Tag: QB Jacoby Brissett

Who are PFF’s highest-ranked NFL & Commanders free agents?

A look at the top free agents and who are Washington’s top free agents?

Who are the best NFL free agents who will be available in this 2024 signing period?

Pro Football Focus (PFF) ranked what they believe are the top 200. Where did the best Commanders’ free agents place in the PFF rankings?

By the way, NFL salaries will increase a little more than expected.

Why?

Because with the NFL team salary cap leaping higher than expected to $255.4 million, that means each team will have $13 million more than initially projected. It doesn’t mean teams will use all of their money. Yet, it assuredly means there will be some players who are going to hit free agency, who are going to be paid more to re-sign with their current team.

Here is the PFF list of the 200 Free Agents

Below Commanders Wire will provide the PFF top 5 and then where the top Commanders free agents placed in the PFF rankings.

Commanders’ Allen understands fans perspective, but he is an NFL player

Allen talks fans rooting for a higher position in the 2024 NFL draft and the quarterbacks.

Did the close loss to the Jets ruin Christmas for Jonathan Allen?

That was one of the early questions, asked of Allen on his weekly appearance on the “Sports Junkies” Tuesday.

“No, and here’s why. The amount of work I put in this week leading up to the Jets is probably some of the most I have done in my entire career. The way I was able to go out there and play hard, I can go to sleep knowing I left it all out there on the field.” Allen finished with four tackles and three of the four Commanders quarterback hits.

Allen said he has learned how fans look at it from their perspective of how can the team win over the next ten years. But he has also learned that as an NFL player, the only right way for him to look at it, is he is trying to win right now (this day, this game).

Allen then confirmed that a younger version of himself would have been upset with local fans and local media, wanting the team to lose for a better draft position, etc., but now that he has matured, having been in the NFL since the 2017 NFL draft, those things don’t bother him. He understands the fan base has their perspective, and they need to understand he has a player has his perspective.

As for the Commanders’ two quarterbacks and which should play against the 49ers next Sunday? “Obviously, Sam Howell is struggling, and Jacoby is playing great. Thank God, I don’t get paid to make those decisions. I just focus on what I have to do. Do you move on from him or do you continue to try to work with him (Howell)? I don’t know. That’s a tough question. I don’t think that is really a question I can answer.”

Allen was not being avoidant, he simply is mature and knows there is a time and place for everything.

 

Rams lose intensity, hold on to defeat Commanders 28-20

The Commanders lost by eight points, but the game wasn’t as close as the final score.

The visiting Commanders couldn’t generate much offense themselves and lost to the Rams Sunday 28-20.

Meanwhile, Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford completed 25 of 33 passes for 258 yards, including two touchdowns, as the Rams were leading 20-0 early in the third quarter.

Some will point to the Commanders’ (4-10) two touchdowns with Jacoby Brissett at quarterback. Go ahead, but the Rams led 20-0, and as soon as Washington scored to narrow the deficit to 20-7, the Rams scored again to extend their lead to a comfortable 28-7.

Yes, it’s clear the Commanders (not the “Commodores” as was announced by color analyst James Lofton) did score twice following Ron Rivera pulling starter Sam Howell in the fourth quarter to go with the backup Brissett.

Yet, the question must be asked, had the Rams lost much of their intensity when they scored to go up by 21 points at 28-7? In addition, they had substituted All-Pro defensive tackle Aaron Donald out of the game at this point.

Following the Commander’s five-play 67-yard drive to score, reducing the Washington deficit to 28-14, Donald was reinserted back into the game. Brissett connected with Terry McLaurin for 16 yards and then 48 yards to the Rams 1.

Then Eric Bieniemy, for some baffling reason, called on the Commanders to run the ball twice consecutively up the middle at Donald. Both times they were unsuccessful for no gains. On third down, Logan Thomas clearly pushed off, allowing him to catch a touchdown pass that was rightly penalized.

After a pass interference penalty gifted the Commanders four more downs at the one, Bieniemy again called for a Chris Rodriguez run up the middle, and again it was stuffed. Two incomplete Brissett passes followed before Brissett found Curtis Samuel for a 3-yard touchdown.

Wouldn’t you know it, Camaron Cheeseman had another bad snap that Tress Way managed to get down, but it was blocked, leaving the final score at 28-20. As Washington’s onside attempt failed and though everyone in the stadium knew the Rams were going to run the ball, the Commanders defense could not prevent a Rams first down, permitting them to run out the clock.

 

Commanders’ Jacoby Brissett pleased with Friday night’s preseason debut

Jacoby Brissett pleased with Washington’s preseason opener, but realizes there is plenty of work to be done.

Jacoby Brissett was surprised Friday night in Cleveland.

He was not only observing quarterback Sam Howell but also his teammate from last season, Deshaun Watson. Following the game, Brissett was asked about what he noticed about Watson from last season.

“We obviously talk football a lot,” Brissett said. “I obviously talk to a lot of guys on the team as well, and they’re excited about how he looks compared to last year.”

“Coming out here watching him, I thought he looked really good compared to last preseason. … He looked very smooth, no hiccups and stuff like that, so I thought he did a good job.”

Washington led Cleveland 7-2 with 10:02 remaining in the first half when Brissett relieved the starter, Howell. The Browns fans cheered loudly for Brissett, welcoming him back to Cleveland where last season he started the 11 games when Watson was suspended. There was even a “welcome back” message displayed on the scoreboards.

“That was awesome,” he said. “Did not expect that. I really enjoyed my time here. A lot of the people, the players, the coaches, and the staff there, I have a lot of respect and love for that organization.”

For his time in Friday’s contest, Brissett completed 6 of his 10 passing attempts for 75 yards (7.5 yards per attempt). He did throw one interception and was sacked once, which brought his passer rating down to 43.8.

Brissett led a nice 8-play 89-yard drive in the second quarter, which concluded on a 2&10 when Brissett dropped back to pass, looked to his right and saw no defenders, so he easily jogged untouched for the 12-yard touchdown run, extending Washington’s lead to 14-2.

“I felt like we did a lot of good things, but obviously, there are a lot of things to clean up. I am sure we are going to do that when we get back.”

Last year Brissett was to fill in until Watson’s return. This season he is expected to prepare and be ready if and when called upon to spell Sam Howell. What will Brissett be doing in approach to this season?

“Just being the person that I am, day in and day out. No matter the circumstances, doing the things that got me to where I am today. Holding true to what I believe is the right thing to do. Going out there and putting my best foot forward.”

Was Friday the worst for the Commanders offense?

Local radio host evaluates what he saw from Washington’s offense.

“OMG, this offense is going to rank 44th in a league of 32 teams.”

That’s how The Team 980 host Chris Russell saw the Friday morning practice. Russell said in his first hour Friday (1-4 pm) that anyone going to that practice may have left practice with that thought in mind.

How bad was the Commanders offense Friday? Here are some select quotes from Russell’s opening monologue of that first hour of his program.

“There is nothing to hide here. Maybe it is because of a really good defense, or maybe because it is a really bad offense that is still learning what the hell they are trying to do. The offense is light years behind.”

“Listen, it is practice. They are going against a good defense. They are learning a new system. I am sure they are tired. I got it. Be better, do better. It was wretched.”

“In every way, shape, or form. The quarterbacks all stunk. The receivers stunk. Too many dropped passes, too many non-catches, too many falling downs, too many balls not fought for correctly, too many balls not held on to.”

The bottom line is the parts I saw (2+ hours) were horrific. A lot of it was of the unforced error variety. I wish I could just attribute it to, ‘Man, the defense was cooking today’. But that wasn’t the case.”

“It is still a work in progress. But we can all be responsible, grown adults and say, ‘They (offense) sucked today.’ And it has been a week since I thought the Commanders offense looked anything close to ‘above average/good.'”

“Since last Friday when Jake Fromm clearly outplayed Sam Howell and Jacoby Brissett, and the offense was sloppy in general (paused) and last Saturday in front of 10,000 fans and all three quarterbacks sucked, and the offense sucked as a whole, but it somehow didn’t stink as bad as it did today.”

“Today just made you want to barf.”

There was more, but we only have so much space…

Here is the audio link if you wish to listen to Russell express his frustration with the Commanders offense.

Commanders Brissett, Howell still in battle for starting quarterback

Ron Rivera confirmed no starting quarterback has been decided, even with Howell receiving first-team reps.

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“Things have not been going great for Sam Howell, they’ve kind of trended the wrong way.”

That is how Craig Hoffman began his Take Command Podcast this week with Logan Paulsen.

Hoffman continued, “And it feels like Jacoby Brissett is getting a bit more comfortable.”

Paulsen replied that Howell, the first three OTA workouts, “came out looking very sharp on rhythm, timing, balls out of his hand quickly, finding the open guy, confident throws down the field.”

The second week brought a different result, according to Paulsen. He felt the blitz package was something the offense had not yet built in their protections, and the young secondary guys were effectively matching up with receivers.

“On the sixth day, I would say Sam had, not a bad day, but it definitely wasn’t a good day, a day he would probably want to have back,” expressed Paulsen.

Jacoby Brissett? Paulsen quickly asserted, “we talked about it when they signed him, we expected him to be better earlier…His experience is helping him out…He understands what’s happening at a higher level.”

Then we have head coach Ron Rivera Tuesday on this first day of mandatory workouts. He said to the media, “Again, it’s one of those things that, guys, it’s … just because I said (Howell’s) gonna start off as QB1 doesn’t mean he’s gonna finish as QB1. I like to believe, though, that if he goes out and does things he’s capable of, he’s got a very, very good chance of doing that.”

“I think Jacoby’s shown us some things that have really caught people’s attention. We talk about Jacoby almost as much as we talk about Sam. I just think as we go through this process and until we play games, it’d be unfair to start making assessments. Again, there is a lot of confidence.”

But Rivera was also quick to add that Howell and Brissett are both team players. They are supportive of each other for the good of the team. “You want a good room where you know there’s a lot of cooperation and everybody’s pulling for one another and there’s not a split dynamic between them. That’s really been probably the best thing I’ve seen.”

Logan Paulsen on the battle for Commanders QB No. 1

Who does Paulsen believe will be Washington’s starting quarterback?

Logan Paulsen, an NFL veteran of eight years and guest on the Kevin Sheehan Show podcast, Monday, shared his observations and predictions of what he sees in the quarterback battle between Sam Howell and Jacoby Brissett.

“Getting a rookie quarterback to be your long-term starter allows you to do a lot of different things, so I understand Ron’s (Rivera) affinity and philosophy in wanting to give Sam Howell the first crack,” Paulsen said.

“I also know Jacoby Brissett understands what it means to be a true backup in the NFL. He also played starting-caliber football last year. Notice I didn’t say he is a high-end backup. He was a starting-caliber player last year.”

“They are bringing in an excellent teammate, a guy that will get himself ready if something were to go sideways with Sam Howell, even in the 12th hour is a guy who can still win you football games.”

Paulsen expressed he feels Howell will be the QB1 to get started but also believes the Commanders were wise to insulate themselves well with the addition of Brissett.

“I would guess Sam is going to get the majority of starter reps, and they are going to expect Jacoby to learn the offense, getting limited starter reps and majority QB2 reps.” Paulsen continued they will trust Brissett to learn the offense getting those reps, preparing himself to become ready to go. He said Howell will have the offseason, OTAs and training camp to learn the new offense of Eric Bieniemy.

Then added, “If for some reason it is not where you want it to be, you got Jacoby Brissett in the wings, who can step in, be the starter for a little bit and then step out, if they feel Sam gets himself ready at some point this year.”

“It’s hard for me now to see Sam giving them a better opportunity than Jacoby, given what I saw from Jacoby last year.” Paulsen elaborated, saying Brissett did a better job in Cleveland than Taylor Heinicke and Carson Wentz did for Washington in 2022.

Paulsen was quick to point out that coaches liked Howell’s progress last year during practices. But Howell is going to be learning a new offense and Paulsen said if Howell is picking up the new offense effectively, then he has no doubt Howell will have the opportunity to be the Week 1 starter.

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Commanders QB Jacoby Brissett’s top plays from the 2022 NFL season

Some of the top plays from Jacoby Brissett’s 2022 season in Cleveland.

The Washington Commanders have a new veteran quarterback for the 2023 season, having signed the Cleveland Browns’ Jacoby Brissett.

The Commanders have produced a highlight package displaying Brissett’s talents and production during the 2022 season when Brissett was a Cleveland Brown.

Brissett completed 236 of his 369 passing attempts (64.0 percent completions) and 2,608 yards, 12 touchdown passes and 6 interceptions. He averaged 7.1 yards per pass attempt, 11.1 yards per completions, 163 yards per game.

His passer rating of 88.9 in 2022 was his career high in his seven NFL seasons. A 60.0 QBR was also a career-high. He also brought Cleveland back with two fourth-quarter game-winning drives.

Washington fans will enjoy seeing Brissett’s taking off to run, and displaying toughness as well when running with the ball, being difficult to tackle at times, due in part to his being 6-foot-4 and weighing 235 pounds.

One of the highlights is Brissett having his own diving-to-the-pylon-touchdown running to his left, which will bring back a very certain recent quarterback memory for Washington fans.

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Commanders Ron Rivera says there will be a QB competition

Sam Howell is going to have to the earn the position.

Ron Rivera was not mincing words Tuesday, when he was talking with the local media (at the owners meetings) about his quarterbacks.

The Commanders head coach is heading into his fourth season and yes, he will start a fourth quarterback in his fourth season opener as Washington’s coach.

“I think its open right now, I really do. All I said was that Sam [Howell] was going to get the first crack. I didn’t say that Sam was the guy. He’s going to have to come in and earn it. And if Jacoby [Brissett] comes through and earns it, I’ll play Jacoby.”

When the Commanders conduct their many practices and three preseason games. what will be the determining factor for Rivera in the determining whom his 2023 starter will be? “I’m going to play that guy that we believe at the end of the day gives us the best chance at winning football games.”

Rivera was asked how he would handle the competition for the starting quarterback.

“From my experience and watching how things unfolded for Andy [Reid] when I was with him. How we did things in Chicago with [Former Head Coach] Lovie Smith. These were guys that came in, had a plan and had guys compete, rotating guys, tracking every snap making sure it was as equal as possible.”

One thing we are hoping to do is to work with one of the teams that we end up getting as a preseason game partner. We hope to do that; we will see how that unfolds whether we are allowed to with the league because, again, they have to schedule it and make sure the schedule fits then we can talk about it with them. We would love to do that because it creates the kind of opportunity to get more in-depth. So we’ll see how it all goes.”

Rivera expressed he feels it is more difficult to evaluate a quarterback competition. He stated quarterback rather than merely being one of the positions, “is THE position.”

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