Commanders Injury Updates: How Close Are Terry McLaurin & Sam Cosmi?

After a dominant road victory, the biggest question facing the commanders isn’t as much about momentum as it is about availability. That and more right now on Locked On Commanders. [Music] [Applause] You are Locked on Commanders, your daily podcast on the Washington Commanders, part of the Locked On podcast network. Your team every day. This is Locked On Commanders. I’m David Harrison, your guy on the ground covering the Washington Commanders for W USA9 and I’m here right here. I’m here right here with you 5 days a week. You can also find me writing about the commanders on Sports Illustrates commandergameday.com. You follow me on xdh harrison 82. I want to thank you for making lockdown commanders your first listen or your first view. And a special thank you goes out to all of the everydayers. Those of you who come through for every single episode, special thank you for coming through yet again for this one. Coming up on today’s episode, the defense’s identity is complex, but that’s by design. The young players aren’t just developing, they’re starting to win games. But first, the health of this team’s best players is trending in the right direction. All that coming up on this mailbag episode of Lockdown Commander is a proud part of the Lockdown Podcast Network. Your team every day, and we’re doing it thanks to FanDuel. Right now, new customers can bet just $5. And if that bet wins, you will get $300 in bonus bets to use across the app. Let’s get right to the top story that most of the fans, most of you are asking about, and that is the health of this team and when some of the key starters are going to start coming back. In this mailbag episode, insiders Tia and Robbie came through and asked, “What are the latest updates on Tara McLaren, Sam Cosby, and Noah Brown? And was Terry held out last week against the Los Angeles Chargers specifically because the upcoming game is on Monday night?” I think it’s a it’s an interesting part of that question and I think obviously this is going to be the top priority of conversation early this week when we get back to practice with the Washington commanders. Uh the commanders are practicing all week long Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday. We will be and when I say we as in media, we will be out there Wednesday and Thursday. Friday is close to the media. Saturday is open. It’s going to be kind of like the Friday and that’s when the game status report will come out. It’s Saturday afternoon, not Friday afternoon. So I just want you to know that so you know when to look for it. I will not be at practice on Saturday. Good friend of mine is getting married, so I will be attending his wedding uh instead. But obviously, we’ll converse and we’ll talk about the game status report when that time comes as well. So, the top priority for the injury report this this week is going to be wide receiver Terry McLaren. Uh injured his quad in that game against the Las Vegas Raiders. Has not been seen on the playing field since. However, he is working out. He is doing what he needs to do to try to get back. Did not participate in practice all last week. I don’t think anybody really expected him to play uh last week and that can be a little bit concerning. However, I am fairly optimistic uh that he’s going to be back this week. I mean, if I had to put a number on it, I’d probably go like 6040 at this point, right? I think you need to see him on the practice field before you go above that level. But I do think that is possible at least that he’s back for Monday night against the Chicago Bears. Uh to Robbiey’s point, I think scheduling is a big factor. Dan Quinn said on Monday, quote, “With having an extra day, that never hurts going into it.” End quote. So, you love having that extra day. Um, but again, just like with Jaden, just like with every injury we’ve seen happen since Dan Quinn, Adam Peters got here, they’re not going to rush anybody back on the field, right? They’re going to take their time. As DQ always says, they’re going to hit their markers and and and do all those things the right way because of course, the important thing is not having Terry against the Chicago Bears. It’s having Terry against the Eagles, Cowboys, Eagles again, whoever they play in the playoffs, things like that. you want him for the long run and down the stretch and all those things. So, if you have to go another week without him, uh you’re going to go ahead and do that to make sure that he’s the healthiest that he can possibly be. But DQ also said that they are quote unquote optimistic that his return will be soon. So, again, I’m optimistic. DQ is optimistic. You know, Terry’s chomping at the bit to get back out there. It’s just a matter of whether or not he can get to the point where he can run fully, practice fully, get his routes, all those things. As you know, wide receiver has to rely a lot not just on their hands, but also on their legs to get off the line of scrimmage, get that burst, that sprint, that jump, that cut, all those things. So, you need that quad muscle uh to be fully healed, at least as much as possible, right before you risk putting him back there, back out there on the playing field. Um, and and that’s exactly what’s going to happen. So, we’ll get more as the week goes on, but right now, I can tell you I’m about a 6040 that Terry McLaren is going to come back this week. So obviously if he doesn’t come back this week, I’ll probably be a little bit more confident next week that he’ll be returning against the Dallas Cowboys depending on, you know, what developments happen this week. Also a little bit confident about Sam Cosby, right? And this one’s just a little bit different. Uh this is the second week of his uh window being opened, right? The Washington Mayers opened up his window ahead of the game against the Los Angeles Chargers. pretty much didn’t think there was really any chance that they were gonna throw him on a plane, make him fly to the West Coast, and then play his first NFL game after all that travel. Uh, and everything else. I mean, one, he’s just he’s a big dude. Those airline seats, like, I don’t care how big you make him, there’s not going to be comfortable for a guy that size and with the knee and everything else. It just didn’t seem feasible. So, this was the week that I kind of was always targeting once they opened up his window for him to return. Uh, this is the second week. So, if he doesn’t come back this week, he’s basically got to come back the week after that. I don’t know if the math So they got 21 days. It’s not three games. They got 21 days. So the math may actually work out to where he doesn’t have to play against the Cowboys next week and then he could actually potentially feasibly officially return to the team after the Cowboys game and then be ready for the Chiefs game. You’d have to count the days for that one. But typically it’s within three games. This team’s history, not that it’s that extensive, right? But I feel like usually when we see a guy’s window open, it’s because they’re pretty close to coming back. So, one game, maybe two games away from returning. So, this would be that second game. So, again, that’s that’s really kind of the reason I’m a little bit confident this week in Sam Cosby. Not as confident as Terry. So, I guess you put it like a 50/50. Uh, but he looks pretty good on the practice field. I know he feels pretty good. Uh, he hasn’t been, you know, having to get a lot of treatment, uh, you know, after practice and things like that. He’s typically been in the locker room pretty pretty much available. Did do one official scrum with us when he came back last week. Uh so again uh Dan Quinn grouped Sam Cosby in the group that he said is quote trending in the right way end quote. So take that for what it’s worth. Doesn’t necessarily mean any promises, but it does mean that things are working towards a positive resolution. Then there’s Noah Brown. Uh and I’ll just be honest with you guys. I’m I’m never confident in Noah Brown’s availability uh from a week- toeek basis just because of his history of injuries and it really sucks to kind of put it that way. Uh but Noah Brown is one of those players that you know unfortunately I’ve said it you know 100 times. He’ll say it 100 times more, I’m sure, that sometimes our bodies don’t agree with our career choices and Noah Brown just appears to be kind of one of those guys. When he’s healthy, he’s certainly talented enough uh to make an impact on the team. We’ve seen it and you know, I’ve watched him with the Houston Texans, Dallas Cowboys, uh things like that. And, you know, it’s it’s been evident everywhere that he’s been that he’s a fully capable wide receiver when he’s healthy. The problem is he can never really seem to stay healthy all that well. Uh DQ mentioned him in that group as well as trending in the right direction. Uh, but as far as whether or not I feel he’s confident, I feel confident that he’ll be on the field, uh, I’m gonna need to see him again Wednesday, Thursday, you know what I mean, going into the weekend, all those things. But as we stand ahead of practice Wednesday, I can’t sit here and tell you confidently that I think that Noah Brown will be suited up against Chicago Bears, which of course uh, would suck in its own way. One, because you want to see him out there, but two, a lot of conversation going to be had this week about the Hail Mary last year. The commanders are wearing the same black uniforms that they wore last year in that game where they got the Hail Mary. Noah Brown, of course, the receiver of the Hail Mary pass. So, you know, all those things are connected. So, for him not to be out there is going to take kind of I want to say take away from the game because the game it matters in 2025, not 2024 anyway. But, you know, there’s going to be that little bit of an element on that. So, while we wait for these veterans to get healthy, the players currently on the field, especially the young players, are getting invaluable experience that could pay huge dividends down the line. That and more coming up next on today’s episode of Lockdown Commanders, part of the Lockdown Podcast Network. Your team every day. And today’s episode of Locked On Commanders is brought to you in part by FanDuel. The NFL season in full motion heading into week six here. Uh FanDuel has an offer that you don’t want to miss if you’re a new customer uh considering joining up with FanDuel because right now new customers, you can bet just $5. And if that $5 bet wins, you’ll get $300 in bonus bets to use anywhere on the site. And in fact, that $5 bet could come anywhere on the site. It doesn’t have to be on football. $5 anywhere on the site. If you’re a new customer, that bet wins, you get $300. That’s right. You pick a bet, you put down five bucks, and if it hits, you get 300 bucks to use anywhere. We just spent this entire segment talking about the uncertainty around key players like Terry McLaren and Sam Cosby. That’s what makes betting on FanDuel a lot of fun. It’s all about making your prediction on how you think things are going to play out. Are you optimistic Terry plays? You can take a look at his player props. If you think the offense might need the young guys to step up again, you potentially build a same game parlay around that. Every day know that I’m a big same game parlay guy. So, what are you waiting for? Visit fanuel.com to download the FanDuel app today and get started. The silver lining of having veterans out is that it accelerates the growth of your young players. And uh we’re really starting to see that in this draft class and in some of the other younger players uh that they’re starting to kind of get their footing while they’re having to fill in for some of these more established players. Insiders Jonathan, Seth, and Dr. Wonderful all came through and asked similar questions. They want to know how valuable these reps are for guys like Jerzon Newton, uh Jaylen Lane, Ben Sinnet, and is Senate more than just a blocker? What is my evaluation so far? Some of the other guys, obviously Johnny Non is not necessarily benefiting from, you know, anybody’s injury. Javon Kinlaw, Don Payne were certainly there. However, every once in a while, Javon Kinlaw kicks outside where Dietrich Wise Jr., even Javvante John Baptist was going to be. That gives Johnny Newton some opportunities to maybe get a little bit more work than he would have otherwise. Uh, so specifically to Jonathan, I think the reps that these younger players are getting right now is absolutely critical to the success of any football team, right? And this is kind of the conversation and I’ve seen some Commanders fans already in the comments and on social media kind of trying to trying to latch on to this point, right? I think it’s it’s a little bit of a coping mechanism certainly as you’re going through it and you’re watching your team that had all this promise in the world and all this, you know, all these aspirations and everything kind of struggle out the gate and have all these players banged up and all that stuff. It gives you hope for the future to say, well, you know, the guys playing behind them are getting good reps and and then when everybody gets healthy, everybody’s really going to take off. The fact of the matter is that’s true. That’s that’s 100% true. We see this every year with some team gets banged up early and then their young guys or inexperienced guys gain all that experience and they grow within it and then when their experienced guys come back now you’ve just got a really good roster with a varying level of experience still but valuable experience nonetheless. Unfortunately, we also see teams that have this happen in the in the early season. We say the same thing and then they just never get healthy. You know what I mean? And hopefully that’s not the Washington Commanders. feel like it’s not going to be the Washington Commanders. They got out of the Los Angeles Chargers game, relatively healthy. Obviously, every game people are getting bumps and bruises and all that stuff, but relatively healthy. And come December when you’re making that playoff push, you’re not going to be relying on the Luke McCaffries, the Jaylen Lanes of the world as much as you are obviously right now. And hopefully you’re going to be able to rely on the Terry McLarens, the Noah Browns, but then you’re going to have those fourth and fifth receivers in Luke McAffrey and Jaylen Lane who have all this experience now. So when you do turn to them, they can rise up uh for the occasion. And you’ll love to see it when it happens. So hopefully that’s what’s happening here for the Washington Commanders as we roll deeper into the month of October. Now let’s turn to the tight ends and the impact that John Bates and Ben Sinnate had on the run game on Sunday against the Los Angeles Chargers was immense. I don’t think you can really take that for granted. Looked at John Bates film uh and specifically as a blocker. You know, he made a he he did his thing. John Bates is a known blocker. I gave him kind of a B. I don’t really like doing grades, but I think we’re going to start doing just a little bit more. Again, more so to illustrate just kind of where we are, right? Gave him kind of a B. Uh he made a crucial nine yard catch during that 99 yard drive, which you love to see. Ben Sinnate was a key component in those big formations. Call him jumbo, call him whatever you want, but Ben Sinnet was a key factor in those things as well, helping produce two touchdowns. And to answer Dr. Wonderful’s question about Ben Sinnate as just a blocker, an elite blocking tight end is really a cornerstone of what Cliff Kingsburg is trying to do since ever since he got here. And Sinn isn’t just a blocker, but you know, that’s obviously what he’s doing more so than anything. He’s not getting the receptions. But really, if you look at him, he’s an enabler for the entire scheme. Because even if you look at him on tape and you’re the Los Angeles Chargers defense or, you know, you’re the you’re the Chicago Bears defense coming up this weekend, you can’t look at number 82, Ben Sinnet, and say, “Okay, this dude is never going to catch a pass. This dude is never going to run a route.” And and that’s the thing, you just need the threat of it, right? Like, you know, that he’s a really good blocker. You know that John Bates is a really good blocker. But the fact that they’re on the field and they are a threat to catch the ball. They’re a threat to chip and release. They’re a threat to leak out for a route, things like that. You just don’t want to be the team that kind of gives it up, right? Like that’s kind of the part of it for for the opposing defenses. So, while yes, right now he is quote unquote just a blocker, understanding how the defenses have to balance that out anyway, even though you’re playing a guy who who doesn’t catch the ball, um is is important and it’s better than that’s where the trade-off comes, right? If Benson is just a blocker, why not just throw Tren Scott out there every play you want to do that and leave Ben Sinn on the sideline. It’s that threat that this could potentially still be a pass play and then this guy specifically could still be a threat. Can Trent Scott also catch the ball? Sure, we can be technical about it. Uh but let’s be honest, he’s not getting out into a formation or out in the passing tree uh and with any near uh success or effect as Ben Sinnate is, right? So, what about Johnny Newton? Uh, for me, Johnny Newton, looking back on his game against the Los Angeles Chargers, I give Johnny Newton an A. Um, I think that he he had a game-changing performance in his opportunities, uh, he was a disruptive pass rusher, uh, and made honestly potentially one of the most significant defensive plays of the game, tipping that pass that was intercepted by Mikey Sanders. Now, Mikey asserts, not to take anything away from Johnny, but Mikey says that he thinks he was in position anyway. Probably comes down with that interception either way. I tend to agree with him. But again, the way that the play broke down and the way that the play went, Johnny was in there. Johnny was aggressive. Had his eyes up. Uh his head was active. It wasn’t just about the blocker that he was going up against. He was aware of the entirety of the play. Saw the quarterback getting into his throwing motion. Knew, hey, I’m not sacking him. So, if you’re not going to sack him, get a hand up. Do all those things. Put a hand up and get that tip. Uh reminded me a lot of uh you know, a few years ago, Don Payne, Atlanta Falcons in Washington, and same thing. Marcus Mariota was quarterback of the Falcons at the time. Had them close to the goal line. Don Payne puts a midup, tips a pass, ends up getting intercepted. Very similar type play for me. Uh so just a sign of Johnny Newton’s growth, at least from a football IQ standpoint. Uh so I thought he had a really good game with the opportunities that he had. Uh the receiving reps obviously are paying off. Jaylen Lane gave him a B from this last game. His one reception was absolutely immense. It was it was incredibly clutch. uh 16 yard catch on third and 16 that kept that first touchdown drive alive. Like if he doesn’t make that catch, they don’t get that first touchdown, who knows what happens for the rest of that game. And then Luke McAffrey, of course, uh you get that massive 50-yard catch, uh you get an A. But not just for that, but also kick returning, special teams, things like that. So Luke McAffrey got an A. Jaylen Lane got a B. Ben Sinn got a B. John Bates got a B. Like the these are all really good solid grades for these young guys getting opportunities. He’s not that John Bates is getting opportunity he wouldn’t get normally. Then you got guys like Jordan McGee, right? Jordan McGee, we haven’t seen much of him since week two. Had a huge tackle, a three- yard loss on second and goal from the one yard line. DQ praised the entire coaching staff for kind of getting some packages, finding some opportunities to get Jordan McGee on the field. And I think he absolutely made an impact in the opportunities that he that he got. And then finally, this year’s first round pick, offensive tackle Josh Connorly Jr. I was asked, you know, is the game slowing down for him? He also got a B for me. Solid, reliable performance. No sacks allowed. Arguably the easiest matchup he’s had so far in his career. Uh, you know, not not to offend any Chargers, pass rushers, or anything like that, but arguably the easiest matchup he’s had in his career. Look, I’ve been really impressed uh talking to Josh throughout the season. Like, this dude, again, we’ve talked about has gone through a murderer’s row of introductory pass rushers that he’s had to block, you know, starting from week one all the way through the season, and he hasn’t blinked, you know what I He hasn’t flinched. He’s going up against another really good one next week, Montes Sweat. We all know him very well out in these parts. He’s going to be looking to come out and wreck the game just like he always does. Josh Carly Jr. uh is the game slowing down for him. I think absolutely. I think it’s a good way of putting it, you know what I mean? But I think that the bottom line is it’s all happening because even with everything that’s being thrown at him early in his NFL career, he’s not flinching. He’s not blinking. Uh and he’s not backing down from any of it. And I think it’s just a great great start for the Washington Mayor’s first round pick here uh in 2025. So while the young guys in the offense are are developing, there are still a lot of highlevel questions about what exactly this defense is going to be or is even under Joe Whit Jr. and Dan Quinn. We’ll talk about that next coming up on today’s episode of Lockdown Commanders, part of the Lockdown Podcast Network. Your team every day. I’m Cody Ro from Lockdown Broncos and this episode is brought to you by Pelaton. Pelaton is shaping the future of fitness with the brand new Pelaton crossraining tread plus powered by Pelaton IQ. This is Pelaton’s most advanced equipment yet, giving you realtime guidance and endless ways to move. 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Insiders Logan, Timothy, TJ, and Merl all came through and said, “What is three four structure? Why does a secondary play so soft? Do we believe in the big plays returnover style? And what does John Pagano do?” So, a lot of questions here uh pertaining to the defense and I don’t actually think it’s insider Logan. We do have an insider Logan, but he doesn’t usually ask questions. I think it’s insider questions about Logan Paulson. Uh so, I apologize to the person who actually asked the question, but apparently Logan Paulson, and I love talking to Logan, but be I’d be lying to you if I told you I listen to every single thing that he puts out. Apparently, Logan oftentimes says that the defense is a three four structure, not necessarily a true three four. So, what does that really mean? What does that mean from a football standpoint? And I can’t speak for Logan and I did not call him before recording this. So, uh, if you know Logan hears this and I’m wrong, brother, by all means, uh, correct me. I’ll actually probably just ask you about it next time I see you. Um, and if I’m wrong, I will correct it on a future episode. But here’s what I understand 34 structure to mean compared to just what is a 34, right? So, 34 defense, when you talk about a 34 or any numeral of the defense, 4-3, all this other stuff, what the three is is the amount of down defensive linemen you have. And usually these are your bigger guys, your 300 pounders, you know, three-point stance guys, all that kind of stuff. So if it’s three, four, you got three down linemen. Three down linemen typically you got a guy in the in the shade over the center in the nose. And then you got your other defensive lineman, defensive ends. Sometimes they’re going to be under, sometimes they’re going to be over. You know, it just kind of depends. But either way, you got two defensive ends, one defensive tackle essentially, and then four linebackers, right? Uh three big guys, four linebackers. It helps you play aggressive. Uh it helps you it helps you do a lot of things right. 4-3 on the other hand usually is more of a run stopping formation. You’ve got four defensive linemen hand in the dirt on the ground, three linebackers roaming around the middle, sometimes on the edge, things like that. So that’s kind of just like the basics of a 34 and a 4-3. When you talk about playing a 34 structure, then what that means is with the Washington Commanders anyway, they play aggressive. They play a one gap style of defense. Uh even though you’re playing with three down linemen, typically three down lineman, you’re trying to two gap it. So when you talk about one gap and two gap, it’s kind of exactly what it sounds like, right? One gap, you’re asking the D line, just play one gap. This is your gap. Play it, attack it, penetrate it. You know what I mean? Own it. When you’re playing two gap, it’s a little bit more of a kind of hold up at the point of attack, hold your block, and you’re responsible for two gaps. And you got to read where the play is going. And your job is more so to clog the lane than it is to kind of penetrate the lane, if that makes sense. and you want to kind of tend to hold things up to allow those second level players uh to get in there. Of course, you can make the play yourself. Fantastic. So, the Washington Commanders, a three four, you’re usually two gapping. You’re usually playing two gaps. So, you want each of those three linemen assigned to two gaps uh each and that’s how a three- four is typically played. This team, however, plays an aggressive one back attacking style out of that personnel grouping. So, it’s a three four structure as in you have the three down linemen, you have four uh standing players and all those things, but you’re playing one gap instead of two gap, which you would usually play with three down linemen. That’s what I would take the three four structure to me. And it doesn’t mean that you never see four down linemen. It never doesn’t mean anything like that. It just means that typically you’re giving a 34 base look and then you’re using that look to attack it in whatever way uh you decide to attack it. So hopefully that makes sense. Hopefully I did a decent enough job explaining what I believe 34 structure means over what three just a straight up 34 uh is in the NFL. Again, next time I see Logan, I’ll ask him and if I’m wrong, I will come uh explain that to you as well. Uh so this ties directly to Timothy’s question about playing a soft zone, right? It’s it’s honestly kind of a hallmark of Dan Quinn’s cover threebased scheme. Kind of always has been cover three. You know, you got three guys covering the deep parts of the field. you got a single high safety covering the middle. Each of your perimeter cornerbacks are covering a third of the field on each side. And so typically when you’re in that kind of a formation, or if you’re in that kind of a scheme, I should say, uh those cornerbacks typically like to play a little bit off because if you get burned at the line of scrimmage, there’s really nobody on top. Like that free safety is on top. But depending on what the team is doing, the offense is doing underneath you or underneath him and all those things is whether or not he’s actually going to be over there. And you see it time and time again, the ball, if it’s thrown on time, thrown with the right trajectory, can definitely absolutely get to a receiver before that top safety can really get there toffect affect the play, at least the pass. And more so, that free safety is going to get over there in time to make the tackle, not make the interception or the PBU. So, typically that leaves your cornerback in position to bail, protect against the deep ball because obviously that’s the biggest hindrance. And the goal is keep everything in front of you, rally to the ball, tackle. It looks soft. It does give up some underneath throws. Uh but that’s kind of just how the how a cover three system is usually played, especially a fire zone team uh like likes to blitz because when you’re playing off, you’re also able to kind of keep your eye on the quarterback a little bit. Uh which is which is a benefit of the zone. And if you key in fast enough and the pressure gets there fast enough, you can potentially break on the ball, get an interception, things like that. Uh hasn’t been happening as much lately, so I get some of the frustration about it. That brings us to TJ’s point about philosophy. Uh and the entire scheme being essentially a trade-off. You play aggressive up front. You play a single high safety. You play those, you know, man, not manto man, but you play those corners kind of by themselves in their own zones on the perimeter. And you hope that the chaos you create, the five sacks, the the pressure, all that stuff creates those takeaways that you take advantage of. Joey Junior’s talked about this a lot that most interceptions, if not all interceptions, come from overthrown balls, under throwown balls, tip passes, and just inaccurate throws because quarterback’s under pressure, right? It’s not so much that the DB just ran the route for the guy and was in the perfect position, all those things because quarterbacks get trained how to avoid those situations uh as well. And I think you saw that in the game against the Los Angeles Chargers. Uh physicality, chaos creation, all those things creating those turnovers. So yeah, there is a trade-off here. You want to play aggressive. You want to leave some room. you’re going to give up some yards, but the hope is you create enough chaos on a down-to-down basis that eventually that chaos creates an opportunity for you to make a play and you make the play. That’s obviously the the other part of the key there is you actually make the play. Uh because you’ll see a team put together an 11play drive and maybe play six there was an opportunity for a fumble or an opportunity for an interception that the defense didn’t take advantage of. Five plays later that offense is scoring. You got to take advantage of that opportunity at play six. to Merurl, a coach like a senior defensive assistant John Pagano on the Washington Commanders roster. Uh his role is basically be a veteran coaching sounding board and key adviser. Uh not unlike what we saw with Don Capers as a senior defensive assistant for the Jaguars back in 2019 or Romeo Krenell who was that same role for the Houston Texans in 2021. They’re experienced coaches, former coordinators usually. They help game plan, they help sell scout, they help mentor young coaches. And for John Pagano, a lot of experience there. 15 seasons with the Chargers. Uh just brings a really valuable perspective to the defensive staff room and he has the ability to kind of go where he is needed. He’s not locked into one situation and he can kind of advise Joey Junior. He advise Dan Quinn on what he sees as well. Just another set of eyes, another brain thinking about what they’re doing. So really great questions in the mailbag. We couldn’t get to them all, but I do have the rest of them stored. Maybe we can get to another bonus mailbag episode this week. We will see. Especially with Monday, Monday Night Football, we’ll have a little bit more time. So that’s it for today’s episode. Next time on Locked On Commanders crossover Thursday, Lauren Cox of Lockdown Bears is going to be here to preview the Commanders big Monday Night Football matchup here in Northwest Stadium against Chicago Bears. In the meantime, if you’ve got questions for future mailbags, comments, topics you want to discuss, become a locked on commanders insider or join sububtex.com/lockton commanders. Now for your second lesson, get a double dose of locked on NFL. Tyler Roland in the morning, Tony Wiggins in the afternoon. I am with Tony every Wednesday afternoon. So make sure you go through and check that out. Locked on NFL on YouTube or wherever you’re listening to this podcast and to the everydayers. I see you. I appreciate you every single day. Special thank you once again for coming through yet again today. For everybody out there, until next time, stay safe, be kind to one another, and we’ll talk again soon right here on Locked On Commanders, part of the Locked On Network, your team every day.

We’re diving into the listener mailbag to provide the latest injury updates on key Commanders like Terry McLaurin and Sam Cosmi. Then, a deep dive into the development of the promising young players, including the huge impact of the tight ends on the run game. Finally, we break down the team’s core defensive philosophy.
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11 comments
  1. Noah Brown may be gone before the end of the season, definitely gone by next year. Especially if Luke continues to develop. He's injured more often than not.

  2. this running game is pretty potent. How does it hold up on a away games? As much as folks discuss Kliff's offence as an air raid, it really is a running offence. I am curious for the next evolution. What say you?

  3. Noah Brown has been a dependable clutch target for JD5. He is also is a good blocker. As far as I can see, he has not missed much injured, except in Preseason. He adds depth. Not sure why all the shade thrown.

  4. Noah Brown is a strong third receiver for us this year. Along with his regular skill set, he has a knack for drawing pass interference calls, even while battling injuries. Last season, he ranked among the top five receivers in that category, drawing at least six flags. On average, those penalties result in more than 15 yards each.

  5. It's a damn shame Noah can't seem to shake the injury bug,but like B Mitch says,the most important ability is availability. As far as Cosmi is concerned,I don't think they need to rush him back cause the O line is playing damn solid right now so let his knee come to him so he's 100%,or damn close to it anyway. I'd rather have him for the push toward the possibility of playoff contention than have him back just to have him back

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