Tag: OC Kliff Kingsbury

Commanders’ Adam Peters: ‘I couldn’t be more excited’

Adam Peters explains why he’s excited about 2024.

Are you ready for some football?

Commanders new general manager Adam Peters is ready for some football.

He told “Grant & Danny” of 106.7 The Fan on Thursday, “I couldn’t be more excited,” said Peters. “I can’t believe it. It just felt like the blink of an eye that we’re here now.”

Peters said he was even talking on the practice field last week with some of the Commanders coaches about how fast this offseason and preseason have gone, and they will be in Tampa soon for the season opener.

“I am the most excited, but I think our fans should really, really be excited about this next week and what’s to come with this team…I am excited about our offense with Kliff, and the way he runs it, and the guys that are executing it. It’s going to be a really fun offense to watch. It’s going to be a fast offense. It’s going to put defenses in a bind with what we do.”

The Commanders gave up the most passing touchdowns in the NFL last season and surrendered the most points. But with all of the additions and subtractions Peters has made, he also feels better about the defense.

“I really love how fast and physical the guys are playing, the mindset of the guys and the leadership of that side of the ball too. So I’m honestly just really excited about how we played and how we’re going to play in the style of how we play.”

Now, of course, that is coming from a general manager who is comparing last year’s team and how they played to what he has assembled in his first offseason with the team. He is not attempting to persuade the fan base that the Commanders are going to the Super Bowl this year.

Yet, looking at all his hard work and the hard work of Dan Quinn, his staff, and the players, Adam Peters is excited that this team is trending upward for this season.

After Jahan Dotson trade, Kliff Kingsbury talks about what Commanders want from WRs

Kingsbury’s answers on what Washington seeks at receiver were telling.

Someone had to speak with the press on Thursday.

Given that there would be questions about the trade of wide receiver Jahan Dotson a day earlier, perhaps Adam Peters or Dan Quinn would have been an obvious choice.

So, there was Kliff Kingsbury.

The offensive coordinator, as expected, quickly punted, saying he would defer to Peters and Dan Quinn regarding the trade. Of course he did. That’s not to criticize Kingsbury in any way. He doesn’t make trades, so why should he have to answer questions about them?

He was then asked in a roundabout way about what the coaches are looking for from the wide receivers.

“DQ’s [Quinn’s] style of play. Be physical and play hard without the ball,” Kingsbury said. “I think that’s what we preach is like everybody’s gonna run routes and make catches at this level, but how do you play without the ball?”

After all we have heard over the last week regarding Dotson, that response from Kingsbury lets you know. The coaches just didn’t see Dotson as being physical enough to run his routes or block.

The team could be thin at receiver this season, as only Terry McLaurin has produced significantly. However, Kingsbury knows there are other people to whom quarterback Jayden Daniels can get the ball.

“Austin Ekeler has been fantastic. I think there’s a narrative out there that maybe he lost a step, or something was off, and that couldn’t be further from the truth from what I’ve seen. … Brian Robinson, he’s a No. 1 back in this league, there’s no doubt.”

So, Kingsbury likes his top two backs and is counting on getting both of them the ball often. He also knows that developing a running game will decrease the pressure on Daniels to beat the defense through passing.

Perhaps one of the more interesting things Kingsbury said was about WR Kazmeir Allen.

“So he’s a guy that we could see similar —I’m not comparing — but he has a Deebo-type role to move him around and do different things,” Kingsbury said. “He has that type of explosiveness and ability to play in the slot, or you can hand it to him.”

Compared to Allen, Samuel is much larger and stronger. He is a beast at his position. But the first two preseason games have shown that Allen is someone the coaches like for his explosiveness, and they are looking for ways to get him the ball.

How do Commanders coaches really feel about Daniels’ audible?

What did Quinn really think of Jayden Daniels’ audible?

It was third-and-6 at the Commanders’ 34-yard line. Going no-huddle, the call was for Jayden Daniels to attempt a screen pass, get rid of the ball,  and avoid being hit behind an offensive line that was without their top three tackles (Cornelius Lucas, Andrew Wylie, Brandon Coleman).

Daniels instead called for an empty backfield, sending wide receiver Dyami Brown deep down the right sideline. With no running back to help pick up a penetrating pass rusher or blitzer, Daniels lofted a beautiful pass that Brown snagged for a 42-yard gain.

Did Daniels’ change from the screen pass to the long pattern for Brown impress or concern head coach Dan Quinn?

Well, first of all, Quinn is certainly not simplistic. So, is it out of the realm of probability that Quinn was both impressed and concerned?

On the one hand, Daniels’ move appears very confident, very assertive. That could speak very well to the rookie’s leadership skills and confidence in his physical abilities.

On the other hand, might it have been a demonstration of Daniels’ lack of understanding of the risks involved? Both could be true, quite true.

Daniels is confident, but he also does not yet understand the risks involved in the NFL. The SEC is a great football conference, but even most of the SEC players he faced won’t make it in the NFL.

What if Daniels had been hit hard, perhaps even injured? There is not one of us that wants to go down that path.

The experienced Quinn remained very positive with the media following the game. But Quinn, being the leader he is, do you think he will simply shrug his shoulders and let it go because the result was a short-term success?

In September, the pass rush Daniels will begin facing will be much more intense and much faster. Consequently, Daniels should not be surprised this week when he hears again the need to follow instructions from those who know much more than himself concerning what lies ahead this season.