The Washington Commanders will travel to Kansas City on Saturday to take on the Chiefs in NFL preseason action week #2. The Commanders have a brand new name and a brand new quarterback this season as former Eagle and Colt Carson Wentz takes over the reigns for Ron Rivera's squad. The Chiefs come in as one of the elite teams in the NFL but the 2019 Super Bowl champs are transitioning a bit themselves as they will be without All-Pro wideout Tyreek Hill this season, traded to the Dolphins in the offseason. The opening kickoff is set for 4pm EST.
The Washington football team finally has a new name, the Commanders, but do they finally have their franchise quarterback? After years of uncertainty at the position, the Commanders went out and signed veteran Carson Wentz to lead the offense this season. Wentz will now play for his third team in three seasons and is trying to return to the form that made him an MVP candidate just a few short seasons ago while leading the Eagles. Wentz was given the opportunity to work more than your average, established quarterback in the opener as he went 10-of-13 for 74 yards and led a 14-play, 82-yard drive that resulted in the Commanders first touchdown.
“It was good to get out here and not be booed and have some fun,” Wentz said. “It wasn’t perfect, but it was good to kind of get our feet wet a little bit offensively.”
It will be interesting to see how much work Wentz gets in his secon d game as the Commanders also have a seasoned and capable backup in Taylor Heinecke. Heinecke was 4-for-9 for 21 yards and an interception in limited action in the Commanders first game. Last season, Heinecke started 16 games and had a passer rating of 85.9 with 3,419 yards, 20 touchdowns and 15 interceptions for Washington. He might see more action in the second game and less snaps may be given to rookie quarterback Sam Howell out of North Carolina. Howell, who fell all the way to the fifth round after a subpar junior year after being projected as a possible first round quarterback following an outstanding sophomore season, went 9-of-16 for 143 yards. He also showed off his athletic ability by running for two scores in the game. It will be interesting to see how coach Ron Rivera and the Commanders dole out the playing time at quarterback this weekend.
yea was ?? https://t.co/FgtDssYMPM pic.twitter.com/7 8hQd4fiAU
— Washington Commanders (@Commanders) August 17, 2022
The Commanders added some offensive talent this offseason besides quarterback Carson Wentz. Washington drafted WR Dahan Dotson out of Penn State, who should fit in nicely next to incumbent WR Terry McLaurin. Along the offensive line, the Commanders added guard Andrew Norwell while re-signing center Tyler Larsen. The defense added defensive end Efe Odaba out of Carolina. He will add depth as the Commanders still wait on the recovery of DE Chase Young. Young is still recovering from knee surgery at the end of last season and will not be back until at least week 2 of this season. The Commanders have some work to do on the defensive side of the ball after the team underachieved last season. Rivera recently replaced his long-time assistant Sam Mills, citing philosophical differences. With that in mind, expect to see more of the Commanders regulars seeing action on defense as they try to implement a new system.
The Commanders lost their opener, 23- 21, but the loss was encouraging given that the Panthers featured two NFL starters from last season at quarterback playing significant minutes. With Sam Darnold and Baker Mayfield battling it out in Carolina, the Commanders defense was put to the test. The Commanders will likely have the advantage at quarterback this week with two NFL starters of their own from last season playing significant minutes against a Chiefs team that will likely be resting most of its key players.