Hogs Haven
Washington Post (paywall)
The Commanders looked like a team falling apart in a 44-22 blowout loss to the Cowboys on Sunday. Mariota was on the field because starter Jayden Daniels had gone down with a right hamstring injury earlier in the quarter.
[T]heir upcoming opponents are among the NFL’s best: next Monday night at the Kansas City Chiefs (4-3), Nov. 2 vs. the Seattle Seahawks (4-2) and Nov. 9 vs. the Detroit Lions (4-2).
The Commanders have four starters on injured reserve. It’s unclear when starting wide receivers Terry McLaurin (quad) and Deebo Samuel Sr. (heel) will return, and defensive end Dorance Armstrong was knocked out with a knee injury in the first quarter Sunday. A team can overcome only so many injuries, even if players and coaches continue to take up the “next man up” cliché.
While the offense had its issues, Washington’s biggest problem was its defense. By halftime, the Cowboys already had racked up 27 points and were averaging 7.9 yards per play. They finished with 409 yards and put together seven scoring drives. The Commanders couldn’t tackle, cover, rush the passer, take the ball away or get off the field.
After Armstrong went out, the Commanders were left with an edge rotation of just three players: 32-year-old Preston Smith, 36-year-old Von Miller and role player Jacob Martin.
Although this was the defense’s worst performance of the season, it’s closer to the norm than an anomaly for Washington.
“Nobody’s coming to help,” safety Jeremy Reaves said. “You got to save yourself.”
Washington Post (paywall)
Quinn said an MRI exam Monday revealed Daniels’s injury is “not significant or long term,” though his availability for next week’s next Monday night game at the Kansas City Chiefs is unclear.
After an injury-ravaged start to the season, the Commanders will certainly take whatever positive news they can. The loss of Armstrong, though, is a massive blow at a position where Washington already had been decimated by injuries.
Armstrong, 28, was having a career season, blossoming into the anchor of what has quietly been one of the better pass rushes in the NFL. Despite missing portions of the past two games, he entered Monday night’s games tied for sixth in the league in sacks and tackles for a loss (seven). He also had a pressure rate of 16.8 percent, which ranked 13th among players with at least 100 snaps as a pass rusher, according to TruMedia.
Armstrong is the third defensive end to suffer a severe or season-ending injury in the Commanders’ first seven games. Defensive end Deatrich Wise Jr. suffered a season-ending quadriceps injury in Week 2. His replacement, Javontae Jean-Baptiste, has been on injured reserve since Week 5 with a torn pectoral muscle.
The Athletic (paywall)
