Bullock’s Film Room (subscription)

Film Review: Jacory Croskey-Merritt vs Patriots

Croskey-Merritt didn’t exactly blow anyone away with his debut performance. He only played 16 snaps on offense and had seven carries for 24 yards, an average of 3.4 yards per carry. He also had one catch for eight yards, and another catch that was wiped out due to a holding penalty. So it’s a pretty small sample size to draw any real conclusions from, but we can evaluate what we saw. A couple of his early runs were doomed to fail due to missed blocks up front or the Patriots defense playing them well, but Croskey-Merritt did have a few nice hits.

This was Croskey-Merritt’s longest run of the game and it’s the one that has got many Commanders fans excited about what he could potentially become. The Commanders line up in the pistol with Croskey-Merritt behind quarterback Sam Hartman. Croskey-Merritt takes the hand off on an inside run and looks to work behind his offensive line, who all block to the left. As Croskey-Merritt secures the hand off, he’s quickly met in the backfield by a defensive end stunting inside of tight end Cole Turner. Croskey-Merritt is forced off his initial track to avoid the defender, slowing his run and making a small cut to give Turner a chance to wash the defender down the line.

Once he gets past Turner’s block, Croskey-Merritt spots a lane to his left and makes a cut to attack it. He shows his explosive burst, picking up speed off of his cut. He uses his momentum, combined with his contact balance, to run through an arm tackle from linebacker Christian Elliss. As he breaks through that tackle, safety Kyle Duggar comes down from deep to try and bring him down, but Croskey-Merritt has other ideas. He manages to use the arm tackle to slow him down and help him cut around Duggar’s tackle attempt, enabling him to break free of both tackles. Croskey-Merritt then bursts further forward to maximize the run before eventually being dragged down by multiple defenders for a nine-yard gain.

Washington Post (paywall)

Dan Quinn’s latest training camp wrinkle? Commanders vs. Commanders.

Tuesday’s practice will feature an intrasquad “game” with bragging rights at stake. “Ain’t nothing friendly about it,” linebacker Frankie Luvu said.

Quinn divided players, coaches and staffers into two teams — Burgundy and Gold. “Think of a joint practice,” Quinn said. “But it’s just one team.” They would split for every portion of the next two days, from meetings to stretching lines. On Monday, they jogged through plays, a dress rehearsal for Tuesday’s “game,” which will simulate a second quarter and a fourth quarter to maximize end-of-half scenarios.

“The first thing I asked DQ was, ‘Are we live?’” Reaves said. “Because it’s only one button for me. All in — the whole way.”

Quinn’s response: “Take care of the team.”

That could be Quinn’s overriding mantra for his approach to training camp. Quinn has a clear philosophy based on maintaining health. The Commanders practice at a quick pace but for less time than most other teams. Veterans receive days off. They rarely wear full pads and never tackle to the ground during training camp.

Other coaches believe in callousing players for the regular season. Most teams do live tackling for at least a few practices. The Commanders, though, believe in Quinn’s approach and don’t envision it affecting their ability to play with physicality.

Quinn’s training camp philosophy will create a gamelike setting Tuesday. It will happen on a backfield, between players that play for the same team. But there will be stakes. “Bragging rights for the rest of the year,” running back Austin Ekeler said. “A lot.”

The Athletic (subscription)

The rookie ‘gnat’ who has been one of the Commanders’ training camp standouts

One of the best plays in the Commanders’ mistake-filled, three-phase disaster against the Patriots on Friday night was one of the more basic man-coverage situations in football. A receiver runs a go route and the cornerback sticks with him, leaving no separation to catch the ball.

Yet, Trey Amos’s coverage of Mack Hollins on a deep ball was exceptional for many reasons, one of which has been lauded repeatedly by Amos’s teammate, Marshon Lattimore.

“He’s got some great technique,” Lattimore said after the Commanders’ joint practice with the Patriots last week. “Whoever taught him that, he’s really showing it out here.”

It’s the footwork and use of hands that have stood out, coupled with speed and instincts to know where the ball is going and how a receiver will move. Amos, a second-round pick just beginning his NFL career, does it all with polish, playing more like a veteran than a rookie.

“Just being a guy that disrupts timing with the receivers, just being a gnat — being everywhere the wide receiver goes and not being able to catch a ball. That’s the mentality I have,” Amos said Sunday.

Will Harris loves working in Washington’s ‘DB friendly defense’

“The system is super fun,” Harris said. “Obviously playing with great players left and right, you’ve got great players who have been playing at a high level for a long time on this defense, so it’s just iron sharpens iron. It’s inspiring; it’s tremendously humbling to come out here and lace it up with these guys.”

Aside from the scheme’s emphasis on pass coverage and supporting the run defense, Harris enjoys the amount of knowledge he has been able to glean from the defensive coaches and staff throughout Training Camp.

Harris feels the most impactful resource has come from someone on the other side of the line of scrimmage in Wes Welker. The former wide receiver-turned coach joined the Commanders’ staff in April as a personnel analyst for the front office and coaching staff.

Having faced a number of defenses throughout his 12-year NFL career, Welker’s extensive experience as both a player and coach is something Harris feels has been pivotal in changing the way he sees offenses.

“He’s done it at a high level for a long time, and he’s in the DB room giving us those perspectives as someone who went against DB’s for a long time,” Harris said of Welker. “So having resources like that, and being able to go to him and say, ‘Hey man, how do you see this?’ ‘If you were going against me, how would you attack me?’ Having a resource like that in the building in the DB room, that’s invaluable.”

Commanders Move On from Second-Year Linebacker

Hampton, who entered the league as a developmental prospect, had been working to carve out a bigger role on defense and special teams. However, his outing against the Patriots did not go as planned. Missed tackles, slow pursuit angles, and coverage difficulties drew the attention of coaches and evaluators. In the NFL, preseason performances can make or break a player’s chances of making the roster.

Performance in Foxborough Seals His Fate

Washington entered the matchup against New England with an emphasis on evaluating young talent. Most veteran starters were rested, giving players like Hampton an extended opportunity to demonstrate their progress from the previous season. Unfortunately for Hampton, the moment slipped away.

During his reps, Patriots running backs found space to run, and tight ends gained separation in short-yardage situations. In a league where every snap is scrutinized, such breakdowns can be costly. Hampton’s missteps, combined with the strong play of other linebackers in camp, left the coaching staff with a tough — but swift — decision.

If Commanders were having a competition for a 3rd-string QB, it’s over

The Commanders would prefer to keep two quarterbacks and use the extra roster spot somewhere else, perhaps on the offensive and defensive lines, where depth is constantly tested. While Mariota’s injury isn’t considered a long-term issue, it is something worth monitoring. Washington kept three quarterbacks last season because Daniels was a rookie.

If there is an actual competition for the No. 3 quarterback spot, Johnson clinched it on Friday, and likely before. That doesn’t mean the Commanders don’t want to keep Hartman and continue to develop him. He spent last season on the practice squad and could be there again in 2025.

Jon Bernthal balances lifelong Commanders fandom with ‘The Odyssey,’ ‘Spider-Man: Brand New Day’

As actor Jon Bernthal’s career blossomed, there was one part of his childhood he never relinquished: his fandom for the Washington football franchise. And that was evident while he was filming a movie in Morocco last fall. That’s when Washington Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels — playing with a broken rib — heaved a 56-yard Hail Mary pass to receiver Noah Brown on the final play of the game to stun the Chicago Bears.

“I went running through the streets of Morocco grabbing people,” Bernthal told a group of reporters after watching the Commanders’ practice Monday. Bernthal was born in Washington, D.C. and grew up in suburban Maryland. He was only 7 years old when the franchise won its first Super Bowl — and 16 when it won its last one. He has acted in 41 movies, including “The Odyssey” — the movie he was filming in Morocco last year — that will be released in 2026. He also will star as The Punisher in “Spider-Man: Brand New Day,” which will be released in July 2026. He has also appeared on more than two dozen TV shows — and will play The Punisher in an upcoming Disney+ series.

Regardless of where he is, Bernthal said he takes his fandom with him. “I’ve been all over this world making movies: Morocco, Ireland, Greece. All over North Africa,” he said. “No matter what time of day, I’m finding a way to watch those games, and over the years, it has been hard but right now it’s payback time. “It feels so good to be a Commanders fan. It feels like it was back in the day: ‘83, ‘84, ‘87, ‘92.”

Dan Quinn’s NEW Practice Plan | Commanders CUT 5th Round Pick!

Cowboys OG Tyler Booker was the only healthy first-rounder not to play in week one

Booker has had a solid start to training camp, but by no means has played at a level that should allow him to sit out all of the preseason action. After the 31-21 loss to the Rams, head coach Brian Schottenheimer spoke about his approach to the preseason and how things could change over the next two weeks. In week one, the Cowboys elected to not play any of their starting offensive lineman, which may have been the reason Booker was not in the game, but it is still odd that he was the only healthy first-rounder to not see action in week one.

With concerns regarding Tyler Guyton’s availability for week one and the lack of experience from Tyler Booker, the Cowboys offensive line will have it’s hands full in the first game when they face off against the loaded Philadelphia Eagles defensive line. We will see if Schottenheimer adjusts his game-plan heading into week two of the preseason to properly evaluate the roster before cutdowns start to happen.

The Athletic QB Tiers: Russell Wilson’s ‘magic is gone’

This year, Wilson sits in the fourth tier of Sando’s rankings. Here is what that means:

A Tier 4 quarterback could be an unproven player (not enough information for voters to classify) or a veteran who ideally would not start all 17 games.

Wilson is ranked 26th in the NFL according to the coaches and executives, which is at the top of the fourth tier, but still the fourth tier. He’s one spot behind Kirk Cousins (25th), and 10 spots behind 41-year-old Aaron Rodgers (16th).

In fact, Wilson is ranked three spots behind Daniel Jones’ 2024 ranking of 23 (Jones is 30th this year). Ultimately, they just don’t believe Russ can cook anymore, that his time in the sun is over and he should be put out to pasture before the end of the season.

“What he had that was magical about him — the ability to create plays on the move — is gone,” a defensive coordinator said.

“He can still do some things, but I think he is just declining. Some of the throws he was good at are not there for him anymore,” another defensive coordinator said. “I did not feel like he was ripping throws. Even his deep throws were like airball stuff, hoping George Pickens makes a play.”

I probably would have understood if Wilson was a bit slow operating the Giants’ offense against the Bills. After all, he’s new to Daboll, his scheme, and the offensive language. Instead, Wilson was very crisp in his play against Buffalo. He clearly knew where his answers were, what the goal of the offensive concepts were, and where to go with the ball. He didn’t get many reps, but he was on time, in rhythm, and his play helped out the offensive line a few times.

So is Russ at the end of the line and a low-end starter who is only an upgrade over the worst possible QB situations? Or were the coaches and execs surveyed reacting to a player who missed time with an injury (don’t forget, Wilson injured his calf in training camp), and has been repeatedly shoehorned into offenses that don’t really fit him?

Jon Gruden Wins Fight With NFL Over Email Leak Arbitration

The former coach has been fighting to keep his case against the NFL out of arbitration. The Nevada Supreme Court sided with him Monday.

The judges did not decide whether Gruden’s claims are true; rather, they said in their eight-page decision that the NFL could not send the matter into arbitration, which the league has pushed to do.

Gruden first sued the NFL and Goodell in 2021, weeks after his ouster from the league.

The seven-judge panel ruled 5–2 that the NFL’s policy that gives the commissioner full power to arbitrate a dispute “is unconscionable and does not apply to Gruden as a former employee.” The court said the clause lets the commissioner “arbitrate disputes about his own conduct — exactly what is at issue here.” The judges also found it “unconscionable” that the league can change parts of its constitution including the arbitration clause “at any time, and without notice.”

Gruden resigned as head coach of the Raiders during the 2021 season when emails leaked containing racist, misogynistic, and anti-gay slurs from his time as an ESPN analyst. The emails were sent to then-Commanders GM Bruce Allen over a seven-year period and uncovered during an investigation into the Washington organization. Gruden claims the league and Goodell intentionally leaked these emails, ultimately forcing him to resign.

The NFL has not provided a comment in response to the finding by the Nevada Supreme Court that the arbitration clause in the NFL’s Constitution and Bylaws is “unconscionable” — and thus unenforceable — as to former Raiders coach Jon Gruden.

Gruden’s lawyers have issued a statement to PFT.

“We’re very pleased with the Nevada Supreme Court’s decision, not just for Coach Gruden but for all employees facing an employer’s unfair arbitration process,” said Adam Hosmer-Henner of McDonald Carano LLP, the firm representing Gruden. “This victory further vindicates Coach Gruden’s reputation, and it clears the way to swiftly bringing him full justice and holding the NFL accountable.”

It’s likely if not inevitable that the NFL will file a petition for appeal to the United States Supreme Court. If the Supreme Court doesn’t take the case (or if it does and the NFL loses), it will be time for the case to proceed to discovery. And that’s when the NFL may throw money at Gruden in an effort to settle his claim that the league and Commissioner Roger Goodell leaked emails he had sent while working for ESPN to multiple media outlets.

Here’s the most important question: Will he reject any offer the league makes? A July 2023 ESPN.com article about the leaked emails that forced Gruden to resign asserted that Gruden hopes “to burn the house down.”

That can happen only if he first proves who, from a fairly tight circles of people who had access to the supposedly secret emails from the Washington investigation, leaked some to the Wall Street Journal for publication on a Friday and then, when that didn’t do the trick, leaked more to the New York Times on a Monday. At that point, things could get very interesting.