Commanders’ hidden weapon erupts at camp as Kliff Kingsbury finally lets loose

Most of Adam Peters' second draft class has made exceptional starts to their professional journeys. First-round offensive tackle Josh Conerly Jr. remains a work in progress, but everything is proceeding as expected.

Thursday's practice at training camp saw another first-year pro dazzle as Kliff Kingsbury finally unleashed his secret weapon.

There is a growing sense that the Washington Commanders have a steal on their hands with Jaylin Lane. The explosive wide receiver had to wait until No. 128 overall in the 2025 NFL Draft to hear his name called, which was disappointing. However, he may have landed in the best possible place to flourish immediately.

Jaylin Lane turned in a superstar effort on Day 7 of Commanders training camp

Lane has gifts that cannot be taught. He's got electrifying speed. His on-field vision is first-class, matched with outstanding hand-eye coordination capable of making a difference at all three levels of the field. This brings versatility and dynamism to Washington's offense, and the clues are starting to emerge regarding how the Virginia Tech product will be deployed.

Kingsbury isn't going to reveal everything before Week 1. Even so, the fact that Lane was getting work with the first-string offense told its own story.

According to those in attendance, the rookie got a couple of looks on jet sweeps. Getting the football into his hands as quickly as possible is the best way to maximize Lane's skill set. But he hasn't come into the Commanders to be simply a gadget option.

He's too good for that. Lane proved exactly why as practice progressed.

He's a superb separator with blazing speed, making him a dangerous weapon and difficult to stop when firing on all cylinders. Lane caught two touchdowns from Sam Hartman in team drills, one of which was a 60-yard bomb down the sideline that drew widespread applause from those in attendance. This came after the wideout brought in a score from Jayden Daniels in the red-zone portion of the session.