The offseason is set to pick up for the Washington Commanders with a joint practice set for Wednesday and the first preseason game on Friday
The next phase of preseason arrives for the Washington Commanders with a joint practice set for Wednesday ahead of Friday's first preseason game at Northwest Stadium. Taking a look at the three biggest storylines to watch starting on Monday.
Time for Skill Players to Shine
Last week's news ended a longstanding debate and question mark after the signing of wide receiver Stefon Diggs was officially announced, arriving for Friday's practice before he was seen getting additional reps with quarterback Jayden Daniels on Saturday. With preseason and a joint practice on the way, Diggs is now one of a handful of new pieces -- and former Terps -- looking to live up to expectations in the passing attack as tight end Chig Okonkwo leads the tight end room. Running back Rachaad White will look to do the same in a running back room that has drawn intrigue, but now is the time to begin proving it.
UDFA Jaden Bradley, tight end Colson Yankoff and wide receiver Luke McCaffrey are among the others who have flashed in camp as veteran Terry McLaurin leads an offense looking to prove itself.
State of the Offensive Line
With Laremy Tunsil now sidelined, joining Nick Allegretti, the unit now has question marks to answer even prior to the start of preseason. Washington has inked multiple options to round out center depth drew in both Daniel Brunskill and Trey Hill while both Julian Good-Jones and rookie Matt Gulbin,
who was working with Allegretti after Saturday's practice in extra drills. Yet the bigger question is now on the left side of the offensive line.
Whether a position switch for Brandon Coleman does materialize like it is now expected is worth tracking for two reasons: Chris Paul is now the clear, potentially uncontested pick now to become the starting left guard, while Coleman has a chance to cement his value along the unit. Coleman did well at left tackle in 2024 before the team upgraded with Tunsil, but after drawing optimism this offseason at guard and working to become an option at center, the chance to now cement his value in year three looms even larger now.
How Does the New-Look Defense Hold vs. New Competition
It seems ever since the new pieces arrived, the Commanders' front seven has drawn buzz and optimism with Odafe Oweh and K'Lavon Chaisson -- who returned for Thursday's practice after being inactive on Wednesday -- while seemingly all of the defensive linemen have pointed to being versatile pieces under new coordinator Daronte Jones. How that fares against new competition will be the fun part of the upcoming week with Wednesday and Friday marking a chance to go against a Miami Dolphins OL that was average one season ago.
Yet with cornerback Trey Amos departing practice one day after he was activated off PUP, his status for this week and beyond is worth monitoring, but so is the rest of the secondary. With some veteran additions alleviating concerns in the cornerback room, coupled with multiple safeties joining Nick Cross to ease concerns on the backend, how it all comes together as preseason ramps up remains the storyline.
