Tag: DE Dante Fowler

Analyzing the turning point in Commanders win over Lions

Analyzing the play that turned the game in favor of the Commanders in their win over the Lions.

In a big NFL playoff game, there can be many key plays, and there often are, in fact.

Sometimes, you can also point to a play that marked a significant game change. Such was the case Saturday night in the Commanders’ 45-31 upset win over the Lions in Detroit.

Detroit had needed only six plays to drive 71 yards, taking an early 7-0 lead. Washington had responded with 41 yards but was stopped, having to settle for a field goal to reduce the deficit to 7-3.

Back came the Lions: Lions quarterback Jared Goff to tight end Sam LaPorta for 14 yards, running back Jahmyr Gibbs off left tackle for 33 yards, Goff again to LaPorta for six yards to the Washington 20, and then running back David Montgomery ran for three to the Commanders’ 17.

In four plays, Detroit had driven to the Washington 17 and, on third-and-1, would certainly again have Gibbs run for another first down, setting the stage for the Lions to go up by 11 (14-3), still only in the first quarter.

But then, the Commanders stepped up, not only making a play but creating a turnover, giving the ball back to Washington.

For some strange reason, Ben Johnson, the Lions’ offensive coordinator, had the Lions line up in an empty backfield on third-and-1. Now, it could be that he was thinking if the pass were incomplete, they would come back and have Gibbs run for the first down on 4th & 1. So, I’ll grant him that possibility.

Yet, the backfield being empty, there was no one to provide a late block on Commanders DE Dorrance Armstrong, who had quickly beaten Lions’ tackle Graham Glasgow.

Goff made his drop to the 26, stepped up to the 25, and was quickly hit by Armstrong. The ball popped out, and an alert Frankie Luvu went to the turf, recovering the fumble at the 22.

Had Johnson simply had a back in the backfield, the pass rush would have been slowed, realizing they needed to play the run first because the Lions only needed one yard. But wanting to make a splash offensive play left Goff with insufficient protection. The replay shows Dante Fowler was about to make the sack if Armstrong did not.

The Lions pounded the Commanders’ defense on this drive, and they were within a whisker of going up 14-3 in the first quarter.

However, the Commanders suddenly energized and drove 78 yards in 11 plays, taking a 10-7 lead.

It was now game on.

NFL analyst predicts Eagles will sign away Commanders defensive leader

Could the Eagles attempt to steal one of the Commanders’ top defensive players from this season?

It’s the Commanders’ bye week, but earlier this week, speculation emerged that the Eagles would pursue and sign one of their top defensive players away from the Commanders.

It is no secret to Commanders fans that GM Adam Peters signed many players on one-year deals. You can’t blame him; he inherits a roster full of holes. Wisely, Peters put most of his free agents in contract years with one-year deals, and as a result, he has seen much benefit on the field.

Defensive end Dante Fowler Jr. is one of those contract-year free agents who has performed well for the Commanders. Fowler was with head coach Dan Quinn in Atlanta in 2020 and then again with Quinn in Dallas for the 2022 and 2023 seasons. In fact, their relationship dates back to when Quinn recruited Fowler to the University of Florida and coached him there.

With four games remaining this season, Fowler has already totaled his second-highest sack total in his nine-year career, with 8.5 in 2024. He will be a free agent next off-season.

Matt Holder of Bleacher Report has publicly stated that he sees the Eagles signing a pass-rushing defensive end, and he believes Fowler is one they will aggressively pursue.

Graham (Brandon) is expected to retire at the end of the year, and Josh Sweat is an impending free agent. While Nolan Smith could take over as the starter moving forward, the defense could still use some pass-rush help. That’s where Fowler comes in, as he’s been having a strong campaign with 8.5 sacks this fall heading into the weekend. While the 30-year-old who turns 31 in August has never been much of a run defender, he can get after the quarterback with over 50 career sacks.

In addition to Fowler generating 8.5 sacks, he also has 19 solo tackles, 11 assists, 11 tackles for a loss, and 10 quarterback hits. Fowler leads the Commanders in sacks and tackles for a loss.

Fowler could demand a pay raise from the Commanders next off-season. If the Commanders don’t aggressively sign him and grant him a good raise, other teams looking for one or two years could swoop in and steal him from them.

But again, this is clearly speculation by Holder of Bleacher Report, a result of his reporting on the Eagles. Commanders Wire is simply informing Commanders fans of what is being circulated about the team.

Commanders’ five best defensive plays through 13 games

What are the Commanders’ five best defensive plays so far this season?

What are the five best defensive plays for the Commanders in their first 13 games this 2024 season?

Over at Commanders.com, Zach Selby has put together a video and commentary on what he feels are the top five defensive plays by the Commanders.

Selby does good work, and fans can learn from him about some of the inner workings of the Commanders. He also provides some player features and interviews that fans might enjoy.

However, one objection I have, not to Selby personally, is that one of the five plays is not a defensive play. It would have been officially registered as a special teams snap rather than a defensive snap for the Commanders. But other than that, Selby’s choices are all appropriate.

Here are Selby’s top five defensive plays. See if you agree with him.

  • Dante Fowler’s Pick Six vs the Panthers in the opening drive for Carolina in the Week 7 game.
  • Quan Martin’s blocked field goal vs the Cowboys in Week 12 home game.
  • Benjamin St-Juste’s strip fumble against the Giants in Week 2 home game at Northwest Stadium.
  • Mike Sainristil’s interception against the Ravens in Baltimore in their Week 6 contest.
  • Mike Sainristil rips the ball from Titans running back Tony Pollard, giving the Commanders a short field as they raced to a 28-0 second-quarter lead against Tennessee at Northwest Stadium on Week 13.

What are your top-five defensive plays through Washington’s first 13 games? Let us know.

Quick facts from Commanders’ Week 9 win over the Giants

Several numbers that stood out from the Commanders’ win over the Giants.

The Commanders were not dominant, yet they did win a NFC East divisional road game, defeating the New York Giants 27-22.

Here are some of the quick facts from the seventh win of the Commanders’ season:

  • Today’s win was Dan Quinn’s 50th NFL win as an NFL head coach.

  • With two fourth-down conversions in the first half, the Commanders are now 11 for 11 on fourth down this season. Per @EliasSports, this is the first time since at least 1980 (when the stat began being tracked) that Washington has started a season 11-for-11 on fourth down.

  • Today, Dante Fowler’s two sacks gave him his 10th multi-sack game.
  • The Giants came into Sunday’s game, leading the NFL with 35 quarterback sacks. Today, against the Commanders, they had zero.
  • Jayden Daniels numbers: 15/22,  209 yards, two touchdowns, 128.8 passer rating, 0 interceptions, 0 sacks.
  • By beating the Giants today, Washington completed a season sweep of the NY Giants for the first time since the 2021 season.
  • The Giants had the ball exactly four minutes longer today, 32:00 to 28:00. The Giants also gained 164 yards rushing to the Commanders’ 149. But Washington did force one Giants turnover without committing a turnover. The Commanders also sacked Jones twice, while Jayden Daniels was not sacked.
  • With the win, the Commanders are now 7-2. This is the first time Washington is 7-2 since the 1996 season, when that team collapsed, finishing 9-7 and missing the playoffs.
  • With two receiving touchdowns today, Terry McLaurin now has four career games in which he has scored two touchdowns.
  • Today, Dante Fowler reached the 50-sack plateau and forced a 14th career fumble.
  • Jayden Daniels is the first Washington rookie quarterback to sweep the New York Giants.
  • With six receiving touchdowns in 2024, Terry McLaurin has had the most receiving touchdowns since his 2019 rookie season.
  • Terry McLaurin, with his two touchdowns today, now has 31 in his career, becoming the tenth in franchise history with 30 touchdowns.

 

Quick facts from Commanders’ 40-7 win over the Panthers

Several quick facts from the Commanders’ win over the Panthers.

Kliff Kingsbury’s offense was on display today. The Washington Commanders had no trouble with the Carolina Panthers, winning easily, 40-7, at Northwest Stadium.

Perhaps the most alarming moment of the game was seeing Jayden Daniels injured and taken to the locker room. It is an apparent rib injury, and he did not return to action.

Here are some of the quick facts from the fifth win of the Commanders’ season:

  • The Commanders are 3-0 at home. The last time they were 3-0 at home was in 2005.
  • Washington outgained Carolina 421-180.
  • Today was the first time Washington scored 40 points at home since a 2016 win over the Green Bay Packers on a Sunday Night game.
  • Washington led by 27 points at halftime. This was the largest halftime lead since 2005 when they led Dallas 28-0.
  • RB Brian Robinson has run for six rushing touchdowns. This is the most in his three NFL seasons, and today was only the seventh game of the season.
  • Brian Robinson ran for his sixth rushing touchdown, tied with Robert Griffin in 2012 and Clinton Portis in 2008 for the most rushing touchdowns through Week 7.
  • Dante Fowler’s interception return for a touchdown was the first defensive touchdown of the 2024 Commanders’ season.

  • After going first five games with no interceptions, the Commanders have intercepted a pass in consecutive games.
  • Dante Fowler had previously returned two fumbles for touchdowns. Today was his first career interception touchdown.
  • TE Zach Ertz now has 47 career touchdown receptions. He is tied with Ozzie Newsome and Pete Retzlaff for 18th in most receiving touchdowns in NFL history for tight ends.
  • Fowler’s interception returned for a touchdown is the longest interception touchdown return at home since S Ifeanyi Ohalete’s 78-yard interception return in 2002.
  • The Commanders ran 63 offensive plays on Sunday, and the Panthers only ran 43.
  • Tight end Ben Sinnott had his first career reception today; it was also his first NFL touchdown.
  • Sunday marked the first time Washington scored 40 or more points in multiple games since the 2016 season (which, by the way, was the last winning regular season record for Washington).
  • Sunday’s win was the Commanders’ fifth of the 2024 season, surpassing the 2023 season win total of four.
  • Washington outrushed Carolina 214-95 and outpassed them 207-85.
  • Marcus Mariota was 18-23 for 205 yards, averaging 8.9 an attempt, two touchdowns and a passer rating of 132.8.