Daronte Jones just experienced his first NFL game as a defensive coordinator.
The new Washington Commanders defensive coordinator had a nail-biter for his first time in this role. Jones has plenty of experience in both college and the NFL, but never with this much power or this much at stake for his career. He was asked Friday, meeting with the press, how he thought his defense played in their Week 1 loss at Philadelphia, 24-22
“I thought the guys played hard. I thought they played with some physicality. They tried to execute the plan to the best of their ability. And I thought the guys came out fast. If you look at both the first half and the second half, we were able to get stops immediately. I thought the guys played with great energy.”
He’s
correct. The Eagles’ first two drives were 6 plays, 13 yards, punt, and 4 plays, -11 yards, punt. Then, to begin the second half, the Commanders forced the Eagles into three consecutive 3-and-outs, resulting in punts each time. Jones voiced Friday that he was satisfied, calling the effort good and a solid start to the season. “Obviously there are a lot of things to clean up on the tape. It was a step in the ... it was okay, it was solid.”
It was solid, as the Commanders recorded 10 tackles for a loss, most in the NFL in Week 1. However, the aggressive scheme also meant that if the Commanders didn’t make the play at the line of scrimmage, they surrendered big plays...too many of them. They surrendered runs of 42 and 22 yards and passes of 64, 43 and 31 yards.
“The game came down to the chunk plays, keeping the chunks off of the tape, and being successful and efficient on the weighty downs. I thought that is where we lacked, and we have to definitely improve in those situations. Having the awareness of down and distance, disciplined rush lanes, that’s going to help tremendously for us. Finishing plays and not assuming anything is going to be huge for us.”
Jalen Hurts on throws of 10+ air yards yesterday:
— Victor Williams (@ThePhillyPod) September 14, 2026
• 6/9
• 176 yards
• 3 TDs
• 149.3 rating pic.twitter.com/FKHdo20b8O
The finishing plays bring to mind the struggles of corner Mike Sainristil, but also the Commanders giving up that last touchdown, being slow to start the play when they pointed out to officials what they thought was a false start. Finally, the 3rd & 18 when Eagles QB Jalen Hurts ran for 22 yards to get a first down. That was a definite play of the game defensively for Washington.
The Cowboys have Dak Prescott throwing to explosive receivers George Pickens and CeeDee Lamb. In last season’s game in Dallas, Prescott threw three touchdown passes with zero interceptions, completing 21 of 30 passing attempts for 264 yards and a 130.4 passer rating in the 44-22 win over the Commanders. Pickens and Lamb had their way, with Washington’s secondary accumulating 110 and 82 receiving yards, respectively.
Jones and his secondary will need a lot of help putting pressure on Prescott if the Commanders are going to have a chance Sunday against the Cowboys offense.
This article originally appeared on Commanders Wire: How did Daronte Jones feel Commanders' defense fared in Week 1 vs Eagles?
