Washington Commanders’ Offensive Line Experiment Failed Miserably

The Washington Commanders made a questionable move on the offensive line Sunday, starting rookie Matt Gulbin over veteran guard Nick Allegretti. If that’s what head coach Dan Quinn believed was best for the team, fine. But I have a hard time understanding the decision.

Gulbin was inserted into the lineup over Allegretti. The former Michigan State Spartan, who struggled during training camp and the preseason, was beaten at the line of scrimmage and allowed a sack by the Indianapolis Colts defense on quarterback Marcus Mariota. On that play, Mariota aggravated his MCL injury and did not return to the game. Reports indicate he is expected to miss some time.

What’s even more infuriating is that general manager Adam Peters and Quinn repeatedly made it clear throughout the offseason that Allegretti was “their guy” at center, despite the injuries he dealt with.

Instead of sticking with that plan, Washington brought in veteran center/guard Lucas Patrick, started him at center and moved Allegretti back to guard for the Seahawks game. And yes, that formula worked. Washington won, and Allegretti even delivered a crucial block late in the game that helped seal the victory for the Commanders.

But against the Colts, Washington completely mixed things up. Allegretti was taken out of his guard role and replaced by an inexperienced rookie guard in Gulbin. Allegretti was listed as limited throughout the week with a hip injury, but he entered Sunday without an injury designation and was available to play.

Despite that, Quinn went with Gulbin because he reportedly liked the combination of Patrick at center and Gulbin at guard.

I’m not going to sit here and try to convince you that I’m some offensive-line expert. But something about this decision doesn’t sit right with me. It feels like poor management of an offensive line that is already without star left tackle Laremy Tunsil and guard Sam Cosmi.

My biggest takeaway is simple: If you’re going to say something, stand by it. You chose to change things up, and now the Commanders are left with a backup quarterback who could miss an extended period of time while Jayden Daniels’ status remains up in the air.

To me, this comes off as malpractice from Peters and Quinn. It is unacceptable, and it needs to be corrected sooner rather than later.

Because if it isn’t, don’t be surprised if another Commanders quarterback continues to be under duress, or gets hurt.