4 fatal flaws the Commanders must rectify during their 2024 bye week

There are bad days at the office, but this was a special team apocalypse. Any more outings like this could ring the death knell for the Commanders' playoff hopes.

Fortunately, Izzo's unit made partial amends against the Tennessee Titans by recovering a fumbled kickoff to set up a touchdown. However, replacement kicker Zane Gonzalez did miss a pair of field goals.

The special teams feasted on a Titans team quickly taken out of its comfort zone by the Commanders racing into an early lead. That won't happen every week, so the special teams must prove it can stay error-free and create some splash plays when games remain close.

Commanders must fix their run defense

Sometimes it's easy to get 2015 vibes about this Washington Commanders team. That vintage nine years ago also had an explosive offense capable of running up the score on anybody and earning a playoff berth.

The problem with Washington's squad during the 2015 campaign centered on the defense. More specifically, their inability to stop the run with any consistency whatsoever.

They were promptly run out of the postseason by the hardly run-heavy Green Bay Packers. They bullied Washington in the trenches, rushing for 141 yards and two touchdowns on the road to secure a memorable triumph.

This year's Commanders are headed for the same fate unless something can be done to fix a leaky run defense. Head coach Dan Quinn and defensive coordinator Joe Whitt Jr. are overseeing a group giving up 4.8 yards per carry. It's an unhealthy average that's the fourth-highest in the NFL. It'll also be a big problem in the postseason if Washington makes it that far.

The Commanders have also surrendered over 200 yards on the ground in two of their last six games. Counting those contests, this defense has allowed at least 100-plus rushing yards on all but three occasions this season.

Finding a remedy for the problem isn't easy. But make no mistake, Quinn's decision to bench former second-round pick Phidarian Mathis for journeyman nose tackle Carl Davis against the Tennesee Titans sent a message.

Coaches know the Commanders need bigger bodies in the trenches — linemen capable of absorbing double teams, filling gaps, and offering more pursuit lanes for linebackers and safeties to attack the run.

More internal solutions are in short supply while Jonathan Allen remains injured and faces an uncertain future. Nonetheless, Quinn and Whitt must make better use of the personnel they do have available to solve the biggest problem facing the Commanders.

Otherwise, their postseason title won't last long.

Changing tendencies in pass protection

Defeats to the Pittsburgh Steelers and Dallas Cowboys revealed a worrying trend for the Washington Commanders. Namely, how successfully defenses wrecked offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury's pass-protection designs with the blitz.

The specific problem relates to a tendency when dealing with pressure off the edges. Something described by Nick Akridge of Pro Football Focus.

Cowboys knew exactly how to attack the Commanders OLine. For weeks Washington's response to pressure was chip the edge rushers. Cowboys countered that by moving Parsons to the interior to prevent those chips on him then held those routes up and blitz the inside gaps.Nick Akridge, Pro Football Focus

Rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels took seven sacks against the blitz-happy Cowboys and Steelers. Some of those takedowns owed a lot to smart scheming by the opposition, as well as some inexperience on the part of the No. 2 overall selection in the 2024 NFL Draft. It's something teams will look to exploit moving forward unless the complication is rectified.

The broader concern is the number of sacks made possible because teams are on to how Kingsbury likes to build protection and react to pressure. Predictability can prove fatal for any team in the pros, but especially for an offense lacking elite talent along the line.

This group has done well overall throughout the campaign. General manager Adam Peters made some drastic changes along the protection in readiness for a rookie signal-caller's arrival. They became a cohesive group quickly and represented a significant upgrade on anything Washington's had in recent years. Improving their blocking concepts versus creative blitz packages is the next step for this unit.

Kingsbury needs a new plan for solidifying the edges. Preferably one with plenty of adjustment calls for Daniels to use whenever defenses show interior pressure.

The play-caller should recognize this during this reflection period over the bye week. Washington needs this to enhance once everyone returns from their extended rest period.

Commanders' over-reliance on Terry McLaurin

A smart adjustment from Kliff Kingsbury helped Pro Bowl wide receiver Terry McLaurin get back on track after some worryingly quiet outings versus the Tennessee Titans last time out. Most notably, his anonymous performance at the Philadelphia Eagles on Thursday Night Football.

Kingsbury's movement plan re-established the McLaurin and Jayden Daniels connection with a vengeance against the Titans. They combined for two touchdowns. While the positive output was welcome, some gaudy numbers only underlined how often Daniels looks McLaurin's way.

Putting together four 1,000-yard receiving seasons out of five meant McLaurin was destined to be Daniels' go-to guy. The problem is every team on the Washington Commanders' schedule knows the same thing.

Opponents like the Eagles made Daniels look ordinary by rolling double teams toward McLaurin post-snap. Keeping No. 17 on the move made a difference last week, but Kingsbury can't rest on his laurels in pursuit of maintaining offensive efficiency.

Instead, the man with the play sheet needs to make more use of McLaurin from the slot, where he could feast every week. Hiding the playmaker in bunch formations more often would also help.

What would help even more is finding another receiver Daniels can turn to whenever the former third-round pick out of Ohio State is bracketed. There aren't any obvious candidates. Not when prolific pass-catcher out of the backfield Austin Ekeler is dealing with a serious concussion that's landed him on injured reserve.

Ekeler's absence makes it more difficult for the Commanders to compensate for the lack of quality wideouts beyond McLaurin. Established pros Noah Brown and Olamide Zaccheaus have been inconsistent. Third-round rookie Luke McCaffrey is still developing his game and being used sparingly by Kingsbury.

One member of this trio must step up, or else Dyami Brown needs to finally deliver. Looking at his career trajectory since entering the league, that seems highly unlikely.

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