What disappointments emerged from the Washington Commanders’ grind-it-out victory at the Atlanta Falcons in Week 6?
The Washington Commanders went into Atlanta as a road underdog and put a stop to their three-game losing streak. Though they benefitted greatly from some of the most atrocious play-calling and game management you are likely to see this year, they did a lot of things right in getting back to .500 for the season.
But that’s not why I’m here. I do the disappointments story. And there were in fact, several things to be disappointed with, victory notwithstanding.
Here are the five things that disappointment me the most.
Terry McLaurin and Curtis Samuel – both of whom would qualify as veterans by this point – had good games. The Washington Commanders’ two young receivers – Jahan Dotson and Dyami Brown – did not.
The differences in age may seem small – McLaurin and Samuel are 28 and 27 respectively, while Dotson and Brown are both 23 years old – but that is an eternity in the life of an NFL receiver.
Simply put, the two youngsters have to step up their games.
McLaurin was targeted 11 times and caught six balls. Samuel caught all four of his targets including a second-quarter touchdown. Meanwhile, Dotson and Brown each dropped the only pass thrown their way.
Brown’s came on the first drive of the game and it was a difficult catch in part because one of his arms was being held. But this is the second straight week he has been unable to make a big play when it was there for him.
Dotson’s was more egregious. It was an outright drop on a play that may have resulted in a touchdown. Though he did draw a holding call later, Dotson was invisible for most of the game.
This appears to be causing Sam Howell to become overly reliant on McLaurin. He is the Commanders’ best receiver, and he should always be involved. But he should not be getting more targets than every other receiver combined, as was the case against Atlanta.
