The Washington Commanders finally got the kind of win that can settle a locker room down for a minute: a 33-31 upset over the Seattle Seahawks at home, built on takeaways, timely offense, and enough grit to survive a game that was messy in plenty of places.
Marcus Mariota was a big part of that. In relief of Jayden Daniels last season, he went 2-6 as a starter and watched his play slip as injuries piled up around him.
This time, the setup looked a lot different. The Commanders had a better receiver group, plus receiving back Rachaad White, and Mariota made the most of it.
He hit White for his first passing touchdown of the day, leaned on Stefon Diggs as a steady outlet against a fierce Seahawks defense, and found Treylon Burks and Terry McLaurin for scores on his way to 183 passing yards, three touchdowns, no interceptions, and five carries for 11 yards.
Washington also cashed in when Seattle gave it extra chances. The Commanders turned 20 points off turnovers, and that mattered as much as anything Mariota did through the air. It was the first time Washington had scored 20 or more points off turnovers since Week 17 of the 2005 season.
A lot of the offense came back to David Blough, whose growth as a play-caller is showing fast. After a Week 1 debut in Philadelphia that raised questions about whether Dan Quinn and the Commanders could afford to let a rookie play-caller learn on the job, Blough looked better against the Cowboys in Week 2. Against Mike Macdonald and the defending Super Bowl champion Seahawks in Week 3, he took another step.
Blough mixed in a strong dose of run game and short passes to control possession, but he didn’t just play safe. After Washington’s first turnover, he dialed up a fake swing pass that turned into a tunnel screen to Jaylin Lane, and the play went for the first 20-plus yard gain allowed by Seattle’s defense this season.
He also stayed aggressive after turnovers, and after Sonny Styles’ interception, Washington needed just three plays before McLaurin was in the end zone on a 30-yard touchdown. Later, Blough leaned on Bill Croskey-Merritt on RPOs for much of the game before calling a read option for Mariota on third and long to help seal it.
The defense had its flaws, and there’s no getting around that. The game plan should have centered on limiting Jaxson Smith-Njigba and forcing Cooper Kupp and A.J.
Barner to beat them, but that didn’t happen. Smith-Njigba finished with 10 catches for 128 yards and two touchdowns, Barner added five receptions for 69 yards, and Kupp posted four catches for 46 yards and a touchdown.
Sam Darnold piled up 379 passing yards and four touchdowns, and Seattle got past 30 points.
Still, the defense delivered where it mattered most: takeaways. Coming in without a forced turnover, Daronte Jones’ group finally found its swing.
Amik Robertson started it by punching the ball loose from Seattle first-round pick Jadarian Price for a forced fumble. Sonny Styles followed with a leaping interception of a deflected pass early in the second half.
Robertson and Styles were the tone-setters, with Robertson putting together one of the best games of his seven-year career and Styles turning in his strongest outing as a rookie so far.
Odafe Oweh helped create pressure on Kain Medrano’s interception, and the unit finished with three turnovers overall, including a pick-six. The Seahawks also became one-dimensional, as Washington held their rushing attack to 44 total yards and no touchdowns. Through three games, the Commanders’ run defense has allowed 168 rushing yards on 51 carries, a 3.3 yards-per-carry average, and zero rushing touchdowns.
This was the kind of day where the whole roster had to pull in the same direction. Dan Quinn had his team ready from the opening whistle, and the depth players answered when their number was called.
Washington was missing Jayden Daniels, Laremy Tunsil, Frankie Luvu, and Sam Cosmi, yet still found a way to beat a tough opponent and pick up a much-needed first win of the season. For a team still trying to figure out what it looks like without its franchise quarterback, the result offered at least one clear answer: there’s enough here to keep believing.
In Other News...
Kain Medrano May Have Just Forced A Bigger Commanders Role
The Commanders needed help at linebacker, and Kain Medrano gave them something they can build on in a hurry. In Sundays win over the Seahawks, the second-year linebacker finally got his first regular-season defensive snaps and made them count in a major way, turning a fourth-quarter interception into a pick-six that helped decide the game. It was the kind of sudden impact Washington has been searching for as injuries have thinned that position group.
Marcus Mariota, Sonny Styles and Terry McLaurin did their part in the victory, but Medranos moment may have changed the conversation about what comes next. A player who had not taken a defensive snap in an NFL regular-season game before Week 3 suddenly looked like someone Washington can trust in meaningful situations, and with the linebacker room already stretched, his role is now worth watching closely. [Read more 🡒]
Commanders Shocked Seattle But One Problem Still Wont Go Away
The Commanders left their home opener with an eye-opening win over Seattle, and the result was even more impressive because it came after Jayden Daniels went down with a dislocated elbow. Marcus Mariota stepped in at quarterback, while Washington played with noticeably more urgency and got an early lift from a defense that looked far sharper than it had in recent weeks.
Mike Sainristils limited playing time was one piece of the postgame conversation, but the larger concern lingered in the same familiar place. Washington still had trouble staying clean before the snap, and those discipline issues keep hanging around even after a victory that should have been about relief and momentum. The Commanders got the upset they needed, but the details around how sustainable it really is are harder to ignore. [Read more 🡒]
Commanders Lose Leo Chenal After Frightening Injury Scare
The second quarter brought a frightening pause for the Commanders when linebacker Leo Chenal went down against the Seahawks and had to be taken off the field on a cart. Washington later ruled him out with a neck injury, leaving the focus far bigger than the score and shifting attention immediately to Chenals condition.
There was a small measure of relief in the early reports, which indicated Chenal was able to move his arms and legs as he was being removed from the field. Even so, any neck injury draws instant concern, and the Commanders will be waiting on further updates as they try to sort through both the medical outlook and the on-field void left behind. [Read more 🡒]