Speaker 1: What is up?
Speaker 2: What's going on?
Speaker 3: Y'all? This is another episode of the Beatdown podcast. Welcome
Speaker 3: and I am your host, Senior writer for the Washington Commanders,
Speaker 3: Zach Selby. It's been a minute since we got to speak,
Speaker 3: and a lot of things that have happened over the
Speaker 3: last week. Not all of them have been ideal for
Speaker 3: the Commanders. They started off losing by one point to
Speaker 3: the Pittsburgh Steels twenty eighth to twenty seven, had a
Speaker 3: short week, came back on the road against the Philadelphia Eagles,
Speaker 3: and despite a valiant effort, they did lose twenty six
Speaker 3: to eighteen. They are now second place in the NFC East.
Speaker 3: They are seventh seed in the playoffs. Big turnaround from
Speaker 3: what they were at just a couple of weeks ago.
Speaker 3: The good thing is they have plenty of time to
Speaker 3: get back on track here, starting with a home matchup
Speaker 3: against the Dallas Cowboys, who are going through a little
Speaker 3: bit of an injury reddle season here with Dak Prescott
Speaker 3: on season ending, I are Michael Parsons is back, but
Speaker 3: he is he was unhealthy for most of that time.
Speaker 3: Their offensive line is banged up, their defense is not
Speaker 3: playing as well as has in the past. Uh so
Speaker 3: everything points to it being a prime bounce back opportunity
Speaker 3: for the commanders, but they still have to execute. They
Speaker 3: still have to come up with their own solutions to
Speaker 3: their problems. And how are they going to do that? Well,
Speaker 3: that is exactly what we're going to be talking about today.
Speaker 3: And with me, we have two more guests. We have
Speaker 3: more of this Slenarist who comes back to us. You
Speaker 3: can find them on the Spanish broadcast for us every Sunday,
Speaker 3: and Linelle Willingham, who you can find on one of
Speaker 3: six seven the fan guys, how are we doing this?
Speaker 3: Lovely Thursday morning?
Speaker 1: What's up? What's up now? How you doing? Brother? I'm just.
Speaker 2: This is exciting. Yeah, I'm excited for another game. Excited
Speaker 2: to hear it. Another boy says, call this weekend.
Speaker 1: Let's go. I'm hoping so too. Man.
Speaker 4: We've been, uh, we've been, We've been I guess off
Speaker 4: for the past two weeks.
Speaker 1: Hopefully we can turn it back around.
Speaker 3: And and hey, what better way to turn things back
Speaker 3: around and get back on it and then a matchup
Speaker 3: against an nc NFC East rival with the Dallas Cowboys.
Speaker 3: Everyone listening, they know the spield of another deal. I
Speaker 3: will be asking these two fellows three questions on offense,
Speaker 3: one a defense, one more of a general question about
Speaker 3: the matchup with the Cowboys. There will be points that
Speaker 3: will be given out at the end of each round.
Speaker 3: And since I, as always am the host, is placed
Speaker 3: upon my heavy shoulders to the burden of picking a winner,
Speaker 3: and that's just the way it is. But again, you
Speaker 3: should not put too much stock into who wins or
Speaker 3: who loses. In my opinion, you should be more focused
Speaker 3: on these guys objective takes on the game because they
Speaker 3: are some of the best of what they do. And
Speaker 3: with that being said, let's get to it, starting with
Speaker 3: I think we should really start with the Washington offense
Speaker 3: right because just you know, a couple months ago, they
Speaker 3: were riding high. They were performing at a historic pace
Speaker 3: number that we haven't seen, let alone from a rookie
Speaker 3: quarterback at all, you know, in NFL history, just blow
Speaker 3: people out. Electing right now, over the past two weeks,
Speaker 3: there has been a little bit of regression. I guess
Speaker 3: you could say some of that is because of the
Speaker 3: fact that, you know, maybe a regression to the mean.
Speaker 3: Jade Nan is maybe not performing as as historic of
Speaker 3: a pace as he was, because that would just be insane.
Speaker 3: The other thing is, like this team was playing against
Speaker 3: two really good defenses. The Pittsburgh was a phenomenal unit,
Speaker 3: very well coached. Philadelphia the same way they were playing
Speaker 3: out of their minds on Thursday night. But the fact
Speaker 3: of the matter is that the Commanders do still need
Speaker 3: to get back on track and get something closer to
Speaker 3: what they were performing at, you know, in weeks one
Speaker 3: through seven when they were really performing at a really
Speaker 3: high rate. And as I was saying, the Cowboys present
Speaker 3: a really good opportunity to do so. They're in the
Speaker 3: bottom third of most, if not all, defensive metrics that
Speaker 3: matter in several ways. So Leno, we'll start with you here,
Speaker 3: and what do you think is the best way for
Speaker 3: Washington's offense to just give back on track.
Speaker 2: Yeah, look, I think it was some easy solution, they
Speaker 2: wouldn't be struggling right now.
Speaker 1: Guys.
Speaker 2: I think it clearly is something that is going to
Speaker 2: take time.
Speaker 1: And as you.
Speaker 2: Mentioned, I think we're sole reactionary as a as a
Speaker 2: fan base of the media corpse, especially with this year's offense,
Speaker 2: because the first nine weeks, as you mentioned, they came
Speaker 2: out like gang Busters, and it for if we're being
Speaker 2: realistic and looking at it objectively. They scored twenty seven
Speaker 2: points against Pensbursh Steelers, which for my money right now
Speaker 2: is the best offense in the National recuse the best
Speaker 2: defense in the National Football League.
Speaker 3: And hey, look, the Ravens didn't do that either. The
Speaker 3: Ravens did not really good offense.
Speaker 1: So that's what That's.
Speaker 2: What Pittsburgh, you know, designed themselves to do, is to
Speaker 2: stop mobile quarterbacks. Because they have to see Lamar Jackson
Speaker 2: twice the year, and he's got one win against the
Speaker 2: Steelers in his career to this point. They do a
Speaker 2: really good job of bottling him up. I think they
Speaker 2: did a really nice job bottling Jayden up, but Washington
Speaker 2: left some opportunities out on the field in that game
Speaker 2: against Pittsburgh. The real offensive concern, I would say, came
Speaker 2: in the game against Philadelphia. Jayden Daniels got sped up.
Speaker 2: They were dropping seven guys in the coverage muddy and
Speaker 2: the picture post snap, and you saw this offense take
Speaker 2: a step back. But in both of those games, the
Speaker 2: big issue and the number one thing in my opinion,
Speaker 2: was their inability to stay ahead of the change Washington's
Speaker 2: been one of the best third down teams in the
Speaker 2: NFL the last two weeks. They're eight for twenty six
Speaker 2: on third down, and a lot of that has to
Speaker 2: do with the lack of running efficiency. So I think
Speaker 2: it's a couple of different things. But I guess the
Speaker 2: running game. Getting the running game back going and getting
Speaker 2: positive yards off first and second down, to me, it
Speaker 2: would really help kickstart things. And I guess open up
Speaker 2: Cliff Cliff Kingsbury's full menu plays so we can be
Speaker 2: a little bit more versatile trying to attack defenses. But
Speaker 2: all in all, I think they got to get back
Speaker 2: to running the football effectively.
Speaker 3: Yeah, I think that's really something that has been missing.
Speaker 3: You know, that is not their fault, right, Like, I mean,
Speaker 3: the offensive line is banged up, and then b Rob
Speaker 3: has been was out, you know for the Giants game
Speaker 3: and the Steelers game. I feel like, you know, if
Speaker 3: if b Rob had played, I feel like they would
Speaker 3: have they maybe may maybe could have won that game
Speaker 3: because I think you really see how efficient this offense
Speaker 3: is when they're running the football. But Mores as well,
Speaker 3: we'll kick it over to you and we'll as see
Speaker 3: the same question. But also like kind of maybe focus
Speaker 3: a little more on Jayden here, because I think that's
Speaker 3: something that people, a lot of people have focused on, right.
Speaker 3: I mean, over the last two games, he's completed six
Speaker 3: fifty nine percent of his passes, which not not as
Speaker 3: not as efficient as he has been over the past,
Speaker 3: you know, previous few weeks or so. So what do
Speaker 3: you what do you think is is there a secret
Speaker 3: sauce to getting the Commanders offense back on track with
Speaker 3: with Jaden or is it just a matter of, as
Speaker 3: they've been saying, you know, the amount of practice reps
Speaker 3: of getting back into a rhythm and timing. Is Is
Speaker 3: it as simple as that?
Speaker 4: I think, first of all, don't panic, Washington Commanders fans.
Speaker 1: You can't panic.
Speaker 4: It's two losses against two great teams, two great defense
Speaker 4: says in the league, like Linnelle said that you're talking
Speaker 4: about perhaps the best defense in the NFL when we're
Speaker 4: talking about the Pittsburgh Steelers, and you still put up points.
Speaker 4: But one of the things that we have to get
Speaker 4: back on track is the fact that this team needs
Speaker 4: to run the ball better.
Speaker 1: Right.
Speaker 4: We haven't seen that the past two the past two games,
Speaker 4: and perhaps that's because of the reasons just mentioned.
Speaker 1: You're playing two great defenses.
Speaker 4: Those are great learning lessons for this young Washington Commander's team.
Speaker 1: If Washington is running.
Speaker 4: The ball, well, that's going to open the playbook. It's
Speaker 4: going to open lanes for a guy like Jayden Daniels.
Speaker 4: He hasn't been able to do that in the last
Speaker 4: two games. Perhaps is the fact that he wasn't truly
Speaker 4: one hundred percent after that shot he took to the grips. Perhaps,
Speaker 4: I mean, I know we're not going to get all
Speaker 4: that information from coach or from the coaching staff. You
Speaker 4: don't want to panic. You don't want to put out
Speaker 4: panic to the fan base or to the team itself.
Speaker 1: But Jaden says he's ready to go.
Speaker 4: I think this meaning bye week, has helped the team
Speaker 4: in general to get back on track.
Speaker 1: Now when we're talking.
Speaker 4: About the running game, because I know Lanell mentioned that,
Speaker 4: we have to mention the fact that you have to
Speaker 4: take advantage against Dallas Cowboys team that ranked second to
Speaker 4: the last in the NFL against the run, allowing one
Speaker 4: hundred and fifty one yards per game, and I believe
Speaker 4: that's one of the keys. We also have to mention
Speaker 4: the fact that this is a team that's allowing over
Speaker 4: twenty nine points per game among second two worst and secondary.
Speaker 4: Because if we're just going to focus on the running game,
Speaker 4: we also have to talk about the secondary because this
Speaker 4: is a team that's allowing seven yards per play.
Speaker 1: You have to exploit those weaknesses.
Speaker 4: I believe you have the tools the weapons to do so.
Speaker 4: If you're able to establish that running game, that means
Speaker 4: Jaden Daniels will have options that we'd optioned to either
Speaker 4: pass or run, and I think.
Speaker 1: That will be the difference.
Speaker 4: So I think this is a perfect game to recalibrate
Speaker 4: the offense to make sure we get back on track.
Speaker 4: And if those if those key components are put into place,
Speaker 4: I think the commander is gonna be fine.
Speaker 3: And both of you have really have brought up the
Speaker 3: running game, and I think that that really is so key,
Speaker 3: you know, because it's not just Brian Robinson, it's not
Speaker 3: just Jayden, and it's also Austin Echlizer, is Jeryman Nichols
Speaker 3: like this. This This this running attack has really like
Speaker 3: I think it allows them to to open up so
Speaker 3: many other opportunities for them, whether it's play action, whether
Speaker 3: it's you know, just getting Jayden, you know, in more
Speaker 3: of a rhythm in terms of just getting down and
Speaker 3: distance stuff. But Linnelle coming back over to you, like
Speaker 3: specifically the running game the offensive line like this this
Speaker 3: bye way, this mini buy has. It seems like it's
Speaker 3: really helped that unit in a lot of ways.
Speaker 1: You know.
Speaker 3: Dan Quinn even said all the all the offensive linemen
Speaker 3: are full participants, which is so key right now. Brandon
Speaker 3: Coleman was on the Angel forty. It's a full participant.
Speaker 3: You know, Tyler battis center, he he was out there, Uh,
Speaker 3: Nick al Gretti, you know Sam cos and they were
Speaker 3: all out there. So how big is it going to
Speaker 3: be for this running game which is going to be
Speaker 3: as a Dallas Stevens as boy as I said, that
Speaker 3: was a lot of the second most rushing yards per game.
Speaker 3: How big is going to be able to get all
Speaker 3: of those guys back?
Speaker 2: Helly, Yeah, I thought it was huge that, you know,
Speaker 2: Dkey said they all practicing full. There was a little
Speaker 2: bit of clarity needed in my opinion on who the
Speaker 2: actual starters are. I know, Cornelius Lucas has started some
Speaker 2: games too, and his injury status.
Speaker 1: Has kind of been up in the air.
Speaker 2: So I'm curious to see when we get to Friday
Speaker 2: who's officially up and active for the game. But I
Speaker 2: think the offensive line the past two games has gotten baptized,
Speaker 2: is the best way that I can describe it.
Speaker 1: Man.
Speaker 2: The combination of injuries and then going up against two
Speaker 2: of the best defensive fronts in the NFL has caused
Speaker 2: this group to have some issues. Pittsburgh sent five or
Speaker 2: more rushers nineteen times in their game on Sunday. That
Speaker 2: was the most that they had done that all season,
Speaker 2: and they caught some confusion up front. You all know
Speaker 2: Tyler Biad's responsible for a lot of the line shifts
Speaker 2: up front, and from a communications standpoint, I think you
Speaker 2: know he struggled to identify fronts against Philadelphia and against
Speaker 2: Pittsburgh because they do so much to try to confuse
Speaker 2: you up part, and saw free rushers in both of
Speaker 2: those games. I think for a full week of practice
Speaker 2: this week, a full week to get back to your
Speaker 2: normal schedule, hopefully the communication improves.
Speaker 1: The interior three.
Speaker 2: Between biadash Ala, Grady, and Cosmy we've been strong this
Speaker 2: year for the last two games. Going up against Jordan
Speaker 2: Davis and Jalen Carter, and Cam Hayward. They really struggled,
Speaker 2: but those are three of the best interior guys in
Speaker 2: the league. The tackle spot is what I'm really looking
Speaker 2: at going into this game, knowing Michael Parsons and his
Speaker 2: ability to ruin a football game. Brandy Coleman and Andrew
Speaker 2: Wiley have also been banged up, both dealing with shoulder injuries.
Speaker 2: For Coleman, you know, the last two weeks going up
Speaker 2: against you know, TJ. Wadd and Nolan Smith and Bryce
Speaker 2: up he struggled a little bit. I want to see
Speaker 2: him bounce. But the other key too is guys. It's
Speaker 2: not just the five guys up front against Philly. They're
Speaker 2: dropping seven guys in the coverage, so you want to
Speaker 2: have as many guys with on the route as possible.
Speaker 2: One thing that's helped watching this past protection they're leaving
Speaker 2: in back and tight ends the chip more than any
Speaker 2: team in the NFL. And when you've got seven guys
Speaker 2: in coverage and you're leaving guys in the chip, there's
Speaker 2: not a lot of options for the quarterbacks. So we'll
Speaker 2: see what the protection plan.
Speaker 1: Is this week.
Speaker 3: Yeah, I'm interested to see what what Brandon Coleman does
Speaker 3: against against Michael Parsons, because yeah, as you mean, like
Speaker 3: t J. Wadd and all those of the guys like
Speaker 3: they're they're really really solid players. Mike Parsons is one
Speaker 3: of the best defensive players in the league right now
Speaker 3: period and has been over the last you know, however
Speaker 3: long he's been in the league. Like, so it's gonna
Speaker 3: be quite the challenge for him and in Cornelius Lucas.
Speaker 3: But Moys is real quick, you know, kind of a
Speaker 3: little bit of a Tandy topic change here, you know,
Speaker 3: both you know, you know, Lales brought it up and
Speaker 3: DQ brought it up on Mondays press conference and on
Speaker 3: Wednesday's press conference about how important it is to get
Speaker 3: a full week of practice, and you see, you know,
Speaker 3: like the timing and rhythm maybe maybe not as sharp
Speaker 3: as it could have been. You mentioned things like, you know,
Speaker 3: the Louke McCaffrey miss against the Steelers. There were a
Speaker 3: co misses, you know, with Noel Brown against the Eagles. So,
Speaker 3: I mean, how big do you think this full week
Speaker 3: of practice is.
Speaker 1: Going to be. I think it's huge.
Speaker 4: Before I even answer that question, I just wanted to
Speaker 4: add another point to the last one. You have to
Speaker 4: get guys like Terry McCloy and Volff. If you have
Speaker 4: a guy of that caliber with two.
Speaker 1: Receptions, it's not going to be enough. And if you're facing.
Speaker 4: A defense that it's allowing seven or more yards per play,
Speaker 4: you need to involve one of your best playmakers, one
Speaker 4: who's at the top of the charge when.
Speaker 1: We're talking about contested catches in the NFL. Therefore, that's
Speaker 1: just another weapon to add.
Speaker 4: Now to answer you a question about the week with
Speaker 4: the practice, I believe so it's huge because you're talking
Speaker 4: about a rookie quarterback that doesn't have that NFL experience.
Speaker 4: He guess he's a former Heisman Trophy winner and at
Speaker 4: the collegiate level. But to have all the reps, all
Speaker 4: the experience possible on the practice field is gonna be crucial.
Speaker 1: And when you have your.
Speaker 4: Best guy out of out of the loop because he's
Speaker 4: still recovering from a possible injury or you're just trying
Speaker 4: to protect them, it's gonna limit the fact that you
Speaker 4: can't do as much as you want now that they've
Speaker 4: had this, you know.
Speaker 1: Many by week to recover. I believe it's gonna be crucial.
Speaker 4: We should see some adjustments and the best version of
Speaker 4: Jaden Daniels. Social media is a monster when it comes
Speaker 4: to criticizing and knocking players out. But I believe, and
Speaker 4: I feel strongly that he's gonna be all right.
Speaker 1: He's gonna bounce back.
Speaker 4: And this weekend days he's had to prepare for the
Speaker 4: next game are gonna be crucial for Jade and Daniels
Speaker 4: to lead this team moving forward.
Speaker 3: Jayden said it best. You can't replace practice reps in
Speaker 3: this league. It's so important. Yeah, and we'll see where
Speaker 3: they go from here, but we're gonna we're gonna move
Speaker 3: on to the next question before that score date. Both
Speaker 3: of you guys are tied forward to four battling it
Speaker 3: out here like the Commanders and Colwis will be on Sundays.
Speaker 3: Let's switch over to the Commander's defense here. And the
Speaker 3: Cowboys have committed twenty turnovers this season, tied for the
Speaker 3: most in the league. Cooper Rush is leading the offense
Speaker 3: right now, and there's been some upson downs. See Lamb
Speaker 3: is still great, but you know they have Rico Daddles
Speaker 3: out there running back, probably not the same caliber as
Speaker 3: Tony Poler was. Azekiel Ellen is out there, but he
Speaker 3: is definitely not what he was early in his career.
Speaker 3: So Mores says, we'll stick with you here, and what
Speaker 3: can the Commanders do to force Dallas to make these
Speaker 3: make these mistakes and create more opportunities for their offense,
Speaker 3: Because it seems like the Cowboys. If you wait long
Speaker 3: enough for this Cowboys offense, they are going to provide
Speaker 3: you with these opportunities to get the ball back.
Speaker 1: I think they're gonna have to take advantage. They have
Speaker 1: to put a pressure on Cooper Rush.
Speaker 4: It's only his ninth career starting in the NFL, and
Speaker 4: although he had a decent showing back in twenty twenty two.
Speaker 1: You have to take advantage. This is not the starter.
Speaker 4: He's not in the lead quarterback in the league, and
Speaker 4: you have to put the pressure on him just the
Speaker 4: way the same way the Houston Texans did in the
Speaker 4: last game. They were able to sack them five times,
Speaker 4: force them to fumble once. I believe that he also
Speaker 4: had an interception. He wasn't able to put the ball
Speaker 4: in Cee Lamp's hands. So you're facing a quarterback that's
Speaker 4: not your typical starter.
Speaker 1: And although he did beat.
Speaker 4: The Commanders, because that usually comes up a couple of
Speaker 4: seasons to go. This is a different commander's team. You
Speaker 4: have the weapons on defense to put pressure on him.
Speaker 1: Sack them.
Speaker 4: And I know guys like Dante Fowler Junior are going
Speaker 4: to be hungry to put hands on a quarterback he
Speaker 4: knows very well.
Speaker 1: Same thing with Drans Armstrong.
Speaker 4: It's a perfect opportunity for the Washington Commanders defense to
Speaker 4: shine and have a great game. For me, those are
Speaker 4: the keys if you want an unstable or these stable
Speaker 4: these cowboys offense.
Speaker 1: Put the pressure on Cooper Russian.
Speaker 4: The results are going to eventually show up because this
Speaker 4: is a team that normally implodes during the game.
Speaker 1: Yeah, you're right.
Speaker 3: I mean I was watching film on them yesterday and
Speaker 3: he just it seemed like the longer the drive was
Speaker 3: you just like you knew it was coming, there's gonna
Speaker 3: be some sort of interceptions, some sort of fumble, some
Speaker 3: sort of mistake that was going to get them off balance.
Speaker 3: It kind of reminds me of how the Giants I
Speaker 3: have played so far this year. It seems like the
Speaker 3: longer the drive, it's the more mistakes sort of happened.
Speaker 3: And Linelle, we'll go over to here with the same question.
Speaker 3: I mean, what do you think the commanders can do
Speaker 3: to force more of these turnovers and maybe even like
Speaker 3: those a little more on the secondary, because the secondary
Speaker 3: I think has been playing a lot better than people
Speaker 3: have predicted that they would, especially compared to what it
Speaker 3: was in Week one.
Speaker 2: Yeah, I still think, you know, despite what Dallas has
Speaker 2: offensively a quarterback, I still think they have weapons on
Speaker 2: the perimeter.
Speaker 1: Cee Lamb's one of the.
Speaker 2: Best receivers in football. Still, I think the Brandy Cooks
Speaker 2: has helped out a tremendous amount as well. I just think,
Speaker 2: like like you both mentioned, it's about getting pressure but
Speaker 2: also making that one dimension all although they don't have
Speaker 2: the premier names in the backfield that we're a customer
Speaker 2: to them have, and they still want to run the
Speaker 2: football first and foremost of you know, Washington had some
Speaker 2: struggles running the football. We saw the damn bus in
Speaker 2: that fourth quarter against Philly, you know, all being against
Speaker 2: a special back like sayquont Barkley. But that's my number
Speaker 2: one concern. Can you make Dallas one dimensional? And then
Speaker 2: if you're able to do that, your pastor I should
Speaker 2: be able to naturally take over. Dallas starts two rookies
Speaker 2: up front at center and at left tackle with Tyler
Speaker 2: Geiden and Cooper BB, should be an opportunity for a
Speaker 2: guy like Deron Payne and Dante Fallon to really take
Speaker 2: advantage of the young guys.
Speaker 3: And you know, I was really a big fan of
Speaker 3: both Guiden and Cooper BB, you know, heading into the
Speaker 3: draft process. They are really good young players. And you know,
Speaker 3: you bring up the rush to the rushing, the rushing
Speaker 3: offense for the Cowboys, and it's it definitely has not
Speaker 3: been you know, what they would want it to be.
Speaker 3: Right now. I think they only had three rushing touchdowns
Speaker 3: all year, uh with you know, executly getting two of
Speaker 3: their second to last in rushing yards per game eight
Speaker 3: and one points. But at the same time, they're looking
Speaker 3: at and looking at the Commanders defense, which is thirtieth
Speaker 3: in rushing yards allowed, and thinking, Okay, this is our
Speaker 3: opportunity to get back on track here with this. So
Speaker 3: moy says, will go over to you here and talks.
Speaker 3: You know, you mentioned you mentioned the pass rush I
Speaker 3: think is very important, But how did the Commanders they
Speaker 3: shore up this running defense that they have, because it
Speaker 3: really has been some like the deciding factor and especially
Speaker 3: in the fourth quarter. You know, Sakon Barkley against the
Speaker 3: eat with the Eagles and they even you know, you
Speaker 3: could even argue with the with the Steelers before that, like,
Speaker 3: what what do you think they can do to fix
Speaker 3: that part of their defense? Well, I think you're going
Speaker 3: to face a team that's struggling in the running game
Speaker 3: in the Dallas Cowboys. They ranked thirty first in the league.
Speaker 3: They're averaging just a little bit over three yards per game.
Speaker 3: Seek Elliott's is not the same guy we saw a
Speaker 3: couple of years ago. So I think those are key.
Speaker 4: Components for Scooper Rush to throw the ball he did
Speaker 4: over fifty times in that last match against the Easton Texans,
Speaker 4: and he had what if I'm not if I'm not wrong,
Speaker 4: he had a four turnover worthy plays. I think they're
Speaker 4: gonna show up once again against the Washington Commanders.
Speaker 1: And if you do that and you're able to capitalize.
Speaker 4: On these big plays, Washington is gonna get what they've
Speaker 4: been looking for all season, which is more turnovers and
Speaker 4: what we're asking here. So I believe that if you
Speaker 4: make them one dimensional, like you mentioned, and you force
Speaker 4: them to throw the ball over fifty times, the Commander
Speaker 4: is gonna have a big opportunity to capitalize in that secondary.
Speaker 4: The running game has not been a factor for the Cowboys. Therefore,
Speaker 4: I'm not that worried about what they can do. I
Speaker 4: think we have a solid defensive corps and I think
Speaker 4: they're they're gonna be forced to throw on the ball
Speaker 4: and that's where Washington's gonna have.
Speaker 1: To make the big place.
Speaker 3: And you know, to that point, Washington's fifth and path
Speaker 3: yards pass yards allowed this season and linnelle real quick
Speaker 3: before we move on to the final question here, we're
Speaker 3: gonna stick on that, on that secondary and talk about
Speaker 3: the rookie Mike Sandmerstill. He's been ask to do a
Speaker 3: lot for this team. He was at he covered AJ
Speaker 3: Brown and Devoud the Smith a lot. AJ Brown only
Speaker 3: had sixty five yards and no touchdowns. I mean, I
Speaker 3: think if you'd have if you'd have said before that
Speaker 3: game that AJ brownle will be hold lesson one hundred
Speaker 3: yards with no touchdowns, you would take that any day
Speaker 3: of the week. So what do you think about Samerstill
Speaker 3: and now how he's been able to perform this season.
Speaker 2: I think he's been special. If he brings in championship pedigree,
Speaker 2: a national champion for the University of Michigan, and he's
Speaker 2: only listed at five to ten, but for my money,
Speaker 2: he's the toughest player on this Commander's defense in terms
Speaker 2: of what he does in the run game, taking on
Speaker 2: offensive lineman, coming in, being physical in the run game,
Speaker 2: and then his ability to track the football and get
Speaker 2: his head around as a defensive back is such an
Speaker 2: important trait and the Southern you know, quite frankly, some
Speaker 2: of the other members of this Commander's secondary struggle with hell.
Speaker 2: Other secondary across the league struggle with this, and he's
Speaker 2: done a really good job with this as a rookie.
Speaker 2: Since he's moved to the outside, I personally think he's
Speaker 2: gotten comfortable there. I know there's conversation about him eventually
Speaker 2: going back inside. I'd be really hesitant to do that,
Speaker 2: just because it feels like he's starting to really create
Speaker 2: his identity as an outside corner. He's got good ball skills,
Speaker 2: and I think he just represents everything Washington wants.
Speaker 1: In the dB. Yeah, I am.
Speaker 3: I'm very fascinated to see what they do with that
Speaker 3: secondary once Marshall Lattimore gets on the field, because you're right,
Speaker 3: he has been so good on the outside, and I
Speaker 3: get he's good on the inside. I think that's what
Speaker 3: they feel like his natural position is. But we'll see,
Speaker 3: we'll we'll see what they do either way. I think
Speaker 3: more more talented players on the field with the secondary,
Speaker 3: the better it's going to be. We're gonna move on
Speaker 3: to the final question. But before we get do that, guys.
Speaker 3: You guys are still tied, you know, so it's going
Speaker 3: to be coming out of the last question here, and
Speaker 3: that last question is going to be pretty key here.
Speaker 3: Everyone I think can objectively say they were they were
Speaker 3: pretty banged up heading into that the Mani bye week,
Speaker 3: especially off to line some of the positions as well.
Speaker 3: So Linelle, I'm gonna start with you for this final question.
Speaker 3: I want you to make your best case for what,
Speaker 3: like the most important player is for the team that
Speaker 3: they're going to be getting back healthier heading into this
Speaker 3: final stretch of the year.
Speaker 2: So the most important player as far as health goes,
Speaker 2: I would say Jaden Daniels. I look, I can continue.
Speaker 2: I'm not I believe that dan Quinn and the coaches
Speaker 2: as well as Jaden are being honest about he's he's healthy,
Speaker 2: He's healthy enough to not be on the injury report,
Speaker 2: but I do think it's one of those injuries that
Speaker 2: are going to linger throughout the year.
Speaker 1: I think we.
Speaker 2: Saw him struggle against Philadelphia because it was a short
Speaker 2: practice week, not as much time to get your body
Speaker 2: back to one hundred percent to go out and play.
Speaker 2: I think with this mini buy, it allows him to
Speaker 2: recover and hopefully you can see him regain some of
Speaker 2: that explosiveness. I give credit to Pittsburgh and Philly for,
Speaker 2: you know, how they able to contain him and be
Speaker 2: disciplined with their rush to keep it within the pocket.
Speaker 2: But it felt like to me just watching him, there
Speaker 2: was a reluctancy to take off and run, and I think,
Speaker 2: you know that may have to do with some of
Speaker 2: what he's feeling. I know they mentioned on the broadcast
Speaker 2: for Amazon Prime that you know he's going to be
Speaker 2: winsend time to time, and there's some discomfort with the
Speaker 2: torque of his upper body. Hopefully with some extra rest
Speaker 2: that goes away, and if he can get back to
Speaker 2: being the guy we saw the first nine weeks, there's
Speaker 2: a chance this team can run the table to finish
Speaker 2: out the season. But his health to me is so
Speaker 2: important and I know that the list, he's not on
Speaker 2: the injury report, but clearly to me there's something there
Speaker 2: that's fair.
Speaker 1: Definitely fair.
Speaker 3: So moys as well, we'll stick to you an them, well,
Speaker 3: they all kind of He took jayde and Daniels off
Speaker 3: the board here, But is there anybody got Brook the
Speaker 3: easy way out?
Speaker 4: Man?
Speaker 1: He took the easy way out.
Speaker 3: Come on, son, So other than Jane Daniels, who do
Speaker 3: you think is the most important player the Commanders back
Speaker 3: healthier heading into the rest of the stretch.
Speaker 4: I just want to bring out a point to what
Speaker 4: Linelle said right now, because he was asked during the
Speaker 4: week regarding having his ribs wrapped and he answered that.
Speaker 1: You know, he did it because he wanted to stay warm.
Speaker 4: So I wonder how much all of this might have
Speaker 4: with the fact that he's playing under different conditions.
Speaker 1: Probably now I used to playing the cold.
Speaker 4: That game versus the Philadelphia Eagles was a pretty cold game. Therefore,
Speaker 4: he probably is still getting used to that type of
Speaker 4: weather in the East Coast. Not sure if that's the case.
Speaker 4: It's just an observation, so we're gonna have to wait
Speaker 4: and see. But for me, if you ask me what
Speaker 4: player might be a key, a key addition to Washington.
Speaker 4: If he comes back, I would say Javante Jean.
Speaker 1: Baptize just because we saw what he did.
Speaker 4: And if he does come back, he would be returning
Speaker 4: for the first time since we six when he faced
Speaker 4: the Baltimore Ravens.
Speaker 1: He's a guy that, prior to that injury, had fourteen tackles,
Speaker 1: one sack, one tackle for loss.
Speaker 4: And the most important thing of all that is the
Speaker 4: fact that he did that coming off the bench when
Speaker 4: he participated in thirty six percent of Washington's snaps, he
Speaker 4: was trending in the right direction, kind of showing us
Speaker 4: that he could be another key addition on defense.
Speaker 1: For the Commanders. And if he's able to come back,
Speaker 1: I think he.
Speaker 4: Would be He would be a great, great ad for
Speaker 4: this defense that needs all the help in the pass
Speaker 4: rush right now. And he did get he did get
Speaker 4: his twenty one day window activated, so he's not on
Speaker 4: the active roster yet, but it seems like, you know,
Speaker 4: he's a full participant on Wednesday.
Speaker 3: We'll see what he is for the rest of the week.
Speaker 3: But if he does come back, you right, he would
Speaker 3: add a lot more depth to past russ that has
Speaker 3: performed pretty well right now. I think they're tired for
Speaker 3: twelveth in sacks. But again, I think, you know, bring
Speaker 3: there's anything wrong with bringing more pressure. I feel like
Speaker 3: I should I should have a drum roll here for
Speaker 3: for the last for the last little bit here. But
Speaker 3: I think the winner I think has to be you Morses,
Speaker 3: because I think you're right, like putting pressure on these
Speaker 3: quarterbacks is going to be so important. And Javonte Jean
Speaker 3: Baptiste has been has been has you know, he was
Speaker 3: coming along really well and I think I think he's
Speaker 3: gonna assuming he does get healthy, he's active, I think
Speaker 3: he's going to be really really key.
Speaker 1: You know.
Speaker 3: To add more depth here, it looks like Lenelle dropped off.
Speaker 3: But Morris is do you have any passing words of victory?
Speaker 1: He's a sore loser. He's mad. Now I think I
Speaker 1: don't want people to take that bad. I think he
Speaker 1: lost connection so he had to Yeah.
Speaker 4: Probably oh good, good one in one for this season,
Speaker 4: So that's not bad at all. I think that it's
Speaker 4: going to be a good game for the Washington Commanders
Speaker 4: on Sunday. It's a good opportunity to bounce back to
Speaker 4: show the rest of the Division that we mean business
Speaker 4: is not a coincidence.
Speaker 1: This team of seven and four. Remember we have.
Speaker 4: To go back all the way to nineteen ninety six
Speaker 4: to kind of feel that way of having that type
Speaker 4: of winning record and the fact that we're here week twelve,
Speaker 4: seven and full record, it's a good, good feeling for
Speaker 4: Washington fans.
Speaker 3: And you know, to that point, I think people have
Speaker 3: to have to realize that, you know, while this is
Speaker 3: it's a tremendously successful, you know start for the Commanders.
Speaker 3: People did not really expect like this out of this team.
Speaker 3: They're performing at like a really good pace right now.
Speaker 3: They're seven and four. They could double their wind total
Speaker 3: with a win against the Cowboys three to one in
Speaker 3: the division, which which would be the first time since
Speaker 3: twenty twelve, which would just you know that that's a
Speaker 3: phenomenal start to the first year of Adam Piers and
Speaker 3: Dan Quinn leading this team. But we're gonna get off
Speaker 3: here now. This is the end of the show. Hopefully
Speaker 3: next time we're talking next week, we're gonna be talking
Speaker 3: about the Commander being eight and four heading into a
Speaker 3: matchup against the Tennessee Titans and then going into their
Speaker 3: bye week be sure to rate, review and subscribed anywhere
Speaker 3: you get your podcasts, and this has been the beatdown