Week 7 saw the Commanders face off against a divisional rival, the New York Giants. The Giants came into this game reeling at 1-5, the Commanders came in at 3-3 and right in the mix of the playoff race. The Giants also were without starting QB Daniel Jones and had to roll with Tyrod Taylor, a QB I think is better for this team right now than Jones. So naturally, the Giants walked all over the Commanders and because two bad teams played, we still ended with a final score of New York 14, Washington 7. Let’s dive in…
Sam Howell: D
Sam had a rough day, the offense struggled to sustain drives until the 4th quarter. A large part of that had to do with Sam being sacked 6 times for a total loss of 52 yards and throwing an interception. Many of the sacks vs the Giants had to do with Sams failure to properly evaluate the d-line pre-snap and adjust his o-line accordingly. This is an issue Sam has dealt with all season long, and it was at its worst today. Sam finished the day completing 22 of his 42 attempts, 52% completion percentage. Resulting in 249 yards, he did not have any touchdowns and he had the interception. In the 4th quarter Sam started to recognize what the defense was throwing at him, and as a result the Commanders started to move the ball. Most of the offensive totals came during this stretch, and it made the game appear closer than it was.
O-line: F
The o-line may get a better grade since Sam Howell was responsible for multiple of the sacks occurred vs the Giants. However, not only did they struggle in pass protection, but they were also awful in the run game. The backs had little to no room to operate all day, and that is on the line in every way. They do not get a pass from me this week, they simply must better. I think Washington would be wise to experiment with a new combination on the line.
Running Backs: C
After finally getting some touches last week vs Atlanta, it was Chris Rodriguez Jr. who led the way for the Commanders rushing attack, which also was lackluster vs the Giants. Rodriguez Jr. finished the day with 7 rushes for 31 yards, good for 4.4 yards per carry. I like Chris and I am glad to see he is earning more reps, he can help wear down a defense along with BRob, if EB would lean more into the run game. In a game that ended at 14-7, it was never out of reach. With the o-line and Sam struggling, it is hard to understand why Sam was dropped back 44 times, and the running backs only got 19 total carries. Part of this was due to the lack of production, and that was a byproduct of a bad day from the o-line. BRob rushed 8 times for 23 yards, just 2.9 yards per carry, but he did find the endzone for the Commanders only score of the day. Antonio Gibson rushed 2 times and produced 7 yards. He also hauled in 2 catches for 24 yards, bringing him to 31 yards of total offense on the day. Not bad for limited action, Gibson is a weapon when he is on the field.
Wide Receivers: B
After seeing 11 targets last week in Atlanta, I praised EB for getting Terry McLaurin more involved in the offense after a disappointing start to the season. I hoped that the trend would continue moving forward, and it did vs the Giants. Terry once again saw a team high 9 targets, which he turned into 6 catches for 90 yards. Despite another big day for Terry, he once again was not able to find the endzone on a day that points in general were hard to come by. Jahan Dotson was tied for 2nd on the team this week in target with 8. He caught 5 of those targets for 43 yards. I mentioned last week that I expected Dotson to eventually snap out of the slump that he was in, this wasn’t exactly a breakout game, but it was hopefully one he can build off and start to find his groove again. Curtis Samuel was the WR tied for 2nd in targets with 8 as well, he 4 of them for 25 yards. Not a big day for Curtis but each week he finds himself involved, and I love his consistency. Byron Pringle was also targeted, albeit just once. He caught his sole target, a solid 16-yard grab. Pringle is down the depth chart at WR, but when he checks in, he usually makes a play well beyond the sticks. I love his big play potential whenever he does get on the field.
Tight Ends: C
Logan Thomas had a solid day all things considered. He was 3rd on the team in targets with 6, he caught 4 of them for 51 yards. A tight end can be a safety valve for any QB, but a big one for a young QB. Logan and Sam have developed a nice relationship, and Thomas has been more than reliable for Sam when needed. Unlike last week, Thomas was not the only tight end targeted vs the Giants. John Bates saw 1 target, it was not catchable.
D-line: B+
The d-line had a solid day today, they sacked Taylor 4 times, and they also kept the Giants rushing attack in check. Saquon Barkley had just 77 yards on 22 carries and did not find the endzone. In total the Giants had 106 rushing yards but on 32 attempts and zero rushing touchdowns. The first half was rough for the defense, particularly the DBs, but the second half saw the defense take over, while the offense continued to struggle.
Linebackers: F
Once again the LBs allowed running backs and tight ends to have their way in the passing game. Almost all of the damage was done in the first half, but with the way the offense played that’s all that was needed. Darren Waller led the way for the Giants with 7 catches for 98 yards and a touchdown. Saquon also caught 3 passes for 41 yards and the Giants other touchdown. An injury to Cody Barton meant that David Mayo saw plenty of action, and as we saw it went about as well as we knew it would. To make matters worse, Mayo led the way. He finished with 11 total tackles with 9 of them being solo. Jamin Davis was tied for 2nd on the team in tackles with 7, 2 of them being solo. The Lbers may have been the deciding factor in todays loss, again.
DBs: F
No point in singling out anyone DB from today, this unit stinks. It pains me to say that but they really do, Jaylin Hyatt had 2 catches for 75 yards, Darius Slayton had 1 catch for 22 yards and Wan’Dale Robinson had 1 catch for 22 yards. Big play after big play is given up by this secondary, and although the defense only allowed 14 points to a bad team, this issue will continue to cause the Commanders football games.
Special Teams: B
The only positive from the day was special teams. Joey Slye did have a field goal blocked and that was the only thing that prevented the only A grade from a positional group. Tress Way had to punt a whopping 10 times, tying a carer high. He had 513 net yards, 4 land inside the 20 and only 1 touch back. He also had a 58 yard bomb, nice. Jamison Crowder saw plenty of action in the punt game fielding 6 of them for 33 yards, nothing huge today but it is nice to have a guy back there that can make a play. Byron Pringle was the star of the return game today as he took 1 of the Giants kick-offs for 38 yards.
Thoughts:
This loss feels almost as bad as the Bears loss. The Commanders are better or at least should be better than the team that the Giants trotted out there today. Yet they looked like the worst team in the league, it is infuriating. The defense was terrible in the first half, but it only allowed 14 points and they were lights out in the second half. Once again, we come back to consistency and the Commanders inability to play complimentary football. The defense finally played well enough to win a game and the offense couldn’t even get a first down. It feels like the Commanders are spiraling, even though at 3-4 they are still in the thick of the NFC play-off race, it just does not feel like it. With another divisional game coming up next week, Washingtons second bout with the Eagles, the Commanders season could get murky in a matter of 7 days. The trade deadline will also be just 2 days the Eagles game, and the Commanders could be sellers.