Hogs Haven
Editor’s note: Each day, Hogs Haven compiles a collection of articles, podcasts & tweets from around the web to keep you in touch with the Commanders, the NFC East, the NFL and sports in general, with a sprinkling of other stuff. Enjoy!
Commanders.com
[Fred] Smoot: A good defense in this league makes the offense adapt to them; we don’t adapt to you. You adapt to us, because we’re going to run what we’re going to run. We’re going to let you know what we’re running, but we’re going to run to the ball. All 11 of us are going to run to the ball … They’re getting after the quarterback.
But they’re also making the quarterback throw quick. When we make you throw quick, now we all just become tacklers. And when we become tacklers, wide receivers, you start to drop the ball. And that’s the thing about it. If you ain’t got time for the five-step drops, you ain’t got time to really get deep on us. We become the aggressors.
Commanders Roundtable
Unless you have been sleeping under a rock, you’ve probably heard that Brandon Aiyuk wants to become a Washington Commander.
In a pair of Instagram stories that instantly set the DMV timeline on fire, Aiyuk posed shirtless in a mirror selfie while rocking a Washington Commanders hat. He followed it up with a picture of a football and a caption that read:
“❌ the 🧢 the gig is 🆙.”
To translate, he’s saying “Stop the Cap, the Gig is Up.” It’s a direct nod to rap artist Drake, who took a targeted shot at music mogul Jay-Z on his latest album, Iceman, which dropped about three weeks ago.
By invoking the lyrics, Aiyuk is basically saying, “Stop lying, 49ers, your fraudulent ways are being exposed.” His desire to leave the organization and land with the Commanders couldn’t be more obvious.
This is premier summer Twitter. It lacks true substance, but it is incredibly fun to talk about. Aiyuk clearly wants out of San Francisco, but the 49ers may sit pat until August 31st in hopes of extracting a late-round draft pick for his services.
Riggo’s Rag
The former Alabama standout is focused on football and already catching the eye throughout Washington’s offseason program. However, Moe Moton of The Bleacher Report thought the potential emergence of Johnny Newton and Payne’s perceived inconsistencies are enough for the Commanders to cash in with a possible trade.
“In recent years, [Daron] Payne has been a decent interior defender but not a game-changer in the pass rush or against the run. Since his 2022 Pro Bowl year, he’s averaged about four sacks per season...
