Commanders Are 1-3-1, but the NFC East Has Left Them an Opening

The Washington Commanders are 1-3-1. Things look bleak: injuries are already ravaging the lineup, the team isn't playing where it needs to be, and it sits in last place in the NFC East. It's a lonely place: the basement. The only solace is that Philadelphia and Dallas are both 2-3, just half a game ahead of Washington. With 12 games left, the NFC East is still very much wide open.

New York leads the division at 3-1-1; Washington is two games back, but not very far behind the Giants in terms of where they are on the field. In fact, a strong argument could be made that if they'd gotten out of their own way for a bit, this conversation would be very different right now. The NFL’s tiebreaking procedures state that: "Tie games count as one-half win and one-half loss for both clubs." So there's that.

Even though Washington started the season losing to both the Eagles and Cowboys, Philadelphia has now lost three straight and sits at 2-3, while Dallas now has the same record after losing to Tampa Bay last week. New York is the only team in the division with a winning record, and they looked horrible in the first half against Washington before the Commanders found a way to tie.

So, while Washington visits San Francisco Monday night (Oct. 19), a place they haven't won since 2004, and then has the Week 7 bye, the Giants will host the Saints on October 18 and visit Houston on the 25th.

The very first game after the bye is in Week 8 against the Eagles. From there, Washington will play host to the Rams on November 8, then visit the Giants on November 12. That means two of their first three post-bye games are against NFC East opponents, where wins can turn the season around.

With the team 0-2-1 against their rivals, the rematches become the season's most important games. Washington can split the season series with a victory over the depleted Eagles, but can still win the season series with the Giants. Victories in both would set up a game with the Cowboys, who return to Washington in Week 18.

Winning all three remaining division games would move Washington to 3-2-1 against the NFC East. If Philly and Dallas also split their series and take wins off New York, that could put the Commanders in prime position. That can change quickly, though. If Washington loses Monday and New York wins both games before the Commanders return from the bye, the gap grows to 3½ games. Dallas and Philadelphia play each other during that break, so only one can win, but the Giants still have a chance to pull away.

The timing matters for Adam Peters, too. I know it's easy to get mad at the guy getting the groceries, but the trade deadline is November 10, two days before the Giants rematch. That leaves San Francisco, Philadelphia, and the Rams as Washington's last three games before the deadline. For me, those games need to give Peters a reason to add help. Being within reach in the standings is one consideration; whether this team can do something with that help is another.

Always remember, Peters is not in Washington with a golden ticket to serve Daniel Snyder's every whim; this is a different era of ownership with a group making decisions, not a tiny dictator on a perch he built to stand taller than others. The pressure is on Peters to put a winning product on the field yesterday, not next year. Make no mistake, he's feeling the heat just as much as Quinn, although he probably has a longer leash.

This team is beaten and battered, but it's not down and out yet, with 12 games remaining on the schedule. Don't get me wrong, they've already burned through any mistakes that come with a normal season and added a few more. I thought Washington showed enough against New York to make a run at this division possible. I also thought it should have won that game. That's the frustrating part: Washington has already let at least one division win slip away. Add in how things ended in Philly, and this season has turned on the smallest of margins.

The bye gives them time to address what's costing them games, but that work has to show up against Philadelphia. They've already lost to the Eagles once; they can't keep counting on everyone else's losses to make up for their own. Still, Washington has pulled off this kind of Monday night upset before, beating the unbeaten Eagles 32-21 in 2022, even if their all-time record in the Bay Area is 3-10-1.

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PHILIP HUGHES

Philip Hughes covers the Washington Commanders with a focus on daily news, film analysis, roster construction, player development, and the fan culture surrounding one of the NFL’s most scrutinized teams. A longtime sports writer and content creator, Hughes has spent more than 20 years building football audiences across the interwebs and following the daily beat of the NFC East. email: hailbng+si@gmail.com