Welcome to a new Washington Commanders season! Previously, in this spot we’ve run through a laundry list of stats and other things in the “Rehash,” “Burgundy & Gold Grab Bag” and the “Commanders Corner.” And just like the team, we can revamp/rebuild/reboot our day-after-the-day after coverage.
The “Commanders Four Down Coverage” begins with initial reaction to the game (FIRST DOWN) before looking at relevant connections with the rest of the league or another storyline (SECOND DOWN).
We then go back to an old standby, breaking down what the offense and defense did on THIRD DOWN.
FOURTH DOWN deals with “the Fourth Estate” or media. Who’s calling the games? And what broadcast/print/web matters do we find compelling?
But before we do that, we’ll deal with “FLYING FLAGS“: Where are the penalties coming from and against whom? And which whistle hurt Washington the most?
So without further ado, let’s get our first Four Downs with the Commanders underway:
The Washington Commanders aren’t alone after losing their opener to Tampa Bay 37-20. There are 15 other 0-1 teams in the NFL, and while there are a few teams that looked a lot worse (Carolina and the New York Giants), if one judges this team solely on its performance against the Buccaneers, they’ve got a long way to go before they even reach the “pretender” stage, let alone “contender” area.
A quick look at what went down Sunday on the Gulf Coast:
First Down: So this “rebuild” is going to take a little longer than one would hope?
All three phases had issues, from an offense that wasn’t able to get Terry McLaurin a target (let alone catch) until the third quarter, to a defense that allowed points seven of the first eight times they were on the field, to a kicking game that missed a pair of field goals while sending one kickoff out of bounds (the ball now goes to the other team’s 40 when that happens).
On that note, the kicking carousel spins once again with Cade York’s departure and Austin Seibert’s arrival. Formerly with Cleveland, Cincinnati, Detroit and the New York Jets, Seibert has converted 45 of 56 (80%) of his field goal attempts during his five-year career.
Second Down: Jayden Daniels was one of three rookies (all first-round picks) to start at quarterback Sunday, and the LSU product fared well in his debut, throwing for 184 yards while running for two touchdowns.
His passer rating of 93.1 was quite a bit better than No. 1 overall selection Caleb Williams (14 of 29 for 93 yards and a 55.7 rating) and No. 12 pick Bo Nix (138 yards passing with two interceptions for a 47.5 rating). The concern is that after running 16 times in the opener, Daniels is either going to be worn down by December or lost due to injury before then.
The Commanders were one of eight teams debuting a new head coach, and Washington was one of five teams to lose Sunday (Atlanta, Las Vegas, Carolina and Tennessee) to come up short.
The other NFC East teams each may be looking for a coach in the offseason, and Dallas (1-0) took the early division lead with a 33-17 drubbing of Cleveland. Philadelphia (0-1) lost in Brazil last Friday, while the New York Giants fell at home to Minnesota while wearing jerseys that simultaneously celebrated the franchise’s centennial plus saluting the Montreal Canadiens.
Third Down: Washington converted on 2 of 8 third downs, with Daniels completing 2 of 3 passes for zero conversions. The rookie scrambled twice, with one of those runs reaching the marker. He also had a planned run get into the end zone. The top target? Olamide Zaccheaus with two in completions. Terry who? Yardage breakdown: 2-4 on short-yardage, 0-1 when needing four to six yards, and 0-3 on long-yardage.
Defensively, the Commanders allowed the Buccaneers to move the chains on 9 of 13 attempts, with Baker Mayfield hitting 8 of 11 passes for eight completions. The guy they needed to and failed to cover? Chris Godwin caught all five passes thrown his way to move the chains.
Flying Flags: Washington was penalized seven times for 51 yards (with one flag declined). Four were on defense and two were on special teams, while one of the two whistles on offense was declined.
There was only one repeat offender, and Emmanuel Forbes’ flags were on the same play (pass interference and a face mask). That was the most costly flag (or flags) of the day, as it moved the Bucs from the 30 to the 4-yard line and they would score on the next play to make this a double-digit lead for the rest of the way.
Fourth Down: Washington drew FOX’s No. 4 team of Kevin Kugler and Daryl Johnston for the opener, and get Chris Myers/Mark Schlereth (No. 5 or 6, depending on your opinion) as the New York Giants come to Landover.
Kind of a surprise given the D.C. and NY market sizes, but lately we’ve been seeing the underbelly of both network rosters.
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