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Commanders.com
Practice notes | Marshon Lattimore continues making strides towards potential debut
[A]ll signs point to Lattimore suiting up against the New Orleans Saints — his former team — this Sunday. He was a full participant in practice for the first time on Wednesday and continued that trend on Thursday. Although there are still some obstacles to overcome, coach Dan Quinn said Monday that Lattimore is “hitting all the markers” on his recovery.
When he does get in the lineup, whether that’s this weekend or in one of Washington’s other three games, the Commanders are expecting to get a player who can dramatically change their defense.
“It’s a big deal,” Quinn said. “And to add a player of this caliber after the trade deadline so to speak, it just doesn’t happen very often.”
He hasn’t allowed a touchdown in single coverage since 2021 and allowed a -12.3% completion rate over expected when targeted as the nearest defender this season. Quarterbacks have just a 70.4 passer rating when targeting him.
Commanders Wire
Commanders’ Kingsbury: ‘McCaffrey has done everything we’ve asked’
Noah Brown and Austin Ekeler both have very physical, aggressive styles in their play.
“It’s hard to replace two guys like that, the production they had and just the type of teammates and the effort they played with. But young guys get the opportunity, and we kind of see where it fits.”
Kingsbury was asked about the Commanders’ third-round selection (100 overall) in the 2024 draft, Luke McCaffrey. “Yeah, I mean he’s a talented young man, we’ve asked him to play inside and outside because he can handle it. And that’s a lot on a young player.”
Remember, GM Adam Peters drafted McCaffrey based on his athleticism and intelligence, believing that McCaffrey, who only played the position his last two years in college, was going to grow and develop.
Kingsbury declared he is pleased with McCaffrey thus far, saying, “…he’s done everything we could have asked from him, but other guys have made plays and it’s just a crowded room right now.”
Commanders.com
Commanders start playoff push by staying focused on Saints
As [Jayden] Daniels said during his press conference, “you can’t really hide from any of [the playoff talk]” because of how much it’s talked about on social media. And of course, the players want the fans and league to be excited about what they’re doing on the field.
That isn’t for them to participate in, though.
“We can’t focus on four weeks from now,” Daniels said. “We gotta go out there and compete against the Saints. Worry about the Saints, then move on to the next week, the next week.”
And the Saints should give the Commanders plenty to focus on this week. New Orleans, though not mathematically eliminated yet, sits at 5-8 with several injuries on offense, most notably at quarterback, as Derek Carr is dealing with a hand injury and in the concussion protocol. Assuming he is ruled out, it will be either Jake Haener or Spencer Rattler who lines up against Washington on Sunday.
Washington Post (paywall)
As Commanders enter home stretch, Dan Quinn preaches ‘winning-time moments’
Washington has excelled at situational football, which hasn’t been a particular strength in recent seasons.
It was training camp when it really clicked for Terry McLaurin.
During a practice, the Washington Commanders drilled a particular clock situation that required the veteran wide receiver to get out of bounds after a catch. When he failed to do it quickly enough, he heard from Coach Dan Quinn.
“I remember I caught the ball and took two extra steps that I probably shouldn’t have,” McLaurin recounted Thursday. “That was the closest I’ve seen him to getting mad. He was like, ‘You got to know the situation; you got to do X, Y and Z.’”
“I take to coaching and things like that, but I was like: ‘Wow, it’s really important. It matters.’ And I always know it matters, but I feel like this season, it’s shown up even more. We’ve been prepared for every moment.”
Situational football — two-minute, four-minute, end of half and so on — is drilled by every NFL team, but Quinn has made it one of the pillars of his teaching, emphasizing it every week in practices, meetings and walk-throughs. What he calls “winning-time moments” inevitably pop up every game.
Sports Illustrated
Commanders Have Numerous Players Inside The Top 10 In Pro Bowl Fan Voting
The Washington Commanders’ players are some of the most popular across the league per Pro Bowl fan voting.
After two weeks of fan voting, Jayden Daniels tops the list of Commanders’ players receiving votes as he currently is the top vote-getter for NFC quarterbacks and third overall in the league behind the Ravens’ Lamar Jackson and Bills’ Josh Allen. Daniels has sent shock waves throughout the league with his electrifying play and has already either broken or matched numerous records, and well on his way to breaking the franchise’s rookie passing yards record set by Robert Griffin III back in 2012.
Daniels is joined by fellow teammates C Tyler Biadasz (8th), MLB Bobby Wagner (4th), LS Tyler Ott (9th), OLB Dante Fowler Jr. (5th), OLB Frankie Luvu (6th), SS Jeremy Chinn (9th), ST Jeremy Reaves (8th), TE Zach Ertz (10th), and WR Terry McLaurin (4th).
Voting for the Pro Bowl will take place until December 23rd with the Pro Bowl games set to take place on February 2nd, 2025 from Orlando, Florida.
Front Office Sports
RFK Stadium Bill Making Quiet Progress in Congress
Proponents of the bill have pushed House Speaker Mike Johnson to include it in the continuing resolution that would temporarily stave off a government shutdown.
The lobbying effort by the NFL, the Commanders, D.C. officials, and even members of Congress has focused on House Speaker Mike Johnson. Proponents have pushed the Louisiana Republican to include the RFK Stadium bill in the continuing resolution to fund the government before the Dec. 20 shutdown deadline.
Those negotiations are far along and confidence is high Johnson will include the bill in the continuing resolution (CR), two sources with knowledge of the discussions told Front Office Sports. On Thursday, the RFK Stadium bill was included in the latest version of the CR, the sources said. The final version of the CR is expected by Monday.
Attaching the RFK bill to the federal spending continuing resolution would resolve the opposition from Maryland senators Ben Cardin and Chris Van Hollen. That’s because the only way to amend a continuing resolution on the Senate side is to require another House vote. And Cardin and Van Hollen—and other Senate Democrats—are unlikely to be the cause of the first shutdown since 2019 over the stadium bill, one of the sources said. The CR would temporarily fund the government into early 2025.
The stadium bill gives D.C. control of the 174 acres that sit under the old RFK Stadium—where the team played for decades before it relocated to Landover, Md., in 1996—via a 99-year lease for the federally controlled land. Beyond a football stadium, D.C. would be able to utilize the land for housing and other development.
Upcoming opponent
NFL.com
Saints starting QB Jake Haener in place of injured Derek Carr vs. Commanders
Jake Haener’s the next man up under center for the New Orleans Saints.
Haener will make his first NFL start on Sunday against the Washington Commanders, NFL Network Insider Mike Garafolo reported Thursday night.
Derek Carr is dealing with a left hand injury that will keep him out Sunday — and potentially for the remainder of the season — and Haener is getting the nod over rookie Spencer Rattler.
Haener was the team’s backup when Carr missed time with an oblique injury earlier in the season. Though Haener came on in relief of Carr when he was injured in Week 5 against the Kansas City Chiefs, then-head coach Dennis Allen gave the ensuing starts to Rattler. Rattler went 0-3 as a starter.
Podcasts & videos
Beltway Football – Saints Preview: Wide Receiver 2, Marshon Lattimore, And How to Slow Alvin Kamara
Episode 972 – Discussion of wild day for the #Commanders.
– Noah Brown likely done
– Washington claims K.J. Osborn
– Marshon Lattimore fully practices for 1st time since being acquired
– latest on Saints’ QB situation
– analysis of how Chase Young is doinghttps://t.co/IoJCk2m5I3— Al Galdi (@AlGaldi) December 12, 2024
Mere minutes after I mocked @Sam4TR for going on any and all podcasts, he proves my point by joining me on LMS. Latest on RFK site. Bigger loss: Austin Ekeler or Noah Brown? Who becomes WR2? How much will Marshon Lattimore travel? Notes from practice.https://t.co/toiHImQY3y
— Ben Standig (@BenStandig) December 13, 2024