Chris Cooley: ‘This team has a chance to win a lot of games’

Cooley was super impressed with Sam Howell in Week 2.

“This is a team that definitely has a chance to win a lot of football games,” said Chris Cooley, former Washington tight end.

Chris Cooley was a guest on the “Kevin Sheehan Show” podcast, Wednesday.

Here is a sampling of what Cooley had to say about the Commanders’ performance against the Broncos last week.

“The offense played with a lot of confidence… and a lot of speed that I’ve not seen in a while (from Washington). They played fast.”

“The defense made Marvin Mims look like the All-Star of All-Stars in the first half of this game.”

“On defense, 57 (Cody Barton) no eyes whatsoever. Lost as far as eyes and vision.”

“As for the defense, after the s___ show in the first half, they came back and played a much better game.”

Regarding Emmanuel Forbes? “This is where you learn quick as a rookie. There is one thing Denver was trying to do in that position (:09 remaining with no timeouts). Forbes cannot let the receiver get outside of him to allow that catch. The game is over at that point. Understandable that you are a rookie. But there is one conversation we are having before that play. ‘They cannot get out of bounds.’ You cannot give them an easy four-second out-of-bounds play of 16 yards.”

“Sam Howell, he is a stud. He had great poise in the pocket. He had a ton of courage in the pocket. He stood there, made big throws and got hit in the face. He is not afraid. He stayed in the pocket a lot more than rookie quarterbacks will stay in there with the pressure.”

“Most of the throws he made were incredibly catchable balls into tight windows. I thought he was really accurate. I was impressed.”

Cooley provided several more very good insightful observations from his watching of the film. You will be glad when you listen and you will feel more informed as well.

 

Commanders not getting any respect from TV show hosts for comeback

No respect for the Commanders after starting the season 2-0.

How did the hosts of “First Things First: Monday view the Commanders’ comeback win over Denver?

Nick Wright, in criticizing Russell Wilson and head coach Sean Payton, remarked, “Sean Payton is not going down with the Russell Wilson ship. Sean Payton has not been good thus far. You blew an 18-point lead at home to Sam Howell.”

Wright continued, “They played the Raiders and Washington at home and lost!” He raised his voice for emphasis, expressing that the Raiders and Commanders are not good teams.

The hosts took their turns criticizing the Broncos. Greg Jennings echoed that Wilson was not getting the job done. He referenced that in the second half Sunday against Washington (excluding the Hail Mary), Wilson completed only 11 of 23 passes for 104 yards, no touchdowns, one interception and a 42.7 passer rating.

Jennings, rather than crediting Montez Sweat or Chase Young for their pass rush to sack Wilson, forcing a late field goal, chose to simply blame Wilson for the sack.

Then, did they praise Washington? Not at all. Wright then transitioned to asking, “When does Russ get benched? They are going to lose three in a row. They play Kansas City, Green Bay and Kansas City.”

Chris Broussard did go as far as saying Denver is “clearly being outplayed drastically in the second half. That’s coaches making adjustments, the opposing coaches making adjustments, and Sean Payton not adjusting to it.” So THIS is when the show will credit Ron Rivera, Jack Del Rio, or Eric Bieniemy, right?

Nope, again, it was all Denver-focused, that Wilson needs to play better while Payton needs to coach better.

Jennings closed by stating Payton “is literally taking a hammer and just cracking it up beside the head of Russell Wilson saying, ‘I’m going to wake you up, one way or another’… the adjustment that needs to be made is the play of your quarterback.”

Kevin Wilds was the lone host to laud the Commanders when he voiced, “Let’s talk about the Commanders as Sam Howell had a great game. I told you Sam Howell is going to be good.”

So, thus far, Washington is 2-0, but “First Things First” believes this is more about the Cardinals and Broncos than it is about the Commanders.

Next Sunday, the Bills come to FedEx Field, which will be a huge opportunity for the Commanders to gain some respect.