Sam Howell Shines, Defense Struggles in Commanders Debut

The Washington Commanders hosted the Carolina Panthers in the team’s first preseason game yesterday. 

Although the outcome was not ideal – the Commanders lost 23-21 – the team learned a lot about its players and coaches.

Today, we hit on the positives and negatives from yesterday’s performance, as we chart the team’s progress heading into the season.

Positives:

1. Carson Wentz was largely efficient in his debut performance for the Commanders. He finished the game with a completion percentage of 70%, going 7/10 for 74 yards, and amassing these number mostly through check downs and reads later in his progression.

This has been a criticism of Wentz throughout his career – not taking the easy play and forcing the ball down field — therefore, it was nice to see Wentz play within the system. He did not play “hero ball” and took what the defense gave him.

Wentz did misfire on deeper shots to Terry McLaurin and Jahan Dotson in his limited time, but the errors weren’t egregious. In fact, on both attempts the WR had a fair attempt at the ball, but the defenders provided good coverage. The incompletions were not due to Wentz being erratic or inaccurate.

2. Brian Robinson had an impressive debut in his first professional game. The former Alabama product was decisive, and gained positive yardage on each of his attempts. His first attempt was a 10-yard gain, that moved the chains and instilled life into the offense. 

He also ran an effective screen a few plays later that displayed his soft hands and vision in the open field. 

3. You could make the argument that Sam Howell was the most impressive player on the field yesterday for Washington. Granted, he played against developmental players, but at this stage he is a reserve himself.

Howell manipulated the pocket, bought himself some time, and found the open receiver. He tallied 145 yards on 9/16 attempts, while also adding two rushing touchdowns in only one half of play.

Head Coach Ron Rivera has shared that Howell has been confident in camp, and feels like he “belongs” in the NFL. He showed it yesterday. 

4. Good health. The team made it through its first live performance without any major injuries to note. Washington had a good balance of exposing players to game time and maintaining good health. 

Around Full Press Coverage

NFL OPINION: Browns Quarterback Deshaun Watson Suspended Six Games

NFL: 2022 NFL Breakout Candidates: NFC North

NFL: NFL Rumors: Ndamukong Suh, Sean Payton, Sunday Ticket

FULL PRESS BETS: Early 2022 NFL MVP Odds: Bills’ Josh Allen Favored

FANTASY FOOTBALL: Fantasy Football Value Picks In Every Round

PODCAST: Full Press NFL Weekly Ep 39: Ep 39: Quarterback Contracts, Hill vs Adams, Top 5 QB

Negatives:

1. Although it is preseason, and the play-calling was largely vanilla, the defense was not as stout as I would have liked. Last season, the Commanders had the league’s 31st ranked defense on 3rd down conversion percentage (48.47%) and this trend continued yesterday. The Panthers converted on 11/16 third downs yesterday, a staggering 61% conversion rate.

If the team wants to compete for a division title this year, their ability to get off the field needs to improve.

2.Antonio Gibson has become a polarizing player for this fan base. On one hand, he achieved the 1,000 yard plateau as a rusher last season, proving that he is capable of producing in this league. On the other hand, he led the league in fumbles (6) for non- QBs. Gibson put the ball on the ground yesterday and it led to immediate points by the Panthers. 

This comes immediately after reports of fumbling issues in camp this week during red zone drills. It doesn’t help that he also had four attempts for two yards yesterday, an average of .5 yards per carry.

3.Cornerback Danny Johnson struggled in coverage as he served as the team’s nickelback. With Benjamin St-Juste as a gameday scratch, Johnson was thrust into the starting lineup and seemed outmatched. 

These growing pains would be fine if he was a rookie, but Johnson has been with the team for four years and still looked subpar. This is a larger concern highlighting the team’s lack of depth at cornerback. If the Commanders lose any of the starters for an extended period of time, they may be in trouble. 

4.Turnovers and negative plays. the Commanders had two turnovers (fumble and interception), and a missed extra point in their two-point loss. The team also had untimely penalties that called back large chunk plays, and prevented turnovers of their own.  With a team expected to be more middle-of-the pack this season, they need to clean up these issues before the season starts. For as we saw yesterday, the margin for winning is razor thin, and an error or two can cost you a game.