Category: NFL PRESEASON

Commanders announce inactives ahead of preseason game vs. Chiefs

The inactive list for the Commanders in their preseason game vs. Chiefs.

The Washington Commanders face the Kansas City Chiefs in game two of preseason action from Arrowhead Stadium on Saturday afternoon.

Ahead of Saturday’s game, the Commanders released their list of players who will not participate. Some players on the list are battling injuries, such as tight ends John Bates and Cole Turner, while running back J.D. McKissic and offensive tackle Charles Leno don’t need to play.

Here is the complete list:

  • RB J.D. McKissic
  • TE Curtis Hodges
  • TE Cole Turner
  • T Rashod Hill
  • G Andrew Norwell
  • T Charles Leno Jr.
  • G Nolan Laufenberg
  • G Trai Turner
  • TE John Bates

Hodges is a surprising scratch. He was expected to split plenty of time with fellow rookie Armani Rogers. Norwell, Turner and Schweitzer, Washington’s top three guards, are all battling injuries.

The Commanders also announced some lineup changes for Saturday’s game:

  • Cornelius Lucas will start at left tackle
  • Aaron Monteiro will start at right guard
  • Saahdiq Charles will start at left guard
  • Armani Rogers will start at tight end
  • James Smith-Williams will start at defensive end

This game presents major opportunities for players like Charles, Monteiro and Rogers. Charles will likely make Washington’s roster, but it’s far from guaranteed. Monteiro is competing for a roster spot.

Commanders must protect Carson Wentz

Can the Commanders protect Carson Wentz with several injuries on the offensive line?

Ron Rivera is absolutely correct to be concerned about Carson Wentz’s playing time Saturday.

During Thursday’s time with the media, Rivera implied and then confirmed with the Commanders top three guards (Andrew Norwell, Wes Schweitzer, Trai Turner) all being injured and doubtful for Saturday, maybe it would not be such a good idea to have Carson Wentz out there too long.

Carson Wentz has a big arm, and the Commanders have good speed at wide receiver, but it takes more time if you are going to go deep. What if Wentz would not have much time Saturday? Might Scott Turner elect to provide Wentz just a couple of possessions with strict orders he is only to take the three and five-step drops and quickly get rid of the ball.

Since the trade for Wentz was made on March 9, many in Philadelphia and Indianapolis made sure Washington fans thought Wentz was an emotional snowflake. Even worse, Colts owner Jim Irsay criticized Wentz heavily, calling him “a mistake,” and word leaked out that Irsay felt Wentz was not a leader because Wentz had not been vaccinated.

Months later, the Commanders have had their mandatory and voluntary workouts, and now training camp has also concluded. Wentz has been a leader. He has remained positive, resolute and quietly determined. He has not resembled a player difficult to coach, as we were told he had been in his previous two NFL homes.

Don’t forget, Commanders fans, that you have not had winning seasons since 2015 (9-7) and 2016 (8-7-1). Commanders fans hated on Kirk Cousins and blamed him for the collapse of the 2016 playoff hopes. Yet, isn’t it time to admit Washington has not even sniffed a winning season since those two Cousins seasons?

For all of the criticism, both locally and nationally, Wentz has endured in his short time in the burgundy and gold, he has shown himself capable of handling it.

Carson Wentz is an upgrade at the quarterback position to what Washington has had since Cousins. Who could blame Rivera if he determines to play Wentz very little Saturday? So why risk Wentz taking a shot to his throwing shoulder? Isn’t it more important for Wentz to be healthy and ready to go in Week 1 against the Jaguars?

6 Commanders players to watch in preseason Week 2 vs. Chiefs

Six Commanders to watch in Saturday’s preseason Week 2 game vs. Chiefs.

The Washington Commanders are on the road for Week 2 of the preseason with a trip to Kansas City to play the high-flying Chiefs. Kansas City head coach Andy Reid said the Chiefs could play the entire first half, meaning the Commanders’ defense will get a good look at Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce.

Meanwhile, Washington coach Ron Rivera said he’d “ideally” like to play his starters for a half; however, injuries could make that impossible. The Commanders have injuries to their top four tight ends and top three guards. Most of the injuries aren’t serious and are of the soft-tissue variety, but the injuries have created a lot of shuffling for Washington recently.

For several young players, the injuries create opportunities. Here are six Commanders to watch vs. Kansas City on Saturday.

Commanders will face a strong test in Kansas City

The Chiefs represent a tough matchup for the Commanders, which is terrific for a preseason game. We preview the Chiefs vs. Commanders.

The Washington Commanders might just have their hands full and more Saturday in Kansas City.

The Commanders have several injuries making them thin at tight end and offensive guard. Coach Ron Rivera didn’t shy away from admitting he was concerned with how much of a risk it might be to have Carson Wentz out there too much as well.

On the other hand, Chiefs coach Andy Reid said most of his starters could play the entire first half. The exceptions at this point seem to be receivers JuJu Smith-Schuster and Mecole Hardman, as well as defensive lineman Chris Jones, who are nursing injuries.

The Chiefs finished 12-5 in 2021, winning the AFC West. Commanders fans may recall Washington hosted Kansas City on October 17 in a Week 6 contest. When Taylor Heinicke connected with Ricky Seals-Jones for a 39-yard touchdown pass, Washington had gained their first lead of the game (13-10) with 1:18 remaining in the first half.

Some will recall, leading 13-10 in the third quarter, Washington reached the Kansas City 20-yard line. After a four-yard loss, Dustin Hopkins missed a 42-yard field goal attempt which would have extended Washington’s lead to 16-10. The Chiefs then proceeded to outscore Washington 21-0 the rest of the way, running away from the home team for a 31-13 victory.

The following week, Rivera released Hopkins, who was then signed by the Chargers. Hopkins remained the Chargers kicker for the remainder of the 2021 season.

Patrick Mahomes returns as the starting quarterback after passing for a mere 4,839 yards last season. Tyreek Hill (1,239 yards) was the leading receiver for the Chiefs but was traded in the offseason to Miami for a boatload of draft choices.

Speaking of the draft, did you notice the Chiefs may have enjoyed one of the NFL’s best drafts this past April? The Chiefs with four selections in the first two rounds grabbed names that draft geeks (like myself) will certainly recognize. Trent McDuffie (Washington CB), George Karlaftis III (Purdue DE), Skyy Moore (Western Michigan WR) and Bryan Cook (Cincinnati CB) all received the call from Kansas City. Their third-round selection was physical Wisconsin linebacker Leo Chenal.

The Chiefs had playoff wins over Pittsburgh (42-21) and Buffalo (42-36) before losing in the AFC Championship Game to the Bengals (27-24). Though Hill is now a Miami Dolphin, the trades and draft may result in the Chiefs being better than they were last year.

But before I get carried away, this is only a preseason game.

 

 

Commanders special teams coach Nate Kaczor always looking for willing players

Nate Kaczor offered excellent insight into some of his special-teams decisions on Thursday.

Being an NFL special teams coach is not an easy task.

Nate Kaczor appeared before the media Thursday as Washington prepares to travel to Kansas City for a 4 p.m. ET Saturday game at Arrowhead Stadium.

One of the obstacles for Kaczor is the NFL now schedules one less preseason game, thus an entire game of reps is completely lost for players trying to make the team through their performance on special teams. It also means the units might be less prepared for the regular season.

“It’s well noted that we’ve got some players that hadn’t been on special teams reps the day we had pads on because we’re running outta opportunities to have padded reps. The last thing you want for a player that maybe hasn’t been a core special teams’ player, the first padded rep they get is against Jacksonville (Week 1).”

Kaczor was pleased with some aspects of the return units last week against Carolina:

” Dax (Milne) had a nice 12-yard punt return that was just taken advantage of a really good punt, but we had a good blocking on that left side, and he snuck down the left sideline. So probably better blocking on part return then kickoff return in that first game.”

When asked about the team moving on from Troy Apke, Kaczor was clear, he provides input, but all personnel decisions are made by Coach Rivera and management. “Troy is a player that has played good for us, but we just felt like at this time that there were players competing for that spot. Like I said, I’d defer to coach on answering that question, but we appreciate what Troy has done.”

Who might take Apke’s role on coverage teams this season?

“The guys that aren’t starting in those subpackages (Nickel and Buffalo), any of those down below that line that can run fast would be gunner candidates. Right now, two of the young ones we’re looking at that have not been around on defense would be Christian Holmes and Percy Butler.”

Regarding Antonio Gibson seen working in some special team units, “I’ll emphasize this because I don’t think a lot of people realize this, people may see Antonio practicing special teams and go ‘oh, you know, the offensive running back race.’ He’s approaching it as a professional as, ‘I need to get ready just in case I’m playing’ and professionals want to be prepared. That’s an impressive part of Antonio, he has approached this with a great professional attitude realizing, ‘I don’t want my first special teams rep on punt to be against the Jaguars in the regular season opener.’ So whether he’s out there or not, he wants to be prepared and that’s admirable.

One of the challenges for Kaczor is being given players for his units who are frustrated or down because they are not position starters. “A lot of times as a special teams coach, I might be dealing with a player who’s dealing with some disappointment on a role change on offense or defense. Sometimes when they walk in my office they’ve been told by an offensive or defensive coach that maybe the other guys going to start. So I’m not dealing all the time with guys that are just all excited to be talking to me and it’s for our job to get them excited about embracing that role.”

The former center at Utah State was asked about competition for punt returner. “Anyone that you see at practice catching punts is competing for that role. We tell the players all the time ‘preparation and execution over and over and over develops confidence.’ You’ll see the guys that did it in the first preseason game, they will all be available to do it against Kansas City.”

Watching Antonio Gibson return some kicks has seized Kaczor’s attention. “Those big returners that have speed, just like when they run the ball on offense, they’re harder to tackle. And he’s got a really good one-cut move that you see when he runs the wide zone for us on offense. But that’s the first thing that jumps out is the combination of the size. We all know he can run.”

Kaczor replied to more questions, but space does not permit for the entirety of his responses. However, here is the entire video.

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Commanders thin at multiple positions for second preseason game

Ron Rivera discussed Antonio Gibson at length on Thursday. He also talked quarterbacks.

Ron Rivera is already understandably concerned about injuries to his team.

Speaking with the media Thursday, the Commanders third-year head coach spoke of being very thin at tight end, center and guard. But the preseason rolls forward, so Rivera knows he has to put a team on the field Saturday against the Chiefs in Kansas City (4 p.m. ET kickoff).

Rivera even mentioned he might need to play offensive linemen at tight end and report in eligible.

Perhaps the biggest personnel story this week has been Antonio Gibson. So when asked if Gibson might play special teams Saturday, Rivera responded, “This one thing you guys need to understand is that once we get into the regular season, everybody is involved in special teams. AG did it last year. So for the most part, you know, this is nothing new. It’s just, you guys see it. So now it becomes a news story.”

When asked how many reps starters will take against the Chiefs, Rivera was clear, “I really don’t know. A lot of it has to do with the health of specific players. When we do certain things on the offensive side, it’s going to impact how all the other guys play.”

Rivera understandably is already thinking how much he should risk starting quarterback Carson Wentz in a preseason game. But with Washington being thin at center and guard, he was asked if that might affect how much Wentz plays. “Absolutely. That’s exactly what I’m getting at.”

Along with Gibson, rookie Jahan Dotson has also been getting returner reps this week. Might he be returning some Saturday? “It’s something to think about. We know who he is. We know what he is capable of, but at the same time, we want to make sure he’s comfortable back there. So we’ll see how it unfolds come game time.”

Rivera attempted to convey clearly to the media that some starters have to be ready to play special teams during the regular season when pressed.
“Well, it’s about need more than there’s anything else. We get into game situations, and something happens; if they’ve gotten no reps at it and you got to put ’em in there, you’ve kind of screwed yourself. So as I alluded to earlier, that’s one things that’ll happen. You guys won’t see when we get into the regular season, a lot of our veteran players, a lot of our starting players will have backup roles in specific special teams.”

The former Carolina Panthers head coach (2011-19) was asked why number three QB Sam Howell was getting some reps against the starting defense. “Just to see how he handles it, you know, does he step up to the plate? And that’s what you want to see. You want to see a guy take it to another level.  It’s one of those things that if you never throw ’em in there, you never find out.”

RB J.D. McKissic missed practice Thursday. Rivera stated, “J.D. has had a little tightness in his groin, so we just want be careful, you know. We’ve got 48 hours before we play, and we don’t want to expose him.” Rivera also expressed that offensive tackle Charles Leno Jr had an excused day, Thursday.

Some concern has been raised regarding how Gibson might be responding to adversity. “I think he’s been fine. I think he’s worked on some things individually. He’s taken his reps the way I think you should take them and he’s continued to do that. And the biggest thing more so than anything else is, and I’ve said it to you guys, this is more than a one-back league. I mean, you’ve got to have guys that have specific skill sets, all three of our top three backs, all have a different skill set and, you know, that’s the important thing for how you’re going to use them.”

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Ron Rivera would ‘ideally’ like his starters to play entire first half vs. Chiefs

Commanders coach Ron Rivera would “ideally” like to see his starters play the entire first half against the Chiefs, but that may not be possible.

In a perfect world, Washington Commanders head coach Ron Rivera would love to see his starters play the entire first half. Unfortunately, that may not be possible with the current number of injuries the Commanders are facing.

After Thursday’s practice, Rivera was asked how much the starters would play during Saturday’s second preseason game against the Kansas City Chiefs.

“A lot of it has to do with the health of specific players,” Rivera said. “When we do certain things on the offensive side, it’s going to impact how all the other guys play. So hopefully, we can stay healthy, and we can get him in. Ideally, I’d like to play him the whole half; I really would. But I don’t know if we can get that done, you know, with some of the soft tissue injuries we’ve had to deal with.”

The Commanders are dealing with injuries to their top four tight ends and top three guards. At tight end, starter Logan Thomas continues to rehab from knee surgery, while John Bates and Cole Turner have battled nagging calf and hamstring injuries, respectively. Sammis Reyes was placed on injured reserve this week.

That leaves a pair of undrafted rookies, Armani Rogers and Curtis Hodges, to split most of the work at tight end. While it’s a great evaluation tool for the two young players Washington likes, it is a concern.

At guard, projected starters Andrew Norwell and Trai Turner are battling injuries, and top reserve Wes Schweitzer went down earlier this week. Turner has yet to practice this summer, but that doesn’t bother Rivera, as Turner is a trusted veteran.

Rivera noted how the injuries at guard could impact how long quarterback Carson Wentz plays.

“Absolutely. That’s exactly what I’m getting at,” Rivera said of the injuries impacting how long specific starters will play. 

With only three preseason games now, the second preseason game becomes more important than ever as teams will likely rest most of their starters for the third preseason game.

Will Washington see enough from its starters to feel good about heading into the season?

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Commanders J.D. McKissic feels great to be back playing

J.D. McKissic is happy to be back healthy and understands his role for the Commanders.

J.D. McKissic is back and feels great about being with the Commanders.

After injuring his neck against Seattle on MNF on November 29, McKissic was out the remaining six games of the season. Washington proceeded to go 2-4 in those final six games.

“I was very excited to get back out there again and to actually make a play too, said McKissic to the media Tuesday. “It felt great.”

Being healthy and back again is not enough for the seven-year veteran. He is pushing himself. “Just be better. Make guys miss, get freaky with the ball basically, and just be better than what I was the last two years.”

Commenting on his reception Saturday against the Panthers, “…The O-line blocked it up great, and Carson [Wentz] made a great pass. It was easy. But just to stand up and feel good about it, I’m blessed. God took care of me through the whole thing (neck injury) and finally get a chance to get on the field again. It was a lot of excitement.”

Entering his third season in Washington, McKissic is supportive of Antonio Gibson. “Antonio is a motivated young man. It happens; sometimes they get the ball out. It was a crazy play. The defender made a great play. But he’s focused; he came back in the game, he came back in and ran extremely hard.”

He likes what he sees in rookie RB Brian Robinson, “He went to Alabama, he’s prepared well. He can run the football; that’s what he does. He got out and showed that. We’re excited about it. He did a fantastic job.”

A former receiver at Arkansas State, McKissic has had to make adjustments to running back. He was with Atlanta, Seattle and Detroit prior to Washington. “I was a receiver. But I was moved to a running back, so it was very hard, and I got the chance to keep getting better at it now that I’m here.”

On his fourth NFL team, McKissic likes what he sees in Carson Wentz. “He’s a great QB. We just talked about it. I’m trying to remind guys that he was an MVP candidate that year when they went to the Super Bowl. So, we’re excited about him. He looks great, and he’s doing great.”

In working against the defense every day, “Jamin (Davis) looks good. He’s flying around; he’s block shedding. When those guys go up against me, they, you know, they take it upon themselves to do the best they can. I got to kind of remind myself to not let them win sometimes. Cause once they win, I got to hear it.”

Of course, players want the ball more often, but McKissic now age 29, is accepting his role. “I’m a team player…  And I’m gonna be there when my number is called, that’s how my job has been my whole life. When my number is called, I’m ready to make the play. And that’s how we all got to do. You got to be happy for the next man and go eat, you know? It’s third down. If, my number is called, hey, let’s go.”

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Commanders Updates from Tuesday’s practice and roster Moves

Lots of news and notes from Commanders’ training camp on Tuesday.

Tuesday’s Washington Commanders news provided some raised eyebrows.

Washington head coach Ron Rivera was not pleased with some aspects of Tuesday’s practice. Per John Keim, Rivera had players take a knee on a side field, talking to them for five to six minutes. Following practice, when Keim asked Rivera about it, he would only say he was not happy with some things.

It would not be surprising to find running backs Jaret Patterson, Jonathan Williams or Brian Robinson Jr taking some reps in punt coverage as the protection back. But Antonio Gibson? That certainly grabbed everyone’s attention. Will Saturday’s fumble impact Gibson’s status?

Washington made some roster moves getting down to the NFL 85-man limit for August 16. Troy Apke a fourth-round pick in 2018 (Penn State) was limited to only special teams duty in 2021, making him expendable. Also, tight end Sammis Reyes was placed on the Reserve/Injured list.

Wes Schweitzer (guard/center) injured a hip Tuesday. Schweitzer is a strong beast and coaches would certainly like to keep him healthy along the offensive line, especially with his experience and versatility to play all three inside positions.

Rookie guard Chris Paul (Tulsa) performed well at times Saturday. Rivera even described him as “stout” following Saturday’s game. With Schweitzer going down, it was Paul who took his place Tuesday and reportedly performed admirably.

Jamin Davis pleased running backs coach Randy Jordan with his coverage against J.D. McKissic. Davis disappointed in his rookie season (2021), but Jordan liked what he saw Tuesday from Davis, verbalized it to Davis, and slapped hands as well with Davis on the play.

Citing Keim again, he stated for this defense to step up in 2022, Davis is one player who will “need to get it.” Keim reported Davis did make three consecutive plays Tuesday that were encouraging, pointing to his improvement thus far in camp.

Scott Turner called plays from the sideline Saturday, providing more effective communication with his quarterbacks, and apparently will continue the new approach this season. Offensive assistant Jim Hostler who was with Rivera and Turner in Carolina and came to Washington in 2020 moves to the booth this season.

Cornerback Danny Johnson made a stellar interception in the red zone while covering wide receiver Dax Milne. Taylor Heinicke passed toward Milne but Johnson reaching up with one arm, picked off the pass, and took off down the field.

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Carson Wentz talks about his first start for the Commanders

Carson Wentz believes the Commanders have a chance to be a “fun and explosive offense,” but work remains.

Carson Wentz made his first start for the Washington Commanders last Saturday against the Carolina Panthers. Washington lost the game, 23-21, but Wentz was impressive in his first start for the burgundy and gold.

Wentz completed 10 of 13 passes for 74 yards, with a long of 16 yards to Terry McLaurin. Wentz played into the second quarter, leading the Commanders on a touchdown drive before departing for backup Taylor Heinicke.

For Wentz, his first start was about the basics. Head coach Ron Rivera wanted to see Wentz get Washington in and out of the huddle, make the right reads and lead the Commanders to at least one score.

Wentz discussed his first start and believed plenty of good came from Washington’s first preseason game.

“I thought it wasn’t perfect, but it was good to get our feet wet offensively for one, slower start, unfortunately, but I thought that third drive was good for us to get out there and stay on the field and convert some third downs and finish in the endzone,” Wentz said after Saturday’s game.

“So, as far as that went, I thought that was okay. A loss is never fun, but there’s a lot we can learn from on both sides of the ball that was good for us.”

How does Wentz feel about Washington’s offense after one preseason game?

“I think we’re still getting better,” Wentz said. “I think we’ve got a lot of potential to have a really fun and explosive offense, but we’re still getting better. We got a long way to go, myself included. I think the rhythm and timing and just being consistent as an offense will just keep getting better.”

Early in camp, much was made of Wentz’s inaccuracy in practice. However, he started turning the corner last week ahead of the first preseason game. In the loss to the Panthers, Wentz played it safe, looked for the big play, but when it wasn’t there, opted for the checkdown. That’s exactly what offensive coordinator Scott Turner wants from his new quarterback.

Next up for Wentz and the Commanders is the Kansas City Chiefs on Saturday.

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