The Commanders are opening their preseason Friday night against the Miami Dolphins, and the biggest decision on the board is one Washington has to handle better this time: Jayden Daniels needs real snaps.
Last year, Daniels barely got anything in the preseason. He played one series across Washington’s three-game slate, never threw a pass, and then never found the rhythm he had during his 2024 AP Offensive Rookie of the Year season. He appeared in only seven games as the Commanders finished 5-12.
That’s the cautionary tale hanging over this August. Washington can’t afford a repeat.
Yes, there’s obvious injury anxiety any time starters step onto the field in games that don’t count, especially after the Commanders lost five-time Pro Bowl left tackle Laremy Tunsil to what might be a season-ending torn triceps. But hiding every key player from contact isn’t a plan. Daniels has to be out there.
The logic goes beyond simple preseason reps. The 2023 Heisman Trophy winner also needs a chance to show his body is ready after what happened last season.
He’s looked sharp in training camp, and by all indications he already has a strong handle on new coordinator David Blough’s offense. That’s nice to hear.
It means more if it shows up against another team.
The Cincinnati Bengals have already said Joe Burrow will play Friday against the Detroit Lions, and Burrow brings the same kind of injury conversation into the new season. Daniels, though, has even more to prove. He can’t be eased back in so gently that Washington once again starts the year untested and behind the curve.
Nobody is asking for Daniels to play the whole night Friday. But one or two series would make sense, and the same idea should apply when the Commanders face Detroit a week from Saturday, where a first quarter or even first half wouldn’t be out of line.
Washington thought it could skip the dress rehearsal last year and still roll straight into September ready to compete for a Super Bowl. That gamble backfired. This time, the Commanders need to make the safer bet: let Daniels play, let him get hit, and let him get ready.
In Other News...
Commanders Cornerback Question Now Centers On A Familiar Name
Cornerback depth has become one of the quieter questions facing Washington as training camp approaches, and it has a familiar family connection attached to it. After signing Stefon Diggs in the offseason, the Commanders are still looking at ways to shore up the back end of their defense, and that search has naturally led to his brother, Trevon Diggs, as a possible veteran addition.
Trevon Diggs is currently a free agent, which keeps the idea alive for a team that could use help at corner. The fit would make sense on paper because Washington is weighing experience and depth at a spot where every camp rep matters, but the real question is whether the Commanders decide to make a move before practices begin. [Read more 🡒]
Commanders No. 7 Debate Reopens Theismanns Place In Team History
Joe Theismanns old No. 7 has become part of a familiar Washington conversation again, with the former quarterback making it clear he believes the call on whether players can wear it belongs to the franchise. The issue reaches beyond one jersey. It touches the teams long-running and sometimes uneven approach to honoring its best players, from outright retirements to looser forms of recognition, and it naturally invites a fresh look at where Theismann fits in that history.
Theismanns case is built on more than nostalgia, since his career achievements still stand out in Washington lore and compare favorably with some of the names already marked by the organization. Even so, the debate around No. 7 has a way of reopening bigger questions about who gets permanence and why, especially for a team whose history includes both celebrated legends and a handful of unclear distinctions. The unanswered piece now is whether Washington ever decides that Theismann belongs in the same class as the numbers it has chosen to preserve. [Read more 🡒]
Commanders Kicker Battle Could Swing On Drew Stevens This Week
The first preseason test arrives this week for the Commanders, and it comes with an extra layer of significance for a roster spot that rarely gets this much attention. Washington opens against the Miami Dolphins with Drew Stevens and Jake Moody still locked in a kicking competition, and the early camp buzz has tilted toward the undrafted rookie as he makes his case for a job no one can afford to take lightly.
Stevens has handled himself well enough in practices to keep the battle interesting, while Moody brings the experience edge into a matchup that now shifts from camp fields to game action. The preseason is where Washington will try to sort out which leg it trusts most for the long haul, and every kick from here on out carries a little more weight than usual. [Read more 🡒]