The Washington Commanders have been one of the most surprising teams in the NFL this season.
They finished with just four wins last season and generally weren’t expected to be much better once the 2024 campaign rolled around. However, they are 8-5 and control their playoff fate as they prepare to visit the New Orleans Saints on Sunday afternoon.
Washington rolled to a 7-2 record before enduring a three-game losing streak. The Commanders rebounded with a 42-19 home victory against the Tennessee Titans on Dec. 1 before having their bye last week.
“We needed some space to heal up and to get healthy,” Commanders first-year coach Dan Quinn said of the brief hiatus.
Quinn was optimistic that the time off allowed his offensive and defensive linemen to get refreshed.
“In December and January football, the line of scrimmage is really the thing that leads the way, both sides,” Quinn said. “So, to have these guys trending this way, at this time of year, and feeling better, that’s a big deal.”
Much of the Commanders’ turnaround can be attributed to the play of 23-year-old quarterback Jayden Daniels, one of the top candidates for Rookie of the Year.
The Sunday game will be a homecoming of sorts for Daniels, who played at LSU the past two seasons after transferring from Arizona State. He won the 2023 Heisman Trophy with the Tigers.
“I played football down the road (in Baton Rouge, La.),” Daniels said, “and I was blessed to go to a couple of (Saints) games. It’s going to be fun. The Superdome gets pretty loud.”
It will be a homecoming for Commanders cornerback Marshon Lattimore, who was acquired by Washington in a trade with New Orleans on Nov. 5. The four-time Pro Bowler missed the past five games because of a hamstring injury sustained while with the Saints, but practiced in full all week and will make his Commanders debut Sunday.
The Saints will take the field with a new quarterback. With regular starter Derek Carr sidelined due to a concussion and an injury to his left (non-throwing hand) sustained in a 14-11 victory against the New York Giants last week, Jake Haener will get the start against the Commanders.
Haener, who replaced Carr against the Giants, and Spencer Rattler, who was picked by former coach Dennis Allen to start three games when Carr was injured earlier in the season, split reps at practice earlier this week before Rizzi officially announced Haener as the starter on Friday.
“I feel like I earned it,” Haener said Friday. “I feel like I play with confidence every time I’m in the game. I feel like this week’s no different. I had a full week of prep. I feel great about it. My teammates believe in me, believe in what I can do. I’m excited to go out there.”
New Orleans is 3-1 since Rizzi replaced Allen, though it needed to block a 35-yard field-goal attempt in the final seconds of a sloppy performance in order to hand the reeling Giants their eighth consecutive loss.
“I’ve heard the narrative, ‘Well, you didn’t beat a good team’ — blah, blah, blah,” Rizzi said. “We found a way to win. It was a blocked field goal. That’s what we needed to win the game. We won the game.”
The Saints enter the weekend just two games back of the first-place Buccaneers, and they conclude the regular season with a game at Tampa Bay.
New Orleans will be without linebacker D’Marco Jackson (ankle) and wide receiver Bub Means (ankle).
Washington ruled out wide receiver Noah Brown (kidney) while listing as questionable wide receiver Jamison Crowder, who is on injured reserve due to a calf ailment but is back practicing. Kicker Zane Gonzalez (left foot) and defensive tackle Daron Payne (back) are also questionable.
