Washington Commanders head coach Dan Quinn. Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports

A pessimist's guide to the 2024 Washington Commanders

By Bruce Ewing | Last updated Jun 17, 2024 11:43 AM ET

After another last-place finish in the NFC East, Commanders fans have every right to be pessimistic about their team. Here’s three reasons why Washington could struggle in 2024.

Dan Quinn

Quinn has 43 wins under his belt as former head coach of the Atlanta Falcons. But Ron Rivera had 76 wins with the Panthers before taking over the Commanders in 2020. Quinn won an NFC championship in 2016, like Rivera did in 2015.

Rivera’s career in Carolina ended badly with a pair of losing seasons in 2018 and 2019. Quinn had a pair of losing seasons before being released after an 0-5 start in 2022. Of course, he recovered as defensive coordinator in Dallas, posting a top-five unit in 2023, but Rivera had the league’s second-best defense in 2013.

In other words, while Quinn’s success with the Cowboys may be encouraging, it doesn’t erase his failures with the Falcons. Remember, team executives were high on the Lions’ Ben Johnson until the 38-year-old offensive coordinator withdrew his name from consideration. Did the Commanders really get their guy or are they settling for Ron Rivera 2.0?

Detroit Lions Ben Johnson let the Washington Commanders know he was removing himself from consideration when the Commanders were on their way to meet him. pic.twitter.com/yAjM5YXMGq
— NFL Rumors (@nflrums) January 30, 2024

Secondary

In Dallas, Quinn relied on cornerbacks like Da’Ron Bland and Trevon Diggs to shut down opposing offenses. In Washington, he’ll have underperforming players like Emmanuel Forbes and Benjamin St-Juste who helped the team’s secondary allow a league-high 262.2 yards per game.

After losing Kendall Fuller to the Dolphins, the team added free agent cornerback Michael Davis and drafted Michigan’s Mike Sainristil in the second round. Davis had a career-high 15 passes deflected in 2022 but was benched for multiple games in 2023 after allowing career highs of 13.8 yards per completion and nine yards per target.

Sainristil earned AP All-Big Ten honors last season as a converted wide receiver but projects as a nickel-cornerback in the NFL. He may have a nose for the football but how effective can a rookie be as the team’s third-or fourth-best option?

Austin Ekeler

Ekeler had just five touchdowns for the Chargers last year while averaging a career-low 3.5 yards per carry. More importantly, he matched a career-low by dropping 5.4% of targets while his 51 receptions were his fewest since 2018.

Ekeler may have led the league in touchdowns from 2021-2022 but he also had nine fumbles over that span. Last year he had five fumbles, the most of any running back. At 29-years-old, Ekeler is a year older than the Cowboy’s Ezekiel Elliott and like Elliott, may have little in the tank for 2024.

Bruce Ewing

Bruce Ewing is 183 pounds of twisted steel and Happy Meals. His work has appeared on Yardbarker, 5th Down Fantasy, Inside the Iggles and MSN. Give a Philly fan a break and follow him on Twitter/X at @fantasybruce.

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