The Washington Commanders are sitting at 1-4-1 through six games, but the bye week has at least made room to sort out what’s gone right. And there have been a few real positives buried in the mess.
Sonny Styles has been one of them from the start. The seventh pick in the 2026 NFL Draft leads the team with 46 combined tackles, including 22 solo stops and 24 assists, and he’s done it in six games without looking overwhelmed.
Styles has made plays all over the field - finishing after gains, helping in the run game and knocking down passes, with four already. He’s also tied for second on the team in tackles for loss.
In a rough opening month, he’s not the issue.
Jayden Daniels belongs in the same category, even with the rough edges. He missed ten games in 2025 and has already sat out two this season.
He’s also had a couple of costly mental mistakes over the last two weeks. Still, the larger picture is clear: Daniels is playing well, even with a brace on his left arm limiting his extension.
Those errors hurt, but his play also put Washington in position to win both games. Plain and simple, Jayden Daniels gives Washington a chance to turn around this sad 1-4-1 start to compete for the NFC East championship.
Antonio Williams looks like another strong draft hit. Taken in the third round at No. 71 overall, Williams has 18 catches on 26 targets and is averaging 3.0 receptions per game.
He has 205 receiving yards, an 11.4-yard average per catch, 10 first downs and one touchdown. His numbers could look even better, too.
An 88-yard touchdown catch and run was wiped out by a phantom holding call on Dyami Brown, and last week he was wide open on a fourth-and-2 in the middle of the field before Daniels threw the ball out of bounds.
K’Lavon Chaisson has been Washington’s most productive pass rusher so far. He leads the team with seven quarterback hits and has shown up in key moments, including last week against the 49ers when he aggressively forced a Christian McCaffrey fumble to stop a first-half drive and give the ball back to Washington.
Chaisson is also tied for second on the team with three tackles for loss. He’s been an excellent addition.
And then there’s Amik Robertson, who has given the defense a much-needed edge. The 28-year-old corner is tied for second on the team with 40 combined tackles, leads the Commanders with eight passes defended and has forced a fumble as well.
He also made a goal-line interception against the New York Giants, only to have it erased by a pass interference call even though he clearly did not make contact with the receiver while the ball was in the air. That play could have clinched a win in a game that ended in a tie.
Even so, Robertson has brought stability to a cornerback group that needed it.
In Other News...
Commanders Fans Have A Growing Reason To Doubt Adam Peters
The early returns on Adam Peters first major roster-building swings have not given Commanders fans much comfort. Washington entered the 2024 season with plenty of hope that a fresh front office would sharpen the draft and stabilize a roster that has needed help in several places, but the teams uneven play has kept the spotlight on the general managers choices, especially the way he has tried to patch together the running back room.
That concern only grows when so many of the 2024 draft additions have yet to leave a clear mark. The Commanders needed immediate help from that class, particularly on Day 2, and instead they are still waiting for those picks to deliver the kind of impact that can change the shape of a season. Until that happens, every shaky week on offense or in the backfield is going to feed the same question: how long does Washington need to wait before Peters plan starts paying off? [Read more 🡒]
Commanders Suddenly Have A Bigger Jacory Croskey-Merritt Question Than Expected
Jacory Croskey-Merritt went from seventh-round draft pick to one of the more encouraging young players on Washingtons roster almost immediately, playing in every game as a rookie and starting seven while piling up more than 800 rushing yards and eight touchdowns. Even with the Commanders offense dealing with line issues and a thinner backfield after Kaytron Allen was released, Croskey-Merritt looked like someone who had at least given the team a legitimate building block at running back.
This season has been a much different story, with his production slipping and Washington now having to navigate the position without him in the lineup. Bleacher Reports recent ranking of the 2025 running back class only adds to the bigger-picture concern for the Commanders, because the question is no longer just whether Croskey-Merritt can rediscover his rookie form, but where he really stacks up against the rest of that draft class moving forward. [Read more 🡒]
Commanders Bye-Week Scouting Trip Put Offensive Help In Focus
A Commanders scout was in Austin for the Texas-Ole Miss matchup over the bye week, a reminder that Washingtons attention is already turning toward ways to help the offense. The Longhorns and Rebels offered plenty of talent to evaluate, with quarterback Arch Manning helping Texas win the game and several skill-position players giving evaluators something to track beyond the final score.
The names on the board fit Washingtons obvious needs, especially at running back and wide receiver, where Ole Miss back Kewan Lacy and Texas options like Raleek Brown, Ryan Wingo and Cam Coleman are all part of the conversation. Injuries complicated some of the evaluation, but the trip underscored the kind of college talent the Commanders are likely to keep circling as they look ahead, even if nothing official has been made public. [Read more 🡒]