SNIDER: Commanders’ training camp will be compelling
Where will your eyes roam when the Washington Commanders open training camp? Oh, the places you’ll go.
Rookies report to Ashburn on July 18, with veterans arriving five days later. When fans appear on July 28, practice will feel like a new beginning thanks to the franchise’s biggest roster turnover since 1945.
The center of three rings always belongs to a rookie quarterback. Jayden Daniels is now on the clock before fans. Will “JD5” ring nonstop from the crowd like “RG3” hysteria during 2012 practices for Robert Griffin III?
Daniels looked steady throughout spring workouts. While there is still no contact with quarterbacks, those pass rushers get much closer. The defense becomes more intense as no one wants to look bad before the crowd. Every Daniels completion is a defensive failure. Reputations are on the line. So are jobs. It’s not a friendly competition anymore. Ashburn Syndrome will be tested as pressure mounts for Daniels.
In ring 2 is coach Dan Quinn. The newcomer’s free pass from fans is about to expire. Even preseason losses bring criticism. Will Quinn quietly work the sideline or does he play to the crowd? Predecessors have done both.
Quinn likes to be demonstrative and energetic. Fans want to see it, if only to believe that maybe this is the coach who can break the team’s generational malaise. Those with bigger reputations than the former Atlanta coach struggled in Washington. Marty Schottenheimer, Steve Spurrier and Mike Shanahan saw their worst of times in Ashburn. Even Joe Gibbs suffered a losing record in his second stint with Washington.
If fans are to believe in a turnaround, Quinn needs to show more than slogans and testosterone. Camp with real contact is a good start.
The third ring belongs to offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury, if only for following Eric Bieniemy. Last summer was Bieniemy’s first and only season locally. Coach Ron Rivera gave way to Bieniemy, who loved to bellow out curses and beat up his offense physically during practices.
How Kingsbury will operate in his first summer is a closely-watched question. Kingsbury may be the antithesis of Bieniemy – quiet, calculating – so fans want to see where his offense lives. Mostly, practices focus more on passing, but there are moments that will gleam insight.
Of course, there are sideshows. Who emerges as the prime runner – Brian Robinson or Austin Ekeler? How much is tight end Zach Ertz used? Who’s the left tackle, second receiver, third-down runner? This offense has much to decipher.
Defensively, all eyes are on linebacker Bobby Wagner. Another future Pro Football Hall-of-Famer passing through Washington en route to Canton. Wagner is remindful of Bruce Smith in impacting a young locker room mentally and still able to produce physically.
Linebacking that has been so lacking in recent years now has Frankie Luvu joining Wagner as solid newbies, while former first-rounder Jamin Davis gets one last chance to prove he’s not a bust. That trio could bolster a rebuilding defensive line and protect a young secondary. If linebackers are a hole in the defensive donut, then it’s another bad season.
Special teams even get a stage. Who’s the kicker? Kickoff drills are suddenly worth watching under new NFL rules.
If the Commanders are to go places this season, it needs to be forged quickly in the summer sun. If nothing else, practices won’t be the using boring couple hours. Who knows, they might even be fascinating.
