ASHBURN, Va. — We’re far enough into Commanders training camp to stop guessing about some things. Others remain about as clear as the Beltway during morning rush hour.
With three weeks of practices, a joint session and one preseason game in the books, we have a much better sense of Washington’s pecking order — and where injuries, roster battles and recent additions have complicated matters.
A slew of transactions* also occurred during that period, including eight players coming or going Tuesday morning. That makes this a good time to examine each position room.
Here’s my unofficial position-by-position look at where the Commanders stand entering a key stretch of the preseason, with observations from Tuesday’s practice sprinkled throughout.
To help with the reset, here are the players who have come and gone since the start of training camp:
In — LB Krys Barnes, RB Craig Reynolds, LB Curtis Jacobs, DT Byron Cowart, OL Daniel Brunskill, OT Nicholas Petit-Frere, G Max Scharping, WR Stefon Diggs, CB Fabian Moreau, C Trey Hill, WR River Cracraft, CB Rasul Douglas, P Matt Haack
Out — RB Jerome Ford (IR), K Jake Moody, WR River Cracraft (IR), P Matt Haack, S Rob McDaniels, G Sala Aumavae-Laulu, WR Chris Hilton Jr., G Timothy McKay, DL D.J. Davidson (retired), G Tyler Cooper, CB Ahkello Witherspoon (retired), CB Tre Hawkins, OLB Andre Carter, TE Anthony Firkser, LB Nick Bellore (retired)
Cracraft and Haack, both involved in Tuesday’s transactions, appear on each list.
OFFENSE
Quarterback
QB1 — Jayden Daniels
QB2 — Marcus Mariota
QB3 — Athan Kaliakmanis
QB4 — Sam Hartman
Tuesday showed why not all sessions are created equal.
Washington practiced in “shells,” with full pads expected on Wednesday. The intensity seemed dialed back accordingly, and the defensive front was also shorthanded.
There were times when the first-team offense went against the third-team defense. During the season, you might call that the scout team. Washington focused on two-minute situations and fourth downs.
Daniels continues to stack quality practices. He found Jaylin Lane coming out of the slot on a right-to-left crosser for a dozen-ish yards. Near the end of practice, the QB fed Stefon Diggs on one play and immediately hit Chig Okonkwo up the seam for a chunk gain with touchdown potential.
Wednesday should not only provide a steadier test for Daniels and the offense, but possibly dictate whether the staff uses any of the starters against Detroit.
Quinn this week said Washington would not add another arm even though Mariota (sprained MCL) will miss the two remaining preseason games and at least the next two weeks of practice.
Sidebar: A quick thought on the importance of a third-string QB.
I got some pushback this week when I raised my concern about what Washington does at QB without Mariota in practice and possibly in games.
Indeed, the chances of winning games drop dramatically once you’re down to QB3. The Josh Johnsons and Jeff Driskels of the world aren’t carrying teams to victories.
But conceptually, veteran quarterbacks like those two recent Washington third-stringers can execute the offense as intended, letting the standouts at other positions do what they do.
The other type is the inexperienced quarterback who lacks the mental and on-field seasoning to keep the trains running on time.
Think back to last season. Quinn chose the 39-year-old Johnson over Hartman for the final two games of a lost season. The real kicker is that Washington, wanting to end the year on a positive note, brought back Driskel to serve as the backup over Hartman. That’s an example of the QB3 levels.
Kaliakmanis has some interesting traits and has outplayed Hartman, but expecting the seventh-round rookie to provide stability, let alone thrive, is, on the surface, unrealistic.
Running back
RB1 — Jacory Croskey-Merritt
RB2 — Rachaad White
RB3 — Kaytron Allen
Others — Jeremy McNichols, Robert Henry Jr., Craig Reynolds
Washington went from having a pair of versatile vets in reserve roles to losing McNichols (quad) for a “few weeks” and placing Jerome Ford (hamstring) on the reserve/injured list.
Should McNichols’ injury linger into xutdown day territory, Washington logically has the following options:
Keep three RBs with McNichols headed to IR (minimum four weeks) or released. Either way would which open an extra roster spot elsewhere.
Leave McNichols on the 53-man roster if the Commanders believe he can return within the first four weeks.
Keep Reynolds, a veteran with four years of experience playing in the system coordinator David Blough is implementing, at RB4 with McNichols on IR/released.
It’s also reasonable to conclude that Reynolds would clear waivers and, if willing, join the practice squad, where he could be elevated up to three times early in the season as needed.
Henry had quite the fun preseason debut. Every training camp has some unknown skill player shine, and most of the time it leads nowhere with the 53-man roster. He should land on the practice squad in all scenarios.
