Commanders Stock Report: Jayden Daniels' Playmaking Shines While Dan Quinn’s Stock Keeps Falling

The Washington Commanders got several key players back, including Jayden Daniels, Terry McLaurin, Sam Cosmi, and Rachaad White, for their game against the New York Giants this past weekend. Those returns meant some other players saw their roles diminish as they got fewer opportunities.

Keep in mind this post is about players moving in a better or worse direction this season, not just what happened in Sunday's game. Washington had one of the most disappointing game endings in recent memory, but that doesn't mean everyone's stock went down with it.

With the Commanders' number one receiver returning against the Giants, some wondered about what Antonio Williams' role might look like moving forward. Put that worry aside: his snap share jumped from 37% in Week 1 to 49% in Week 2, then rose to 69% in London, when McLaurin sat, and then 68% against New York this past Sunday. The season-long opportunity he's been getting has grown, and this week's snap count shows his workload held steady. He caught all three passes thrown his way for 31 receiving yards against New York. While McLaurin didn't play 100% of the snaps, Williams' role isn't diminishing, which is a good sign; Diggs' eventual return will be the next test.

If there was one name I wanted to see with more snaps next to it in Week 5, it was Chig Okonkwo. His offensive share increased from 58% in London to 71% against New York. His production jumped: he caught four passes for 60 yards, all in the first half. Looking back at what the entire room had coming into this game, 10 catches for 65 yards, Okonkwo almost eclipsed that yardage total by himself.

Sonny Styles and Frankie Luvu each played all 89 defensive snaps against the Giants, with Styles finishing with 13 tackles (one for loss) and one pass defensed. Luvu added nine tackles and a quarterback hit.

With Jayden Daniels back at the helm, the offense moved the ball as he completed 17-of-25 passes for 199 yards and added 103 rushing yards, with touchdown runs of 38 and 26 yards.

On Sunday, Bill Croskey-Merritt had 11 carries for 82 yards and a 33-yard touchdown, for 7.5 yards per carry as his production took a clear step forward even if his snaps took a step back.

Josh Conerly Jr. is an offensive lineman who has clearly improved from last year. Conerly played all 62 offensive snaps Sunday against the Giants and has seen his Pro Football Focus pass-blocking grade improve from 57.8 last season to 66.3 this year, and he's yet to give up a sack.

Against Seattle, Kain Medrano played 44 defensive snaps, got the 50-yard pick-6, and made a huge impression. Last week, that dropped to 21 snaps in London, then one against the Giants Sunday. The London drop came because Frankie Luvu returned to the lineup; this week, it was because the staff had tons of confidence in their starting pair of Styles and Luvu.

The staff hoped Austin Ekeler, a veteran presence, would spark the backfield, but his snaps dropped from 17 in London (27%) to six snaps (10%) against New York, mainly because Rachaad White returned and played 37 snaps (60%).

In a nasty trend that keeps showing its face, Washington allowed just three first-half points, then 24 after halftime. The Giants scored touchdowns on their final three regulation possessions.

The entire offense, including the coaching staff, is to blame for the end of the game against the Giants. The situation began on White's final run with 55 seconds remaining, moving Washington to the Giants' 24, comfortably within rookie kicker Drew Stevens' range. The next snap didn't occur until 12 seconds remained—43 seconds between snaps. Daniels was then sacked, and the time expired before Washington could spike it or get a kicker on the field.

The issue is that the plan, substitutions, and communication are all on the coaching staff; Quinn has acknowledged this in both of his press conferences since. At the same time, Daniels and the offense needed to execute with urgency in that situation, and they didn't. Daniels should have known they didn't have any timeouts, but ultimately that falls back on coaching to keep him informed when they're in communication with him through the speaker inside the quarterback’s helmet until the audio cuts off when the play clock reaches 15 seconds. "With about 56 seconds, we hand it off to Rachaad White, and it took entirely too long from there on to execute our strategy from subbing to clock awareness to clocking the ball," Quinn said Monday.