Hogs Haven
Happy New Year from the other side of the international date line, Commanders fans!
The Commanders cemented their hold on 7th place in the draft order in a hard-fought, but ultimately unsuccessful 23-30 home loss to the Dallas Cowboys.
This late in a losing season, teams begin to look more to the future than the present. As disappointing as the Commanders’ 13th loss may have been to some, others will derive hope from some promising signs from some of the younger players on the roster, who seized opportunities when regular starters were sidelined with injuries.
Most notably, second year DT Johnny Newton got his most playing time to date, with Daron Payne sidelined with injury. Newton capitalized on the opportunity by delivering the type of dominant performance that fans were expecting after Adam Peters revealed that the Commanders considered trading up to get him when he slid out of the first round of the draft.
In addition to Newton, little known rookie UDFA Ricky Barber announced his presence in his first elevation to the active roster, with a performance which was on a par with his better known teammate’s breakout day on a down-for-down basis.
In an otherwise lacklustre performance, those two standout efforts, together with some strong play from a few members of the supporting cast, might help to inspire hope for a rebound from this season’s disappointment.
Stats Sources
Stats were sourced from the NFL, Pro Football Reference (PFR), Pro Football Focus (PFF), or ESPN. NFL official stats were used whenever available. When the source is not indicated, it means either than NFL official stats were used or that there was agreement between stats services. The source is not always indicated if a stat is only available from one source (eg. PFF: stops, run stops, Y/RR, QB hurries; ESPN: QBR).
Expected Points Added (EPA) quantifies the contribution of individual plays to a team’s scoring potential on a drive. These are all the plays with EPA greater than 2.4 or less than -2.4.
Biggest Plays for Commanders
Q3, 9:44, 1st and 10 at WAS 28: Jacory Croskey-Merritt right tackle for 72 yards, touchdown. EPA 6.19
Q1, 7:37, 1st and 10 at DAL 47: Josh Johnson pass complete short right to Deebo Samuel for 41 yards. EPA 3.37
Q3, 2:24, 2nd and 10 at DAL 49: Josh Johnson pass complete short right to Chris Moore for 15 yards. Penalty on Shavon Revel: Face Mask (15 Yards), 15 yards (accepted). EPA 2.53
Q2, 11:26, 2nd and 12 at WAS 27: Josh Johnson pass complete deep middle to Deebo Samuel for 27 yards. EPA 2.46
Q4, 13:36, 4th and 7 at WAS 40: Brandon Aubrey 58 yard field goal no good. EPA -2.72
Biggest Plays for Cowboys
Q2, 7:11, 3rd and 11 at DAL 14: Dak Prescott pass complete deep middle to KaVontae Turpin for 86 yards, touchdown. Penalty on Frankie Luvu: Defensive Offside, 5 yards (declined). EPA 8.51
Q1, 1:31, 4th and 1 at WAS...
