Hogs Haven
This time last week, fan confidence was rebounding after a hard fought overtime loss to division-leading Denver Broncos. Expectations were heightened by the return of star QB Jayden Daniels to the starting lineup, and strong performances by several Commanders.
That all went over a cliff in the shock 0-31 blowout at the hands of a previously spiralling Minnesota Vikings squad, led by a historically bad second-year QB. The loss marked Dan Quinn’s first shutout as head coach in Washington. The Commanders looked listless and inept in most areas of the game. Not surprisingly, fan confidence is back to cratering.
Even in a disappointing loss, there were a few bright spots, including the running backs, offensive line and special teams coverage units, and a small handful of strong individual performances. But overall, it was hard to recognize the team that pressed the Broncos to final play in overtime just a week earlier.
For those diehards who just have to know what went wrong and what went right, here are the stats and snaps from last week’s curb stomp in Minnesota.
By most metrics, Jayden Daniels’ performance in his much anticipated return from injury was the worst game of his professional career to date.
Daniels completed just 9/20 passes (45%, ADOT 2.9 yds) for 78 yds, 0 TD, and 1 INT, while taking 1 sack for -1 yd. He also lost a fumble on a sack at 12:05 in the third quarter, but the play was nullified by a penalty on Minnesota for having too many men on the field. According to PFF, he was blitzed on 48% of dropbacks and felt pressure on 44% of dropbacks. He ran 4 times for 16 yds and 1 first down.
That performance earned him a career low 11.1 QBR, which ranked 27th out of 28 starting QBs in Week 14.
Playing in relief, when Daniels re-injured his elbow, Marcus Mariota completed 2/4 passing attempts for 30 yds, 0 TD and 1 INT, while taking 1 sack for 8 yds. He committed a second turnover on a lost fumble in the 4th quarter. He also ran twice for 7 yds.
Fans looking for a bright spot in an otherwise dreadful game can take heart in the running backs’ strong performance.
Chris Rodriguez led the team with 10 rushing attempts for 52 yds (5.2 Y/A) and 2 first downs (80% Success Rate). Rodriguez averaged 1.1 Yards Before Contact/Attempt per PFF (PFR 1.9 YBC/Att) and forced 2 missed tackles (PFR: 1 broken tackle).
Jacory Croskey-Merritt contributed 7 rushing attempts for 32 yds (4.6 Y/A) and 1 first down (51.7% Success Rate). According to PFF, he averaged 1.57 YBC/Att (PFR 3.1 YBC/Att) and forced 2 missed tackles (PFR: 1 broken tackle).
Jeremy McNichols was targeted once as a receiver and made a 2 yd reception. He was mainly used as a pass blocker, and received a solid 56.0 PFF pass blocking grade, which was actually the lowest on the team.
Terry McLaurin led all Commanders with...
