Washington

Commanders

He didn’t travel to Spain with the team. Burks led the team in receiving yards last week — even just reading that in words conveys the direness of the Commanders passing attack right now. Jaylin Lane will have more paths to WR5 success now.

The Commanders now get a 21-day window to observe Jackson in practice before officially having him join the active roster. The 24-year-old defensive end has suffered two season-ending knee injuries. The most recent one, which he is currently recovering from, was a torn patellar tendon suffered in 2023. The former second-round pick could boost the Commanders’ pass rush if his surgically repaired knee is good to go.

Rodriguez missed most of the second half of Week 10 with the shoulder issue but managed a limited practice on Wednesday. A full practice today means he will be good to go for Week 11 versus a beatable Miami run defense. Rodriguez operated as the Commanders’ lead back in the first half of Week 10’s game. He should hold onto that role this week, putting him in the RB3 ranks.

Rodriguez played ahead of rookie Jacory Croskey-Merritt in the first half of the Commanders’ Week 10 loss to the Lions. He then hurt his shoulder in the third quarter and JCM took over. Rodriguez did not return after playing just one snap in the second half. A limited practice suggests he should be good to go for Week 11 versus Miami. In a game that could be close, Rodriguez will have some RB3 potential.

Considering how little is left of the NFL season and Washington’s placement in the standings, this is likely a season-ender. Amos had a 58.8 PFF coverage grade in 511 snaps during his first 10 games of the season, but looked rough the last two weeks as he allowed 138 yards and a touchdown while allowing 8-of-8 completions in coverage. He’ll likely head to IR in the coming days.

He’ll at least head over to Spain with the team, which we guess is great news for the vibes. McLaurin will need to have a huge Week 13-17 stretch after Washington’s Week 12 bye to justify his ADP at this point. Seems like holding out for a contract extension was a pretty smart move by him, considering his 13/203/1 line probably wouldn’t have moved many general managers this offseason.

After becoming the first team to lose four-straight games by 20-plus points since the 2002 Cardinals, Quinn decided something must be done. The Commanders’ defense has been abysmal all season, but their struggles have become more noticeable as they enter the more difficult portion of their schedule. Since Week 7, the Commanders have allowed 38.5 points per game and 451.3 yards per game. Quinn’s defenses as a head coach have never been the stellar units we’ve grown accustomed to seeing when he was a defensive coordinator, so this isn’t exactly new territory. We’ll see if this change leads to better results as the Commanders now prepare for a Week 11 game game in Spain against the Dolphins who are fresh off an upset win over the Bills.

Payne could appeal this, but the tape doesn’t exactly work in his favor. Payne took a blatant, cheap shot at St. Brown during the second quarter of Sunday’s game and was immediately ejected for his actions. Assuming this holds up, which it should, Payne will miss Week 11’s game against the Dolphins in Spain and will be eligible to return in Week 13 after the Commanders’ bye week.

Rodriguez out-snapped Jacory Croskey-Merritt 17-4 in the first half before hurting his shoulder after logging one snap in the third quarter. He was initially labeled as questionable to return, but never retook the field. While Croskey-Merritt has continued to disappoint, Rodriguez hardly played better, averaging 2.7 yards per carry. His touchdown was an easy one-yard scamper off the left tackle on the Commanders’ fourth drive.

Croskey-Merritt’s Week 10 showing marks his sixth sub-40-yard rushing outing. The run-centric back is struggling to produce on his own, but the Commanders also continue to fall into pass-heavy game scripts. Things were briefly looking up on the sixth drive, when he touched the ball on five of the first seven plays, before being subbed out when the offense was on the Lions’ five-yard line on third down. On the next play, Commanders QB Marcus Mariota lined up in the shotgun, snapped the ball and patty-caked it into WR Deebo Samuel’s hands, who had been sent in motion pre-snap. The play gained just one yard, but the Commanders successfully went back to Samuel on a flat route in the end zone on fourth down. Croskey-Merrit was later brought in for a two-point conversion attempt, but he was stood up by Lions LB Jack Campbell. RB Chris Rodriguez notably suffered a shoulder injury this afternoon, and the Commanders face the Dolphins’ league-worst run defense in Week 11.