The newly named Commanders boast a good defense with an elite defensive line led by former second overall pick, Chase Young, who should return sometime this season after recovering from a torn ACL. They're led by a defensive-minded head coach, Ron Rivera, who generally gets his teams to overachieve. Offensively, Washington has a nice nucleus of skill position players in running back Antonio Gibson and receivers Terry McLaurin, Curtis Samuel, and first round rookie Jahan Dotson. They've brought in Carson Wentz to play qu arterback, though his last two seasons haven't been great considering both the Eagles and Colts couldn't wait to rid themselves of his services. The Commanders have sneaky playoff potential if Wentz reverts to anywhere near his 2017 form (which, admittedly, is a if).
If all goes well, a 4-2 start for Rivera's team isn't impossible (but not necessarily probable) despite the fact they face three 2021 playoff teams in that time frame. The key part of the schedule might be Weeks 11 through 13, where the team must defeat all three of Houston, Atlanta, and the Giants, to have realistic playoff chances. Two of those games come on the road.
This edition of the Washington franchise probably has a ceiling of nine wins, though Caesars Sportsbook sets their season over/under at 7.5. With the NFC looking to be the weaker of the two conferences, it's difficult to find seven contending teams at first glance. If they get to eight wins and surpass the oddsmakers ' total, it's not inconceivable that the Commanders could backdoor a trip into the postseason, so the +160 line has some value… if you're a believer in a bounce-back from Wentz, that is.
- More NFL futures:'SportsLine Projection Model's best bets
Below, you'll find the Washington Commanders 2022 schedule, win total and more futures odds from Caesars Sportsbook, followed by picks from top SportsLine NFL analysts Larry Hartstein and R.J. White.