The spotlight with the Washington Commanders is firmly on head coach Dan Quinn and quarterback Jayden Daniels. Those two positions always receive the bulk of the blame when things go wrongly in the NFL.
But right now, the team’s offensive line can share a lot of the woes on that side of the ball too. Commanders insiders on social media began the bye week discussing the status of the team’s blocking in front of the franchise quarterback.
Quinn gave those insiders fuel for that discussion while speaking to reporters Tuesday. The Commanders head coach delivered a strong message to the offensive line as the team’s bye week started.
“I thought this performance was below the standard that we’ve set for ourself at offensive line,” Quinn said the offensive line in Week 6. “[We’re] going to continue to look and find the right combination.
“I wasn’t pleased with the standard that we have set for our group, and I don’t think we met that yet. We left ourselves short.”
When asked whether the pass protection or run blocking was the bigger issue, the Commanders head coach said both.
“The passing blocking always shows up more if there’s a hit or a sack,” added Quinn. “But if you’re really in sync, it’s both of them. Moving people off the line of scrimmage, establishing that.
“In the pass protection game, some of it is blitz pick up, some of it could be just a stunt or just pure pocket presence. So, to miss too many times on that, I wasn’t pleased with that.”
Commanders’ Dan Quinn Calls for More Offensive Line Combinations as Unit Continues to Struggle
According to Pro Football Focus, three of the team’s five starting offensive linemen played poorly in Week 6 versus the San Francisco 49ers. Starting right tackle Josh Conerly Jr. posted a 38.6 PFF grade overall, which included a 29.1 grade (out of 100) in run blocking. Center Lucas Patrick and left guard Chris Paul registered a grade below 51.
PFF isn’t the end all, be all. But it’s generally not good for more than half a unit to be that far under water in any reputable grading system.
On Wednesday, PFF ranked the Commanders offensive line 20th in the league through six weeks.
“Washington’s front five combined to allow 18 pressures, eight of which were either sacks or quarterback hits,” wrote PFF’s Gordon McGuinness. “Right tackle Josh Conerly Jr. permitted six pressures on 51 pass-blocking snaps, a mark that led the team.”
Commanders writer Chad Ryan posted a chart on X that showed Daniels has had, on average, just 1.5 seconds before the pocket has collapsed on him this season. That’s the shortest amount of time in the league.
It’s not the only issue. But the offensive line play is likely a big thing holding back Daniels and the team’s offense.
Unfortunately, though, Quinn could be compounding the problem. The longer the team doesn’t settle on one line combination, the longer the unit is likely to go without any chemistry or rhythm up front.
Entering Week 6, the Commanders were third in offensive line combinations according to Next Gen Stats.
But Quinn was very clear Tuesday. He won’t stop shuffling the offensive line until the unit plays a lot better.
Dan Quinn Puts Commanders Offensive Position Group on Notice During Bye Week