Tag: The Sports Junkies

Commanders’ Jonathan Allen: ‘It is unfortunate, but God has a plan’

Jonathan Allen maintaining a positive attitude despite setback. Wants to help Johnny Newton.

Jonathan Allen again Tuesday showed himself to be a strong, dependable man.

Allen, for eight seasons, has been a leader for the Redskins/Commanders and very much a leader in taking accountability, being direct, and responsible.

Having torn a pectoral muscle Sunday and being declared out for the season, Allen, wanting to fulfill his obligation to the Sports Junkies (106.7 The Fan) Allen was faithful to his weekly appearance on their show.

Even more, to get in the fulfillment, Allen telephoned the Junkies while driving…driving to his scheduled surgery. Allen expressed this is his fifth surgery, having previously endured surgery and rehab on his shoulder (twice), neck, knee, and now pectoral muscle.

“People only see the good parts about playing in the league,” said Allen. “They see the money, the fame, the title that goes with it. But there are a lot of other things that come with it as well. If you’re motivated by money, eventually you’re going to look at it and be like, ‘it’s not worth it’.”

“Money doesn’t motivate me,” continued Allen. “I’m going to be just as hungry now as I was coming back to my work year. I’m looking forward to it. Does it suck? Yes, but everyone has a job, and everyone has a part of that job that sucks. This (injury needing surgery) happens to be my part.”

https://Twitter.com/NickiJhabvala/status/1845905040717824390

Allen was asked how it feels that the Commanders finally got a good quarterback (Jayden Daniels), and now he (Allen) suffers a season-ending injury.

“Yeah, it is unfortunate, but God has a plan, and his plan is never wrong. When you’re in the midst of it, it is easy to say, ‘Woe is me,’ and want everybody to feel bad for you. But at the end of the day, he has a plan that I’m going to be faithful to and see it through.”

“Trust me, the good thing about our situation is as long as we have Jayden, we have a chance. So I highly doubt this is going to be the only year that we’re going to have an opportunity to play some good football late in the season.”

Allen plans to remain in the building and do all he can to help rookie Johnny Newton, who suddenly finds himself having much more expected of him with Allen out for the remainder of the season.

Commanders’ HC Dan Quinn: ‘Some fun guys to coach on this team’

Dan Quinn discusses why this team is so much fun.

Commanders head coach Dan Quinn said Tuesday, “There’s some really fun guys to coach on this team.”

Quinn was a guest Tuesday with the “Sports Junkies” (106.7 The Fan) and seemed to enjoy himself, though he also displayed an ability to set some boundaries in terms of what questions he would answer.

Washington fans heard a lot about culture when the preceding head coach, Ron Rivera, arrived in 2020. He preached and preached culture and no doubt he felt he needed to change a good bit of the culture in Ashburn.

Yet Quinn is a much more energetic leader. He is much more vocal—not merely vocal in the sense of yelling and screaming, but vocal in the sense of frequently talking enthusiastically, frequently urging his team to compete, and also encouraging his team.

“If you are in this locker room and meeting rooms every day, often days it’s loud and fun,” said Quinn. We have a good time. We want to make sure we work our asses off and go for it in every way, really enjoy the people we do it with too.”

Yes, it is incredibly early. Yes, they have yet even to play a game that counts. However, in contrast to the Rivera team of 2020, though that team had an energetic leader in Chase Young, many on this team are displaying energy during this preseason.

“This crew is getting tighter all of the time. I saw that on the sideline the other night (at Miami). When you see somebody make a big play, ten guys run down the sideline to meet him. That’s the type of thing you can see when a team gets connected. When that energy comes from the guys that aren’t in the game, bringing to energy the guys that are. I’d hoped that would happen, so to see that take place down in Miami made me happy. To see that happen, that’s a big deal.”

It will be an even bigger deal if the team continues to develop team unity throughout the season. As former US President Harry S Truman (1945-1952) said, “It is amazing what you can accomplish if you do not care who gets the credit.”

Joe Theismann: Commanders QB Jayden Daniels ahead of Robert Griffin III

Joe Theismann loves where Jayden Daniels is at and believes he’s far more advanced as a passer than another former No. 2 overall pick.

Joe Theismann likes Jayden Daniels.

The former Washington Redskins quarterback (1974-85) was a guest on “The Sports Junkies” (106.7 The Fan) Friday and was asked to assess the Commanders’ rookie quarterback from LSU.

“He checks every box that you want for a young man to play that position,” began Theismann.

Theismann voiced how important April’s draft was for the Commanders, who have a new owner, general manager and coaching staff. He has been around the franchise for decades now, and he is quite aware of how different the fan base became with Dan Snyder as owner for 24 years.

“It was the absolute must choice for the Commanders to get [Daniels] with that pick,” Theismann said. “Nothing else would have satisfied the fans, totally understand that. You watch his work ethic, and then you talk to the coaches, and you see how he applies himself. His demeanor is very, very even-keeled. That is why he was drafted where he was and was the Heisman Trophy winner.”

Not only does Theismann like what he has seen in Daniels’ work ethic and processing, but he also likes Daniels’ skill as a passer.

“I always look at how smooth the delivery is. Is it labored? Is there a herky-jerky movement to it? He’s got a great, smooth release,” Theismann said.

The coaching staff has repeatedly praised Daniels for his mental processing and learning of the offense. Theismann was a mobile QB but appreciates that passing is more important than running for a quarterback.

When asked to compare Daniels to Robert Griffin III, Washington’s second overall selection in 2012, Theismann did not hesitate to declare that he thinks Daniels is ahead of Griffin when it comes to passing.

History bears this out as well. Mike and Kyle Shanahan saw Griffin was athletic but not yet ready to process a passing offense from the pocket, so they designed a zone-read offense best for Griffin. He and running back Alfred Morris had huge success running the ball in 2012.

“He gets the ball out of his hand, and he processes very well, and he’s very smart,” Theismann said of Daniels. “To me, I have my fingers crossed that we have another C.J. Stroud. A young man that has athleticism but doesn’t place that above his ability to throw the football.”

Claims that Commanders owner Josh Harris is ‘super-duper cheap’ appear inaccurate

What have learned about Josh Harris so far? He’s not cheap and he’s putting money back into the team to build a long-term winner.

Fifteen months ago, Josh Harris was positioning himself to become the next majority owner of the Washington Commanders.

At that time, Jason Bishop of “The Sports Junkies” on 106.7 The Fan claimed he had a source who did not think so highly of how Harris was running the Philadelphia 76ers. Bishop continued, “I’ve got a well-placed source — and I won’t say who — that said, ‘Josh Harris, if he is the one who gets the team, is super-duper cheap.’”

Also, on March 22, 2023, we wrote about how Kevin Sheehan had a guest, Eben Novy-Williams of Sportico, state on his program that “Josh Harris is a notorious value investor. He has been a runner-up in some of the biggest sports team sales in history because he is not someone who raises his price to get an asset.”

Now that 15 months have passed, what have we learned?

Novy-Williams was not saying Harris is cheap. He was saying that Harris would not lose money by ignoring the purchasing price he set in his mind. By the way, what is wrong with that? Why should someone spend more money to only purchase a franchise, when they are going to need to use much money for wise investments involving the business operations?

As to Harris being “cheap” and not spending money in ways to help the 76ers, how has Harris invested in and managed the Commanders in his first year as owner?

When Harris took the reins, the Ashburn facility was absurdly behind most other NFL franchises’ facilities. When the NFLPA grades for the Commanders’ facilities, locker room, training room and stadium came back as abysmal, Harris boldly responded, “I am not an F-minus guy.”

The Commanders announced plans to spend upward of $75 million to upgrade their playing stadium and Ashburn team facilities.

Even the unused turf practice field in Ashburn, which had sat idle for years, was removed in recent weeks.

Perhaps Bishop’s source regarding how Harris is managing and investing in the 76ers was mistaken?

Harris is clearly investing much more into the franchise than did the previous owner, Daniel Snyder. Harris is addressing the many issues he inherited. He is shelling out huge amounts of money to improve the resources for the Commanders.

Josh Harris is not cheap.

Brian Baldinger is a big fan of Commanders CB Mike Sainristil

Baldy is a big fan of Mike Sainristil.

Everyone loves Washington Commanders rookie cornerback Mike Sainristil. On draft night, legendary former Alabama coach Nick Saban said he loved Sainristil, calling him the best “pound-for-pound player” in the draft.

Senior Bowl executive director Jim Nagy was giving Sainristil love before anyone else.

When the Commanders chose Sainristil at No. 50 overall last month, they earned unanimous praise for the pick. When Washington coach Dan Quinn went to Michigan’s pro day and spent time with Sainristil, he knew he had to have him.

Former NFL player and current analyst Brian Baldinger also happens to be a big Sainristil fan.

“I thought he was the best slot corner in this draft of the guys that played that as their position in college,” Baldinger said in an appearance on the “Sports Junkies” on 106.7 The Fan via Lou DiPietro of Audacy.

“I thought he was a really talented player on a great team who covered a lot of ground, did what you had to do in coverage or blitzing. Just a good, aggressive tackler and a guy you can plug and play.”

Baldinger also said Sainristil was one of the draft’s better picks in a good draft.

As an analyst, Baldy saw plenty of Washington last season. Even if he didn’t call Commanders’ games, he watched film of every team, every week, and he realized what Washington fans knew all too well: The secondary stunk.

Baldinger believes Sainristil and veteran free agent Michael Davis will improve the 2024 secondary.

“Michael Davis has had good moments with the Chargers, and this was the worst secondary in football, so Sainristil and Davis are definitely upgrades,” Baldinger said. “When your safeties don’t tackle well and blow coverages, you give up full-on touchdowns, and that’s what happened last year.”

The Commanders didn’t make any big moves at cornerback this offseason outside of drafting Sainristil, who will play the slot. Davis was one of multiple free-agent cornerbacks Washington signed and the one most likely to impact the depth chart. Early reports from OTAs have Davis ahead of last year’s first-round pick, Emmanuel Forbes.

Washington is counting on the new additions to help the NFL’s worst defense, but more importantly, it believes that coaching will make a bigger difference.

Tress Way, a true leader for the Commanders

Tress Way shows why that “C” is on his chest.

Joe Theismann, Dave Butz, Darrell Green, Art Monk, Brian Mitchell, London Fletcher.

Every knowledgeable Washington NFL fan would readily acknowledge these players were the team’s leaders. A team needs guys who will set a tone and not deviate from the standard of performance and behavior at team meetings, on the practice field, or even before the press.

The Commanders have such a leader now. The unique thing about one of their current leaders is that he is a punter.

Tress Way has been wearing Burgundy and Gold since the 2014 season. For each of those ten seasons, he wore jersey No. 5. Thursday night, the Commanders announced via a short video that Way was relinquishing his jersey number of ten years to rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels.

“Tress Way is an unbelievably underrated player and teammate,” proclaimed John Feinstein during his segment Friday with the “Sports Junkies” (106.7 the Fan).

Feinstein pointed out that Way has been one of the NFL’s better punters for a decade, and yet Way did not say, “I have been here ten years; why should I give up my number for a rookie?”

Seeing Way determine that Daniels, who has yet to play an NFL game, could have his jersey was impressive. Feinstein concluded, “I am a fan.”

Leaders connect with others through their sincerity and authenticity. Way, of course, is flawed; each of us is. Yet, since 2014, Tress Way has been refreshingly sincere and genuine.

He is secure enough in who he is as a man, a husband, a father, and a punter that he doesn’t worry about impressing others. Way demonstrated this week an ability to say no to himself for the good of the team. He admitted that at first, he did not want to give up No. 5, but then he thought it would actually be a move that could be better for the team, so he submitted his own preference for the team.

We’ve heard the old saying, “The name on the front of the jersey is more important than the name on the back of the jersey.”

It’s one thing to say you believe it. Tress Way demonstrated he is willing to live it.

 

 

Former NFL executive says he’d rather have Sam Howell than Jayden Daniels?

Lombardi’s track record isn’t very good.

Former NFL executive Mike Lombardi is never one to shy away from saying something controversial. More often than not, Lombardi’s outspoken criticisms don’t age well.

These days, Lombardi co-hosts a podcast covering the NFL and pops up on the radio from time to time. On Monday, he was a guest of the “Sports Junkies” on 106.7 The Fan in Washington, D.C.

No surprise, Lombardi was outspoken.

“I said this to three or four head coaches in the league this offseason: I would rather have had Sam Howell than a lot of these quarterbacks that are drafted in the first round,” he said via Lou DiPietro of Audacy.

“Other than Caleb Williams, I probably would rather have Sam Howell than any of them. What do you think Jayden Daniels would have done in that offense last year? He would have never made it through Week 3! (Howell) is tougher than nails. He got the crap beat out of him, and they gave him no help at all. Riverboat Ron was standing over there watching Bieniemy call passes and he was too scared to tell him to not do it. He was completely intimidated by him. He didn’t want to rattle the cages, or do anything politically that could upset things. The players were upset with Ron for not saying something!”

A lot of what Lombardi said here is on the money. Howell is tough, Bieniemy was bad as Washington’s OC and Rivera stood there with his arms crossed for much of the season. However, to say he’d rather have Howell than Daniels is probably a stretch. This is how you pose this question: If all 32 NFL teams had a quarterback need and held the No. 2 overall pick, would they choose Daniels or stick with Howell?

It’s fair to say that most would go with Daniels.

Back to Howell. He can play. We’ve gone on record multiple times stating that he is a starting quarterback in the NFL. He was put in a horrible position last season, and despite lots of promise in the first half, he predictably crashed in the second half. He had no help from the coaching staff.

Washington general manager Adam Peters had the chance to stick with Howell, trade down for a haul of picks and build around him. He chose Daniels. That’s not a knock on Howell, but likely how almost all other NFL decisionmakers would have proceeded, too.

Commanders Jonathan Allen: ‘I want to win now’

Jonathan Allen liked what he heard from owner Josh Harris on Monday.

On Tuesday’s edition of the “Sports Junkies,” a conversation with Washington defensive tackle Jonathan Allen was both entertaining and revealing.

Allen revealed he sat down with Ron Rivera prior to the season finale, and they discussed his playing with a sore knee and plantar fasciitis.

The two agreed with the Commanders being 4-12, it really was not worth it for Allen to be out there again this season.

Allen goes to great measures to maintain his health. He expressed that during the season, he really cuts back on drinking alcohol and cuts back on greasy foods as well.

Allen and his wife will be taking another extensive trip this offseason. This time they are going to Easter Island, which is west of Chile, South America.

When asked about some of the unusual cults approaching him while on Easter Island, Allen did not hesitate to respond, “Oh man, I’m a follower of Jesus Christ. Man, I don’t believe in all of that mumbo, jumbo.”

Then asked if he believes in the voodoo witch doctors, Allen replied, “No sir, hey, keep that away from me. I don’t even watch TV shows that have that crap in it.”

When Allen walks through airports, fans come up to him. But interestingly, when Allen is with his wife, Allen insists no one comes up to him.

His wife is a distance runner, having even run half marathons and a marathon. Allen, who weighs around 300 pounds, told of how he tried to run with her one time, and he only ran a mile, expressing he was miserable.

When flying into some of these remote airports across the planet, Allen said he has literally prayed, recognizing, “People get mad at me when I say this, but I’m on a plane, and I have no control. So, if it is my time to go, it is what it is. I can’t control it now.”

When asked why he puts his huge body in a plane seat all of those hours to fly on these trips all over the world, Allen again did not hesitate, “Well, that’s what the wife likes, you know, so got a suck it up.”

When the Allen’s traveled to Bhutan (between China and India), Allen talked of how the elevation was 12,000 feet above sea level. They embarked on a hike up to a place called Tiger Nest, a Buddhist Temple. Jonathan said it was one of the hardest things I’ve ever had to do. You start at 12,000 feet and hiking up to 14,000 feet. I was getting crushed by this thing; lack of oxygen. Again, one of the hardest things I’ve ever done. I don’t think I will go back.”

He expressed he liked what he heard from Josh Harris at the press conference, stating he is not looking for a reason to be leaving, but he does want to win now.

That is certainly understandable, as Allen’s first year in the NFL was 2017. He has been through many battles in the trenches.

There was even more revealing from Allen; here is the link to the entire conversation.

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.

 

Jonathan Allen named three Commanders having a good season

Allen believes Sam Howell is just going through the growing pains of a young quarterback learning on the job.

“We could make excuses, but we are just not a good defense right now.”

That’s how Jonathan Allen making his weekly appearance on the “Sports Junkies” of 106.7 The Fan, described the Washington Commanders defense, after giving up some more explosive plays that led to Washington’s 28-20 loss Sunday to the Los Angeles Rams.

When asked about the offense having too many short possessions, forcing the defense to go right back out there on the field, Allen wasn’t taking the bait. He responded, “It is a huge factor; but there have been a lot of times we (the defense) haven’t held up our end of the bargain. There have been times the offense has done their job, and it’s been the defense who hasn’t done our job.”

When asked about how Ron Rivera might be calling the Commanders defense differently than former coordinator Jack Del Rio, Allen responded, “I definitely feel like we have been more aggressive, blitzing our linebackers more.”

Allen didn’t hesitate when asked if there were some guys on the Commanders defense who were playing well. He, without hesitation, declared that safety Kam Curl and rookie defensive end K.J. Henry are both playing well right now.

When asked about offensive players having a good season, Allen quickly supplied the name right guard Sam Cosmi. You may recall that Cosmi was a tackle before moving inside this season.

Regarding Sam Howell’s benching for Jacoby Brissett Sunday against the Rams, Allen expressed, “Sam, being a young quarterback, is going to have growing pains. He is going to have to experience things and struggle to learn.” Allen also stated he is not surprised Jacoby Brissett made some good plays Sunday, citing his experience and years in the NFL.