Daily Slop – 27 Sep 25 – Commanders tried out an Australian punter on Thursday

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Washington Post (paywall)

The secret to the Commanders’ special teams: Players truly care

Led by ‘The Flagship,’ Washington is getting big returns on its investment in the often-overlooked phase of football.

Larry Izzo is a special teams lifer. From his experience as a player and coordinator, the difference between a poor and great special teams unit is simple: players buying in.

“I mean, everyone has the ability,” Izzo said. “The thing that separates guys a lot of times is the buy-in and the understanding of: ‘This is my role. I’m owning that role and then trying to master that role.’ That’s what we have here is guys that have done that.”

The Commanders are so bought in they have a nickname for special teams: “The Flagship,” as Coach Dan Quinn calls it. A flagship is the lead vessel in a naval fleet that carries the commander. For Quinn, it’s a metaphor that drives home the importance of the unit to the Commanders’ overall success.

Washington is allowing just 23.1 yards per kick return allowed (fifth), and opponents have had an average starting field position of the 29-yard line after kick returns (10th).

The punting and punt coverage has been even better: Way has landed 58.3 percent of his punts inside opponents’ 20-yard line (fourth) and 33.3 percent of his punts inside opponents’ 10-yard line (second). When teams field his punts, they have hardly been able to go anywhere; the Commanders are allowing just 4.4 yards per punt return (fourth).

That has often forced opponents to put together lengthy drives. Opponents’ average starting field position after Commanders punts is the 17-yard line (second).

And that helps an injury-ravaged defense, which is allowing 19 points per game (12th).

And on kickoffs, the Commanders have no equal. With Samuel and McCaffrey splitting duties, Washington is averaging a league-best 34.1 yards per kick return. Their average starting field position after a kick return is their own 36.4-yard line (first).

What makes the Commanders’ feats on kick returns even more impressive is that opposing teams have done a good job of pinning them deep on kickoffs without committing touchbacks. On average, the Commanders field a kickoff around their own 3-yard line.

“It’s want-to,” Reaves said when asked about the key to their return exploits. “Kickoff return or punt return is very little scheme. Everybody runs the same stuff: middle returns, sideline returns, bounce returns. It’s want-to and a sense of my guy is not going to make the play. When you’ve got 10 guys that think like that, like, ‘I’m not going to let my guy make the tackle,’ then you get lanes like you did.”

The Athletic (paywall)

Commanders’ Jayden Daniels, Terry McLaurin ruled out for Week 4 vs. Falcons

The team ruled out four players, including quarterback Jayden Daniels and leading receiver Terry McLaurin, for Sunday’s game against the Falcons. Marcus Mariota will get his second start in Daniels’ place, and his first in Atlanta since his acrimonious exit from the team in 2022. Wideout Noah Brown and tight end John Bates will also both miss their second game because of groin injuries.

Without their top two guys, Washington will have Deebo Samuel, Luke McCaffrey, rookie Jaylin Lane and veteran Chris Moore, plus a potential practice-squad elevation (Ja’Corey Brooks, Tay Martin or Jacoby Jones) on Sunday.

ESPN

Commanders have 4 players “out” and 2 “questionable” for Sunday’s game in Atlanta

Running back Jacory Croskey-Merritt (knee) was at Friday’s practice after not practicing Wednesday and Thursday. Quinn said he had a good practice, and the team later listed him as a full participant, giving him a questionable tag for Sunday’s game.

“He’s working incredibly hard round the clock to get back,” Quinn said. “Ultimately doctors haven’t cleared him just yet. He’s absolutely doing everything he possibly can.”

Commanders.com

3 keys to Washington getting a win in Atlanta

1. The defense must have a good day.

The Commanders’ patched-up offense ended on a good note last week against the Las Vegas Raiders, but it took them some time for the unit to find its footing. The defense gave them that luxury in Week 3, and they’ll need another solid performance from that side of the ball to win this week.

The Falcons have been a perplexing team to start the season. They have the firepower to be one of the best offenses in football with Kyle Pitts, Drake London, Darnell Mooney and Bijan Robinson, and yet they are tied for 20th in yards per play. They clearly move the ball, as they rank 11th in first downs per game, but they’re also last in average points per play.

2. More contributions from depth players at receiver.

The Commanders are thin at receiver right now with Terry McLaurin dealing with a quad injury and Noah Brown still out with a groin issue. Regardless of who starts at quarterback, the Commanders need to get more out of their depth players to keep the offense running smoothly.

3. Give the offense short fields.

Deebo Samuel’s 69-yard kickoff return set the tone for the rest of the afternoon, and Washington’s special teams unit might have to provide that spark against the Falcons.

The Commanders currently have one of the best special teams units in the NFL. They’re first in punt return yards and kickoff return average. Samuel already has 221 yards on six returns, while Lane leads the league in punt return yards with the second-longest punt return of the year through three games.

Both units will need to deliver another solid performance against the Falcons, who have a strong group of their own.

A to Z Sports

Bijan Robinson is one of the best, but the offense isn’t

Robinson has already made his mark in the league as a top running back and even an offensive weapon, and it makes preparing for him a real headache. Commanders’ defensive coordinator Joe Whitt Jr. praised the running back on Thursday when he spoke to the media.

“You know, we put up the key players each week,” Whitt Jr. said. “And you put your strengths and the weaknesses. And I didn’t have any weaknesses for the guy [Robinson], man. I was just like, man, he can do it all. He can run inside or outside. He can catch, he can block. He can run the screen game. He does it all very, very well.”

If you can stop Robinson and force a struggling Michael Penix Jr. to throw more than he’s comfortable doing, you have a real shot to win this game. The Commanders’ run defense has improved drastically compared to last year, and they’re ready for the challenge.

Robinson is clearly the best option for the Falcons’ offense right now, who can’t throw the ball to save their lives, and the Commanders can make this game a lot easier on the offense if they can get the Falcons off the field quickly by shutting down the run game.

Riggo’s Rag

Commanders need safety help to contain Darnell Mooney’s downfield threat

They got some help when Commanders general manager Adam Peters signed former first-round pick Darnell Savage Jr. to cover injuries at safety. The newcomer may have arrived at the perfect moment to help Washington’s paper-thin secondary keep Mooney at bay.

What the Commanders can’t do is fall into the same trap with Mooney, which they fell for against the Las Vegas Raiders in Week 3. When a defense naturally focused on containing All-Pro tight end Brock Bowers and tough and resourceful wideout Jakobi Meyers, it forgot about Tre Tucker’s deep speed.

Mooney has the skills to inflict similar damage if the Commanders commit too many resources to keeping Pitts and London under wraps — any plan must involve making concessions for his speed.

They’ve travelled with a lot of man coverage on the back end so far this season, but the Commanders may need to adjust things this week. Starting with keeping two safeties deep.

[The Commanders] will miss injured Will Harris, but his perfect replacement is better suited for bodying Pitts down close to the line of scrimmage. Instead, the Commanders need Quan Martin and Savage to form a two-deep shell and take away the vertical strikes Mooney loves.

He’s averaged an impressive 10.7 yards per reception and 8.3 yards before catch per reception through two games. The former Chicago Bears playmaker’s potential to go downfield is obvious, especially now that he’s fully healthy for the first time this season. However, Mooney needs to see the last third of the field taken away from him this week.

Heavy.com

Commanders Try Out Intriguing Australian Punter Oscar Chapman

On Thursday, the Commanders [brought] in undrafted Australian punter Oscar Chapman for a tryout, even though the team already has a Pro Bowl-caliber punter, Tress Way, at their disposal.

You can never be too thorough in the NFL, and the Commanders are illustrating that by taking a look at another punter, despite having Way at their disposal. A two-time Pro Bowler who also earned a spot on the All-Pro Second Team in 2019, Way has spent his entire 12-year career with Washington, and he remains one of the top players at his position in the league.

If something happens to Way, though, Washington doesn’t have anyone on the depth chart who could come and fill in for him. That led to the team checking out Chapman, a former punter for the Auburn Tigers in college who is looking for his start in the NFL. Chapman didn’t get selected in the 2025 NFL Draft, and while he spent time with the Minnesota Vikings over the summer, he ended up getting released in August.

NFL.com

NFL Week 4 picks & predictions

The most interesting question: What are the Falcons?

In Week 1, they barely lost to the back-to-back-to-back-to-back NFC South champion Bucs. In Week 2, they completely overwhelmed J.J. McCarthy and the Vikings. And then, this past Sunday, they were absolutely blown off the field by the Panthers. Michael Penix Jr. was benched; it was bad. So, what’s in store for Week 4? It’s important to note that Washington’s health issues go beyond Daniels. If Terry McLaurin (quad) is unable to go, that helps a Falcons secondary that’ll likely be missing CB1 A.J. Terrell (hamstring) for a second straight game. And while the Commanders’ defense looks pretty good on paper, I think the stats are inflated by lackluster offensive competition in two of the first three weeks. With Atlanta’s early bye on tap right after this game, Raheem Morris rallies the troops, gets the response he’s anticipating from Penix and denies Dan Quinn the satisfaction of beating his old team.

Podcasts & videos

Falcons vs Commanders Week 4 game preview ft. George Carmi: Atlanta must get back on track

Luke McCaffrey on Year 2, First TD & Falcons Game 🔥 + Ricky Ervins’ Washington Legacy | Next Man Up

NFC East links

Bucs Nation

Buccaneers vs Eagles Q&A with Bleeding Green Nation

Which team will remain undefeated?

[W]here would you say the Eagles are the most vulnerable?

“Assuming the offense has legitimately turned a corner (TBD), the Eagles’ biggest concern right now is the CB2 spot. The Eagles cut Darius Slay and let Isaiah Rodgers (reigning NFC Defensive Player of the Week) walk in free agency with the idea that Kelee Ringo was ready to take over as a starting cornerback. Unfortunately for them, Ringo struggled in training camp practices and preseason games to ultimately fall out of starting contention. He lost the battle to veteran Adoree’ Jackson, who didn’t even play well but managed to look less worse than Ringo. Jackson is now dealing with a groin injury but it seems like he might be able to play in Week 4. Jackson was already struggling prior to injury; he was a liability in Week 1 before settling in a little bit more in Week 2 and Week 3. If Jackson isn’t able to make it through the game, the Eagles won’t have their top backup cornerback available since they just placed Jakorian Bennett on injured reserve. And so it might be Ringo who has to play against the Bucs. The Eagles are lucky that Mike Evans won’t be playing in this game but Emeka Egbuka and Chris Godwin Jr. still figure to challenge this secondary.

The Eagles’ run defense has also been more leaky than expected but I’m looking to air it out if I’m the Bucs (though I’m also not privy to the extent of Baker Mayfield’s right biceps injury).“

The Eagles are currently road favorites. What is your score prediction for this one?

“That’s interesting, right? The Eagles have consistently struggled to beat the Bucs since the Nick Sirianni/Jalen Hurts era began in 2021. And yet the Eagles opened as three-point road favorites and the line has since shifted to Philly being favored by 3.5 points. Call me a sucker for believing things will be different this time but it’s hard to bet against the Birds since they simply do not lose when Hurts starts and finishes the game. And whereas the Eagles have been “the hunted” in the sense of teams wanting to get revenge on them each of the past two weeks, now they’re in a spot with something to prove.

Blogging the Boys

Costly turnovers are making the Cowboys appear worse than they really are

The Dallas Cowboys are not doing so well. After three games, the team sits with a 1-2 record, coming off an embarrassing showing against the Chicago Bears. The defense has looked atrocious over the last two games and the offense just doesn’t seem to have enough firepower to keep up. Adding insult to injury is, well, injury, as the offense has lost three key starters in CeeDee Lamb, Cooper Beebe, and rookie Tyler Booker. Coincidentally, all three are out with high ankle sprains.

With problems on defense and injuries on offense, the word “bleak” has forced its way into our minds. Is this a team that’s in a lot of trouble? Are we witnessing what will become a common theme for this team, where close battles will become losses and losses will become blowouts?

Possibly.

With so much uncertainty with this football team, it’s hard to know how this one will play out. The team is not playing well, and there are no assurances that things will improve once the players become more acclimated to the teachings of the new coaching staff. Better health could be around the corner, but again, it’s a long season. It could get worse before it gets better.

One thing that does offer a glimpse of hope is that in all three games, the Cowboys have played well enough throughout the game to give them a fighting chance to win; however, self-inflicted miscues have derailed scoring opportunities. The team has turned the ball over in every game so far, and in many cases, those turnovers have proved costly. Let’s examine each case and try to understand its implications.

BEARS

The Cowboys lost to the Bears by 17 points, and there isn’t a play or two that would have changed that; however, the Dallas offense gave the ball away four times in this game, and each time they were in scoring position. Javonte Williams fumbled the ball on the Cowboys’ opening series. Instead of first-and-10 inside Chicago’s 30-yard line, it was the Bears’ ball.

Not only did it start off bad, but it ended poorly as well, as the Cowboys’ last three offensive possessions ended in interceptions, two of which were picked off in the end zone. If the Cowboys don’t turn the ball over and get into the endzone on half of those possessions (the ones there were deep in Chicago territory) and kick field goals on the other two, you’re looking at 20 more points on the scoreboard. They lost by 17. That’s a different ballgame.

Bolts from the Blue

5 Questions with Big Blue View: Talent not enough for Giants thus far in 2025

What are some silver linings you can pick out from the Giants’ 0-3 start? Are they as bad as their record suggests? Have you seen anything that makes you believe they could turn their fortunes around this season?

In all honesty, I believe this is the most talented Giants roster in the four years of the GM Joe Schoen/head coach Brian Daboll era. They are 0-3 and deserve to be because they have had opportunities to win all three games and missed them. But, the Commanders, Cowboys and chiefs are all quality teams. The Giants schedule is ridiculously hard, on paper.

They have a defense that has the talent to be a top 10 group in the NFL. They have the talent to be a middle of the pack team on offense. They “should” be a team that no one really wants to play. They quite simply, though, don’t seem to know how to win games.

If you were Chargers defensive coordinator Jesse Minter, how would you game plan against Dart and the Giants offense? Are there any other players aside from Malik Nabers that you would have to account for?

Well, first of all I think you look at the film from the first three games and throw most of it out. I think you game plan for the reality that the quarterback run game with zone reads and RPOs will be a big part of what we see. I think we will see a lot of shotgun, and a fair amount of hurry up/no huddle. Those are things Dart did a lot at Ole Miss, and they should be staples as he gets his feet wet.

The Commanders and Chiefs had success dealing with Nabers by playing a lot of two-high and not letting him get over the top. I think you want to see if the Giants have an answer for that. They did not last week. I think the Giants will target Nabers early and often. This will be a 12-15-target game for him.

If you are Minter, you want to try to confuse Dart. You want to stress the offensive line, especially the questionable interior of it, with stunts, twists and blitzes to see if you can break the Giants; offense down.

Upcoming opponent

The Falcoholic

Is the Falcons season on the line in Week 4?

It’s easy to be swept up in the moment, but are the Falcons really in that much trouble?

The Atlanta Falcons lost 0-30, the offense is flailing, and coaches are being fired.

The special teams unit can’t make a kick or field a kick.

Zac Robinson and Raheem Morris provided differing quotes when asked about the offense’s predictability in their press conferences, which were held only minutes apart.

The team has set a must-win precedent against the Washington Commanders with its behavior. It’s only Week 4.

It’s the fourth week of the NFL season, and Flowery Branch is operating like it’s December. The loss to the Panthers was embarrassing, but does the season really hang in the balance against Dan Quinn and his team? That depends on your perspective.

The Falcoholic

Offensive Failure: Why the Falcons fired their wide receivers coach

In Penix’s three starts in 2024, the team generated 11 explosive passes of 20 yards or more, ranking third in the NFL during that span. 10 of which were produced by wide receivers, with Mooney and Drake London producing eight combined. However, that has dropped to just six explosive plays through the first three games in 2025, with only half provided by the wide receivers and one each for Mooney and London.

The team’s efficiency on third downs and in the red zone has also dipped dramatically. In 2024, when Mooney or London were targeted on third downs, the Falcons converted them into first downs at a 46 percent rate. That matched the sixth-ranked third-down offense in 2024, as seen in the Washington Commanders. However, when both receivers have been targeted in 2025, they only convert 29 percent of the time, which is equal to 2024’s worst third-down offense, the Cleveland Browns.

London was also the team’s primary red-zone threat in 2024, accounting for over 40 percent of the team’s throws in that area. When targeted, London scored about 25 percent of the time, a significant uptick from the 15 percent red-zone conversion rate when targeting any other receiver. Unfortunately, London has been a non-factor thus far in the red zone in 2025. He’s been targeted just twice and has yet to catch a pass, let alone convert one into a score.

Unsurprisingly, the Falcons’ red-zone offense has dipped to start the year. After converting 75 percent of their red-zone trips into touchdowns to close out the 2024 season with Penix at the helm, the team is only converting on 29 percent in 2025.

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