Tag: Team 980 Craig Hoffman Show

Commanders’ DTs Payne and Allen need to produce

The Commanders need more from Allen and Payne.

Daron Payne and Jonathan Allen are under increased scrutiny.

The former Alabama defensive tackle duo Allen (2017) and Payne (2018) were both drafted in the first round by Washington. Both have extensive NFL experience; Allen is 29, and Payne is 27.

Both are also paid well, like first-round draft choices they were—their stat lines for 2024 after two games do raise eyebrows. Allen has contributed two solo tackles, two assisted tackles, as well as two QB hits, with no QB sacks. Payne has one solo tackle and has yet to record anything else: no assists, TFL, no QB sacks, no QB hits.

In Payne’s defense, both of Clelin Ferrell’s sacks resulted from Payne being the first to put pressure on the quarterback, moving him to where Ferrell then stepped in and got the quarterback sack.

Craig Hoffman of The Team 980 had some strong declarations to make regarding Payne’s play.

“Eventually, you have got to give production. Yeah, he ate some blocks, got some penetration on Clelin Ferrell’s sack. He’s the main instigator there, pushing the pocket. One of his two hurries that PFF credited him with.

“But at the end of the day, you are paying these dudes major money to produce. You need stat sheet stats from them. You need tackles, sacks.”

“You need Daron Payne to be the Daron Payne, not that he was necessarily against Denver last year for that one series where he entirely wrecked it. That is unsustainable for a game.”

“But can we get some flashes of that dude a couple of times a game? Maybe it is what they are asked to do in this defense. Which is why I am not willing to fully say, “Bad job, Allen, bad job, Payne.”

“Ultimately, the thing I am willing to say at this point is that this defense needs to get to a point where they are producing more.”

Commanders’ Brycen Tremayne working, competing for a spot

Brycen Tremayne looking to make the 53-man roster this time around.

Brycen Tremayne is competing each day, hoping to win a spot on the 2024 Commanders’ regular-season roster.

“I think the mindset coming in each day is just to compete and just keep getting better every day and learn from the veteran guys in the room that have been in the league for a long time.”

The 6-foot-4 receiver from Stanford talked with Craig Hoffman Tuesday about working hard and being competitive.

“You couldn’t ask for anything better than a room that’s competitive. It pushes you to get better; it pushes the guy next to you to get better. The whole room rises when everyone’s competing.”

Tremayne spoke of spending time with Terry McLaurin last year, asking questions, listening, and learning how he ran routes, winning early and late in routes.

“You can take bits and pieces from every person in the room and implement them into your own game and make yourself better.”

He doesn’t believe he can rest on his talent and thinks he learned this growing up.

“Going back to college, to high school, it’s my mindset. Maybe it’s through my family that hard work will bring good things. So, I just try to bring that every day. If it works out, it works out. And it doesn’t, then I worked as hard as I could.”

Tremayne did a good job on special teams at Stanford, and he realizes that if he is to make the Commanders’ 53-man roster, he will need to play well on teams again.

“I was doing gunner all during college. I did gunner all last year in camp and preseason and this year I moved to more PP (Personal Protector), being more versatile, able to play more positions whether on kickoffs or punts. At the end of the day, it’s just effort play. I play with a lot of effort, so it’s good for me.”

 

Logan Paulsen’s analysis of Commanders WR Jahan Dotson after Jets game

As always, Paulsen provides some excellent insight on Dotson. It’s mostly praise, with one area of improvement needed.

There’s been much speculation regarding Commanders receiver Jahan Dotson. Former 8-year NFL veteran Logan Paulsen watches the team closely, and he offered his analysis of Dotson’s situation to Craig Hoffman on Tuesday.

“I love him as a route runner, I love his feel for catching the football. But his play strength shows up more than I would like it to.”

“When you are watching Terry, OZ (Olamide Zaccheaus), even Jamison Crowder, there is a strength to them that allows them to play through contact. The fade in the second quarter going into the red zone where he (Dotson) beats the guy, but gets a little bit of a bump and then loses his footing and falls down.”

“If I am a coach, I want to see him play through that. The only way I get to see it is as he’s getting reps. I think that’s something coming out of the game.”

“I think Jahan did some good stuff. I think he had a screen where he was a little creative, but I need to see him play stronger.”

“Again, I love the route runner, I love the nuance, I love how he layers stems and indicators. He catches the football well, but he is always going to be limited if he can’t get through this. I think that is maybe why he plays a lot because you want to see him fight through some stuff.”

I also think he is playing multiple positions, he’s playing inside and outside. So you’re going to play more because you’re maybe the number 1F or the slot receiver. Then, when the outside guys go out, you become the number one outside guy. So maybe that’s another reason why.”

Commanders’ Allegretti making the necessary changes

Nick Allegretti was part of the Super Bowl Champion Chiefs. Then he departed to start with the Commanders, moving his family to the DMV.

Change can be difficult for all of us, and change is inevitable for each and every one of us.

New Washington Commanders guard Nick Allegretti spent a moment with The Team 980 host Craig Hoffman on Thursday. It was a good reminder to those listening that change in the NFL is not as simple as signing a new contract with a new team.

Allegretti was not whining at all. He was simply stating life’s realities, which are much greater when you have responsibilities such as marriage and children. These guys realize they are the providers for their family, and there are many other needs the family must have met.

Hoffman asked Allegretti about his offseason: “It was great. I was really excited to get out here at OTAs and get my feet set here. Then I found a place to live, and then I was able to go back to Chicago.”

Allegretti was born in Frankfort, Illinois, and played college ball at the University of Illinois. He told Hoffman he grew up in a family of Cubs fans, but he and his brother stayed true to being White Sox fans.

“I enjoyed the time with the family,” said Allegretti. “I have two daughters, and it was awesome. And now they will be down in a week, so it will feel real. The whole family will be here; it will be good.”

When Hoffman inquired about what Allegretti did in the offseason, I noticed he didn’t talk of fun activities being a focus, like playing a lot of golf. Allegretti again spoke of family responsibilities.

“It was a lot of house hunting over the summer (laughing). So, explored the area, not in the best way, but I definitely got around.”

History is apparently a big interest for Allegretti. He spoke about going into the city and visiting some of the monuments. “I’m a big history guy, so I enjoy that area, and the goal is to get out to a few of the battlefields.”

The Commanders needed offensive line help. Perhaps Allegretti will be one of the good changes Adam Peters has made for this offensive line.

Dan Quinn already bringing intense leadership to the Commanders

Some excellent perspective on Dan Quinn’s leadership.

Benjamin St-Juste sees a difference in leadership this year, a big difference.

The Team 980 afternoon show host Craig Hoffman asked St-Juste following practice Wednesday what a major difference there is from recent seasons, for example.

“We compete for everything, honestly. It’s crazy. The first week Coach Quinn came here, it was all about competing. Competing in the weight room, competing in drills, competing in the class meeting rooms. Who can learn it the fastest? Who knows all the plays in the first week?”

Of course that makes them better athletes, but some might wonder, how does it affect their psyche as players? St-Juste certainly thinks it does and already is.

“When we go to the field, there is no hierarchy of who should go out there, or politics of this player should play. Everybody is going to compete, everybody is going to get a fair chance, and the best players are going to play. I think that is what makes great teams great.”

“He (Dan Quinn) is giving everyone the chance to show how much do you want to make this team. How much do you want to impact this team? I love it. It has pushed me to be a better player, and that’s what I am here for.”

Martin Luther King said, “A genuine leader is not a searcher for consensus but a molder of consensus.” Early on, Dan Quinn shows he did not come to the Commanders to search for and find consensus. They were 4-13 last year!

No, Quinn has come to mold and shape this team in his image. If you don’t compete hard, you’re gone. Those who love it, like St-Juste, can see it will make them better players.

One Commanders player, hoping for big year, recently became a father

Benjamin St-Juste, entering his fourth NFL season, had a life-changing experience this offseason.

He is entering his fourth NFL season, so this could be it with Washington.

That could be said of several Commanders, those drafted in 2021, who received a four-year deal. Even more, this is the first year of the Adam Peters-Dan Quinn era. They feel no commitment to these players they did not draft.

Benjamin St-Juste worked hard to get ready for this important season. But much more was the fact he became a father this off-season, and feels that weight. He spoke with Craig Hoffman following Wednesday’s practice.

“A lot more motivation and it just feels great to live for something bigger than myself,” said St-Juste. “I noticed it instantly as soon as she came out of the womb, honestly. Wow! I created this. It was kind of like a wave of responsibility and at the same time a wave of great energy. Like I said, to live for something bigger than myself.”

The fourth-year cornerback out of the University of Minnesota is beginning to realize there are things bigger than his job, but his job is now bigger as a result as well. “Whether I am motivated or not, I have somebody that depends on me. I have a family. Those values and discipline now translate to the football field.”

Certainly, that has been a life experience for many young adults. Of course, there are many who don’t get it and run from maturing. However, for many of us, fatherhood and family are used by God to mature us and grow us into better, more responsible adults. We begin to learn through being forced to live for others.

Young people who often lived for ourselves now develop into adults living for others, becoming contributors to society and teachers of their children. It sounds like St-Juste is beginning to see this. He is headed on a better path for himself. It will benefit the Commanders in 2024 and, more importantly, his family for years to come.