks of yardage, either picking up first downs or opening up the entire playbook on second- or third-and-short.
Croskey-Merritt has been that guy for the Commanders. Twenty-one of his 43 attempts this season have gone for six or more yards, a near-49% clip. To put that in context, nobody else with 40 carries or more has hit that 6-plus-yard figure on more than 35% of their rush attempts. All of those runs have generated positive expected points for the Commanders. That’s not going to deliver the sort of highlight-reel runs we’ve seen from guys like Hampton or Judkins this season, but it’s steadily driving value for the Commanders and putting them in advantageous spots, down after down.
There’s an obvious decisiveness and vision to Croskey-Merritt’s game. While he had a couple of touchdowns on outside zone runs against the Chargers in Week 5, he is typically driven to get upfield quickly. That’s not always great if the RB is beating his blockers or running into defenders, but Croskey-Merritt strikes the right balance between patient and accelerating quickly when he spots an opening. He has been effective at making the right cut at the line of scrimmage to get upfield and then, as needed, another cut or subtle move entering the second level to create extra yardage.
The Commanders have had some success using six offensive linemen with Croskey-Merritt on the field, and he has thrived in their counter game, where Washington pulls two players and asks Croskey-Merritt to find a running lane after it has struck. Even amid what can be messy blocking situations at times, Croskey-Merritt has a really solid knack for finding the right place to go with the football, turning what could be an indecisive run for no gain or 1 yard into a successful carry for five or six.
There’s not the same sort of highlight-reel speed or tackle-breaking ability from other players in this class, but Croskey-Merritt isn’t some one-speed zone runner, either. Watch his longest run against the Chargers last week and you see “Bill” shrug off a tackle around the neck from star safety Derwin James Jr., shrug off another tackle attempt, change fields and then run all the way to the opposite sideline for a big gain.
It’s unclear if offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury and coach Dan Quinn want to use anyone as an every-down back given how they’ve operated since joining Washington, and until Croskey-Merritt convinces them to think otherwise, he’s going to be limited to early-down work. Given how wildly efficient he has been in that role, I’m not sure that’s the worst thing in the world.
Pro Football Talk
Pete Carroll suggests that he’s not satisfied with Chip Kelly’s play calling
Raiders head coach Pete Carroll suggested when asked about his offense’s struggles that he wants to see better play calling from offensive coordinator Chip Kelly.
Asked what the Raiders have to do to get quarterback Geno Smith on track, Carroll said Smith would benefit from the Raiders calling more running plays.
“We have to run the football better, more,” Carroll said. “And we’re going to continue to work at it and see if we can’t continue to bring it to life. The running game has looked well in order right now, we need to get more of them. That’s part of it. That’s just mixing football. That’s how you do it. We don’t ever want to rely on the quarterback has to do the whole show, sitting in the shotgun, throw the football. Never coach that way. So we have to mix our stuff so we can use our play action game.”
Carroll then said running back Ashton Jeanty can play well when he gets opportunities, and noted that Smith isn’t the one calling the plays.
“I was pleased with how we saw Ashton come to life on the edge,” Carroll said. “He made some nice plays and stretched the defense and put some threat on them with that. And we’ve got to make sure that we’re calling all the best stuff in the situations. He’s not calling the plays. We’ve got to call them and we’ve got to make sure and get him in the right spots and give him the best chance to stay out of harm’s way. Part of that is really controlling the game with what we do in front in the running game.”
Carroll didn’t mention Kelly by name, but that’s who’s in charge of the Raiders’ offensive play calling. If Carroll wants the Raiders to call better plays, that means Carroll wants Kelly to do his job better.
Front Office Sports
NFL Viewership Reaches Highest Level Since 2010, Up 8% from 2024
Through its own rising popularity and new Nielsen methodology, the NFL is expanding its dominance across U.S. television.
The league concluded Week 5 with an average per-game viewership of 18.58 million, the highest level at this point of the season since 2010, and the second-largest such mark on record. The current figure is also up 8% from the comparable average last year and up 9% from 2023.
- CBS garnered its best Week 5 singleheader viewership since it regained NFL rights in 1998, averaging 19.6 million viewers for an early-afternoon window led by coverage of the Broncos-Eagles game.
- Fox averaged 20.3 million viewers for its America’s Game of the Week broadcast of Commanders-Chargers, helping fuel a 3% increase so far this season in that key late-afternoon Sunday slot.
- ESPN averaged 22.3 million for the Monday Night Football matchup between the Chiefs and Jaguars, by far the most-watched Week 5 MNF contest since it began airing those games in 2006. The Chiefs-Jaguars broadcast also ranks as the No. 10 most-watched NFL game of the season.
The top overall game of the season remains the Week 2 clash between the Eagles and Chiefs that averaged 33.8 million viewers and was a rematch of Super Bowl LIX in February.
Discussion topics
ESPN
2025 NFL season: Ranking all eight divisions in NFC, AFC
4. NFC East
Combined FPI rating: 2.1 overall (fourth)
- Philadelphia Eagles: 4.3 (fourth in NFL)
- Washington Commanders: 3.5 (sixth)
- Dallas Cowboys: 1.3 (15th)
- New York Giants: minus-7.0 (30th)
There’s a lot going on here. The Eagles are the defending Super Bowl champions and have FPI’s No. 1 defense by a decent margin over second-place Houston. But they also have the 11th-best offense (which feels generous, honestly) and the toughest remaining schedule, and they are the defending champions in a division that hasn’t had a repeat winner in 21 years. People laugh when I bring that up, but the fact is something literally always happens, just as it did to the Eagles two years ago when that streak was on the verge of ending.
The Commanders, led by sensational second-year QB Jayden Daniels, have the No. 5 offense, the No. 18 defense and the eighth-easiest remaining schedule. The Cowboys, who rank fourth in FPI offensively but 31st in FPI defensively, have the exact kind of Jekyll and Hyde look you’d expect from a team with that description. And the Giants, who have consistently been one of the league’s worst teams for more than a decade, are last in FPI by offense and 23rd in FPI by defense. They have already turned the operation over to rookie quarterback Jaxson Dart, with the fifth-hardest remaining schedule and no Malik Nabers (the wide receiver has a torn ACL).
Philly and Washington each carry as much upside as any team in the league, and Dallas could be dangerous if it gets the defense together. But the Giants drag this division out of contention for the top spot, as they feel very, very far away from being a playoff team.
The Athletic (paywall)
Brian Daboll, Mike McDaniel and other NFL coaches who could be on the hot seat
For some coaches, the writing is already on the wall. Their dismissals seem like a matter of when, not if. Others find themselves in precarious situations and grasping at straws in hopes of improved fortunes. And then, there are always a couple of surprise moves looming.
Here’s a look at how things look on the hot seat front just more than a month into the season.
Writing’s on the wall
Brian Callahan, Tennessee Titans
Callahan and the Titans miraculously pulled off their first victory of the season, rallying from a 21-3 deficit to beat the Arizona Cardinals 22-21. Callahan can thank Jonathan Gannon’s squad for committing a slew of self-inflicted mistakes, and for a day or two, the air in Nashville will lighten. But there’s so much wrong with the operation and execution of this Titans team, and it appears as if Callahan is in over his head.
Grasping
Brian Daboll, New York Giants
The former Bills offensive coordinator already entered this year on thin ice after a failed Daniel Jones experiment — which only looks worse and worse by the day as the former Giant is now playing like a star with the Colts. Daboll needed to guide the Giants back to relevancy in the NFC East this year, but thus far, his team has continued to struggle. With Russell Wilson wildly ineffective, Daboll opted to play the final cards in his back pocket: turning to Jaxson Dart as the starter. Dart did help the Giants to their first win of the season in Week 4, but a rash of turnovers from the young gunslinger cost the Giants against the previously winless Saints. If Dart can ascend (even with top wide receiver Malik Nabers lost for the season), Daboll can sell hope and possibly earn himself another year. If this season ends disastrously, he’s likely gone.
