Commanders backup shines after opportunity in Chiefs game

'Tough As Hell'

“I did see it was a hamstring injury, but I didn't see the way he finished; it wasn’t like he came out on the play,” Quinn said of Tunsil’s injury after the game. “You could tell it bothered him on the one. He was working like hell to try to get back; that’s no surprise. He’s tough as hell.”

When Tunsil went out, Brandon Coleman went in. A third-round pick of the Commanders in last year’s NFL Draft, Coleman began the year as the team’s starting left guard before eventually losing a competition with Chris Paul for the job, and had been inactive every week starting in Week 3 until this weekend. 

Good timing, too, because when Tunsil went down, Coleman was not only ready to step in, but eligible to do so.

'Ready for Anything'

“I've been there before last year, so I kind of just worked all week,” Coleman said of moving back out to tackle. “Got to go out there and play my game and just can't lose that step."

That desire to stay ready for anything the team might need from him drove Coleman to not only continue working on his interior offensive line skills, but also his abilities as a tackle, something that was also bolstered, he says, by getting tackle reps on the scout team as well.

“It's just also about polishing skills, you know what I mean? Obviously, I've been playing a lot of guard, so just making sure my tackle skills are up to date, just because you never know what happens... So just making sure I'm ready for anything."

“BC [Brandon Coleman] came in and played well,” quarterback Marcus Mariota said after the game. “That’s not an easy position to be in at any spot, regardless of the offensive line. When you’re playing a defensive front like this that creates movement, does a lot of games and twists, I thought he came in and held his own.”

Staying Together Through the Storm

In fact, Coleman played well, a big compliment considering just how much of a focal point you become when replacing a player of the caliber of Tunsil.

Another thing Coleman has experience with is Washington going through a three-game losing streak. Last year, it came more toward the middle of the season than this year’s, but the team came out of it better than they were heading into it. 

Perhaps, the Commanders can pull the same sort of butterfly emerging from a cocoon act this season. If so, Coleman says, it’s going to take every man on the roster. Something he learned in 2024 when that team went through the same battle.

“You've got to stay together, man. You can't start pointing fingers and separating... We win as a team, we lose as a team, and we're going to address everything as a team... So we're going to bounce back. I have no doubt about it." 

If the team has the ability to bounce back after being knocked down the way Coleman did on Monday night, then perhaps they have a chance to make good on the offensive lineman’s words.