Quinn also pointed to the pass rush’s role in eliminating explosive plays. Despite now having a top-tier player up front, the Commanders have managed to hold their own against offensive lines. Their committee approach to the group led to nine sacks, which was tied for sixth in the league.
They ran into problems against the Falcons, who are now ninth in pass block win rate following Sunday’s game. Quinn said the front could have used more stunts to create more pressure on Michael Penix Jr., who had a time to throw average of 2.7 seconds. Even more concerning is that Penix had a 2.99 average when under pressure, according to Pro Football Focus.
“I thought early on I thought they did a nice job of getting rid of the ball quickly to get intermediate throws to go,” Quinn said. “But the ones that are down the field, those are the ones that we’ve got to capitalize on.”
And the players know those numbers need to improve, particularly with Justin Herbert, who has a completion rate of 76.5% when kept clean, next on the schedule.
“We’ve got to figure out what we’re doing wrong and get it right,” said defensive end Dorance Armstrong.
The team isn’t panicking with 13 games left in the season. They know they have the skill set to fix the errors and limit the explosive plays. Although .500 certainly isn’t the best scenario, it doesn’t mean any of their hopes for the season are lost. They’re also aware that if they want things to stay that way, there’s no time to waste.
“All of us have to understand that no matter who’s out there the things we struggle with are the things we’ll continue to see until we learn from them,” said safety Jeremy Reaves. “We have to harp on those things, harp on the small things — the eye control, the gap discipline, how we communicate on the back end. They all add up.”