We were wrong about this unit on the Commanders’ defense, and the Packers made a statement against one of the best players
We may have overhyped the Commanders’ defense too early.
Thursday Night Football didn’t go according to plan for the Washington Commanders, and we expected more from the defense. The Green Bay Packers moved the ball at will against the Commanders’ defense and made a statement as a top team in the NFL.
The defense was supposed to keep this game close after an impressive showing against the New York Giants in Week 1, but that’s not at all what happened. Going into the season, the Commanders’ secondary looked to be a strong unit, but the Packers gave them a reality check.
The weak link
The Commanders spent a lot of draft capital over the last two seasons rebuilding the cornerback room, and invested some money in free agency at the safety position. It looked like the secondary would be a staple for the defense this year, but we quickly found out that’s not the case.
The grades came in on how bad the secondary really was, and it was worse than we thought. The fourth-lowest graded defenders were all in the secondary with Mike Sainristil (29), Marshon Lattimore (29.1), Quan Martin (32.8), and Will Harris (37.9). Not ideal when your four worst players of the game are all in the same group. The only player who didn’t sink was rookie corner Trey Amos, who finished as the seventh-highest graded defender, and the best in the entire secondary.
Love was targeting all of them at will Thursday night, and the receivers were even getting holding calls on Lattimore once again. Sainristil really surprised me as the worst player in the secondary, though. He’s supposed to be the top player in that entire unit, and they picked him apart.
Love put on a clinic
Even when Washington blitzed Packers’ quarterback Jordan Love, he put on a clinic with nine completions for 175 yards and two touchdowns and the most air yards per attempt of his career. The pressure never fazed him once, and he played his best against the blitz.
Love was airing it out and testing the Commanders’ secondary all night. He had players wide open on every single play, and the Commanders’ secondary couldn’t keep up with all of the presnap motions and crossing routes the Packers were calling up on offense. Even on the plays that look like there’s nothing there for Love, he would drop an insane throw for a big gain. Love has a committee of wide receivers and tight ends that aren’t household names, and he spreads the ball around to all of them.
The defense has a long stretch until they host the Las Vegas Raiders, and quarterback Geno Smith is no slouch. They have to work out these wrinkles after watching the film and find a way to bounce back, or serious changes could happen if this keeps up at this rate.
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