Cowboys want a better defense, but the Commanders might have got one

Time for a bounce-back game from the Dallas Cowboys . If that is to happen, it will come at the expense of the Washington Commanders . To see if that might happen, we checked in with Andrew Y. over at Hogs Haven for the lowdown on the Commanders heading into the second week of the season.

Blogging The Boys: What were some of the best things that you saw from the Commanders in the first game versus Philadelphia that bode well for the season?

Hogs Haven: I think the first thing almost any Commanders fan would say is the performance of the defense. Last year, the Commanders had one of the worst defenses in the NFL, so they completely overhauled it in the offseason, with a new DC in Daronte Jones (who brings an attacking Flores-like scheme) and replacing over half of the starters on defense. Early returns indicate the overhaul has paid off. The defense was living in the Eagles backfield last Sunday, generating a 48.48% pressure rate on Jalen Hurts and a 24% TFL rate, both notably higher than NFL average. On offense, things were a bit of a mixed bag, but there were a few positives. Other fans may disagree, but I saw a lot of positives in the way Jayden Daniels played. He played like more of a pocket QB, avoiding pressure by navigating the pocket and avoiding pressure like a ninja while keeping his eyes downfield. He didn't make a lot of connections passing until the 4th quarter, but I blame that more on the playcalling and the quality of the Eagles defense. Playing from the pocket instead of breaking the pocket when nothing is immediately available should do a better job of keeping Jayden healthy. It was also notable that the OL played competently. A lot of people were worried that with the injury to Laremy Tunsil and former backup IOL Nick Allegretti starting at Center that the OL would be one of the worst in the league and would prevent the offense from functioning. I don't think that was the case. The OL seemed competent, perhaps more at the league average level. That was a win compared to expectations.

Hogs Haven: I think the first thing almost any Commanders fan would say is the performance of the defense. Last year, the Commanders had one of the worst defenses in the NFL, so they completely overhauled it in the offseason, with a new DC in Daronte Jones (who brings an attacking Flores-like scheme) and replacing over half of the starters on defense. Early returns indicate the overhaul has paid off. The defense was living in the Eagles backfield last Sunday, generating a 48.48% pressure rate on Jalen Hurts and a 24% TFL rate, both notably higher than NFL average.

On offense, things were a bit of a mixed bag, but there were a few positives. Other fans may disagree, but I saw a lot of positives in the way Jayden Daniels played. He played like more of a pocket QB, avoiding pressure by navigating the pocket and avoiding pressure like a ninja while keeping his eyes downfield. He didn't make a lot of connections passing until the 4th quarter, but I blame that more on the playcalling and the quality of the Eagles defense. Playing from the pocket instead of breaking the pocket when nothing is immediately available should do a better job of keeping Jayden healthy. It was also notable that the OL played competently. A lot of people were worried that with the injury to Laremy Tunsil and former backup IOL Nick Allegretti starting at Center that the OL would be one of the worst in the league and would prevent the offense from functioning. I don't think that was the case. The OL seemed competent, perhaps more at the league average level. That was a win compared to expectations.

BTB: On the flip side, what were some of the most concerning things to occur?

HH : Despite the defense playing aggressively and getting quite a few stops, they also gave up quite some big plays. In fact, they gave up 171 of the Eagles' 318 total yards on just four plays . Mostly these seemed like they were caused by individual players making a mental mistake and I'm hoping it gets cleaned up with more time in the scheme. However, I think there is an element of truth to the idea that because the Flores-style defense is so aggressive, it can lend itself to allowing big plays by leaving the backend exposed when all the pressure it sends isn't able to get home. On offense, the biggest concern was Jayden Daniels' stats in the first half : 37.5 completion percentage, 43 passing yards, 0 touchdowns, 16 rushing yards, and a 45.8 passer rating. It improved in the second half and especially in the 4th quarter, but clearly the offense hasn't found its groove. Again, I blame this mostly on the playcalling and quality of the Eagles defense, but it needs to improve and our rookie playcaller David Blough needs to learn quickly on the job. It's also not great that Jayden Daniels had a 50% pressure rate in week 1.

HH : Despite the defense playing aggressively and getting quite a few stops, they also gave up quite some big plays. In fact, they gave up 171 of the Eagles' 318 total yards on just four plays . Mostly these seemed like they were caused by individual players making a mental mistake and I'm hoping it gets cleaned up with more time in the scheme. However, I think there is an element of truth to the idea that because the Flores-style defense is so aggressive, it can lend itself to allowing big plays by leaving the backend exposed when all the pressure it sends isn't able to get home.

On offense, the biggest concern was Jayden Daniels' stats in the first half : 37.5 completion percentage, 43 passing yards, 0 touchdowns, 16 rushing yards, and a 45.8 passer rating. It improved in the second half and especially in the 4th quarter, but clearly the offense hasn't found its groove. Again, I blame this mostly on the playcalling and quality of the Eagles defense, but it needs to improve and our rookie playcaller David Blough needs to learn quickly on the job. It's also not great that Jayden Daniels had a 50% pressure rate in week 1.

BTB: Give us a rundown on a few of the new players in Washington who could make a big impact this season.

HH: On offense, I expect WRs Stefon Diggs and Antonio Williams to have the biggest impact. Most readers will probably know about Stefon Diggs, who was the biggest FA signing for the Commanders on offense. Antonio Williams was a 3rd-round pick in this year's NFL draft from Clemson. Williams has generated some buzz through training camp and caught 4-of-4 targets for 64 yards and a TD in week 1. On defense, as mentioned before, over half the defensive starters this year are new to the team. I won't go through all of them, but the standouts are LB Sonny Styles , S Nick Cross , and EDGE Odafe Oweh .Styles was drafted 7th overall and has lived up to his billing. He was all over the field on Sunday making plays and even steamrolled Saquon Barkley to get a big hit on Jalen Hurts on a blitz. Nick Cross was a physical presence flying all over the field, showing well in coverage while also getting tackles and limiting yardage to the line of scrimmage. Odafe Oweh was the team's biggest FA signing with a 4-year, $96 million contract. He didn't have a huge impact in week 1 against the Eagles elite OTs, ending the game with 1 sack, 3 total tackles and a tackle for loss.

HH: On offense, I expect WRs Stefon Diggs and Antonio Williams to have the biggest impact. Most readers will probably know about Stefon Diggs, who was the biggest FA signing for the Commanders on offense. Antonio Williams was a 3rd-round pick in this year's NFL draft from Clemson. Williams has generated some buzz through training camp and caught 4-of-4 targets for 64 yards and a TD in week 1.

On defense, as mentioned before, over half the defensive starters this year are new to the team. I won't go through all of them, but the standouts are LB Sonny Styles , S Nick Cross , and EDGE Odafe Oweh .Styles was drafted 7th overall and has lived up to his billing. He was all over the field on Sunday making plays and even steamrolled Saquon Barkley to get a big hit on Jalen Hurts on a blitz. Nick Cross was a physical presence flying all over the field, showing well in coverage while also getting tackles and limiting yardage to the line of scrimmage. Odafe Oweh was the team's biggest FA signing with a 4-year, $96 million contract. He didn't have a huge impact in week 1 against the Eagles elite OTs, ending the game with 1 sack, 3 total tackles and a tackle for loss.

I would also be remiss if I didn't mention standout gunner Tyler Owens , who was a maven on special teams and had an angry run that went viral after the game.

BTB : Is Dan Quinn's job in jeopardy this year? What would the Commanders have to do this season to make sure he returns?

HH: A lot of fans are ready to eject him right now, but I think the Front Office will be more patient. I think there's an understanding that the roster was very weak when he took over and in particular had no depth, so it simply couldn't withstand last year's rate of injury. Although the injuries weren't Quinn's fault, there were also some problems with coaching (particularly on defense), which is what necessitated the change in coordinators, so Quinn deserves some of the blame. I think if the team has another 5 or 6 win season, DQ would definitely be on the chopping block, but if he does better than that, most of the losses are close losses, the team looks mostly well-coached, young players seem to be developing, and (maybe most importantly) Jayden Daniels is developing well and seems to be happy with the coaches, they will probably keep DQ for another year hoping that another offseason infusion of talent and the further development of our rookie coordinators will lead to better results next year.

BTB: What is your prediction for the game? How does it play out and who wins?

HH: The Cowboys are currently 4.5-point favorites and I rarely predict Vegas to be very wrong, so if I had to make a score prediction, it would be something like 27-24 in favor of the Cowboys. In terms of how the gameflow will work, I'm a bit worried about the Commanders giving up so many explosive plays and the Cowboys having a pair of WRs (and a QB) capable of making explosive plays in the passing game. At the same time, the Commanders run defense was pretty solid most of the time and Javonte Williams isn't as much of a big-play threat as Saquon, so I think the Cowboys will have to mostly progress through their passing attack. On the Commanders side, I think they should run what worked against the Eagles. Since new DC Christian Parker is a Fangio disciple, maintaining the run-heavy, short passing game that seemed to work best in the 4th quarter of the Eagles game would be the best way to attack. On defense, Daronte Jones should stick with the stunt- and blitz-heavy script that worked against the Eagles, but make sure players execute their responsibilities better on the backend.

HH: The Cowboys are currently 4.5-point favorites and I rarely predict Vegas to be very wrong, so if I had to make a score prediction, it would be something like 27-24 in favor of the Cowboys. In terms of how the gameflow will work, I'm a bit worried about the Commanders giving up so many explosive plays and the Cowboys having a pair of WRs (and a QB) capable of making explosive plays in the passing game. At the same time, the Commanders run defense was pretty solid most of the time and Javonte Williams isn't as much of a big-play threat as Saquon, so I think the Cowboys will have to mostly progress through their passing attack.

On the Commanders side, I think they should run what worked against the Eagles. Since new DC Christian Parker is a Fangio disciple, maintaining the run-heavy, short passing game that seemed to work best in the 4th quarter of the Eagles game would be the best way to attack. On defense, Daronte Jones should stick with the stunt- and blitz-heavy script that worked against the Eagles, but make sure players execute their responsibilities better on the backend.

Ok BTB, what's your takeaway from these answers?