Daily Slop – 12 Apr 25 – Thirty minutes one-on-one with Commanders GM Adam Peters

A collection of articles, podcasts & tweets from around the web to keep you in touch with the Commanders, the NFC East, the NFL and sports in general, and a sprinkling of other stuff

Commanders links

Articles

Sports Illustrated

If Kliff Kingsbury had left the Commanders, Dan Quinn had a plan

“It was part of the interview here, I told (managing partner) Josh Harris, we were going to have a deep crew because I expect us to do well, and when we do, people are going to leave. …(And) I’d rather promote from within,” Quinn said in an appearance on the Glue Guys Podcast. “So we’ve got some heavy hitters on our staff that stayed when they could have left, even this year. And that really made me happy knowing that they had some unfinished business here. And that made me happy to know that if they had left, there were other people that were ready for that too.”

“I can say now that I’m in the 2.0 version of my head coaching spot, the coaching staff that I came in with in Atlanta was stronger than the one that I left with. And that’s a bad thing,” Quinn said. “I didn’t do a good enough job of working the succession plan of who should be next into this spot and who should be next into this spot. And I’m not taking a shot at anybody. I’m saying the only shot taken there is me. And so the development of coaches is just as important as the development of players.”

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Commanders.com

Noah Brown ‘completely ready to go’ for Commanders

[T]he veteran wideout is returning to the Burgundy & Gold, about a month removed from being cleared by doctors, and excited to have an even greater impact.

“I’m just training and taking the offseason…as if I finished the season healthy,” Brown told reporters after re-signing with Washington on a one-year deal. “I’m completely ready to go.”

Brown’s kidney injury occurred in Week 13 against the Tennessee Titans — a game the Commanders won handedly, 42-19, and broke their three-week losing skid before their bye week. Brown initially thought that he had gotten the wind knocked out of him and was warming up to get back on the field when he realized that it could be something more serious.

Brown went to the locker room and did not return to the action. About a week later, head coach Dan Quinn said Brown would likely miss the rest of the season with a “significant” internal injury. Brown described the weeks after as “a rough time for me” but added that it wasn’t the first time he had to miss extended time with an injury.

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Washington Post (paywall)

Washington signs QB Josh Johnson to a one-year deal

The 38-year-old veteran returns to provide depth and competition behind Jayden Daniels and Marcus Mariota.

Johnson adds depth to Washington’s quarterbacks room behind Jayden Daniels and Marcus Mariota and competition for the third spot with Sam Hartman, a second-year undrafted quarterback who spent much of last season on the practice squad. (The team did not re-sign former third-string quarterback Jeff Driskel in free agency.)

He has been with a league-record 14 NFL teams — five multiple times — and played in both the XFL (2020) and the United Football League (2012). His return to Washington is the 25th time he has changed pro teams.

Johnson, who will turn 39 in May, first signed with Washington in 2018 after the team lost Colt McCoy and Alex Smith to season-ending injuries. After taking over for Mark Sanchez late in a blowout loss to the New York Giants, Johnson started the final three games of the season, earning his first win against the Jacksonville Jaguars. Washington’s playoff hopes that season ended with losses in its final two games.

Johnson has started only one game since he left Washington — he threw for 304 yards and two touchdowns with an interception in place of Lamar Jackson in a Baltimore Ravens loss to the Cincinnati Bengals in 2021 — but spent time with five franchises. Twice in that span, he signed with the San Francisco 49ers, when Commanders General Manager Adam Peters was their vice president of player personnel.

Johnson already has some ties with the new group, beyond Peters. He played with assistant quarterbacks coach David Blough on the Detroit Lions in 2019, and Jim Harbaugh coached both Johnson (San Diego) and Commanders quarterbacks coach Tavita Pritchard (Stanford) in college.

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Commanders Wire

Commanders work out All-American kicker

Despite re-signing Zane Gonzalez for next season, Washington worked out top kicking prospect Andres Borregales earlier this month. Borregales made 18 of his 19 field goal attempts during his final season at Miami, including a long of 56 yards.

Borregales isn’t the only top kicker prospect the Commanders worked out. According to Justin Melo of The Draft Network, Washington worked out Florida State kicker Ryan Fitzgerald. Fitzgerald also said he’s had workouts with the New England Patriots and Baltimore Ravens.

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Chicago Sun Times

Caleb Williams: Bears were ‘annoyed’ by Matt Eberflus’ handling of Hail Mary loss

Eberflus said after the game that the sideline completions by the Commanders didn’t matter, even though an incompletion on the penultimate pass would’ve made it impossible for Daniels to throw into the end zone.

“How [Eberflus] handled it at that time, for that game, was, I think, one of the things that throughout the locker room people talked about and were annoyed by,” Williams told the magazine.

The Bears fired Eberflus the next month after another late-game gaffe in Detroit. The players were annoyed then, too. Cornerback Jaylon Johnson barked at the coaching staff after Eberflus refused to take a timeout as the clock expired.

Williams appeared on the cover of the “Mavericks of Sports” edition of the magazine wearing a pink-and-maroon rugby shirt and plaid overcoat. His comments to Esquire were the first time he has talked publicly about the players’ annoyance with Eberflus, though he said at Halas Hall three days after the Hail Mary loss that “right in that moment, you’re angry . . . you’re furious that you lost and you lost in that way.”

The Bears lost 10 games in a row during Williams’ rookie year — under Eberflus and interim coach Thomas Brown — before winning the season finale at Lambeau Field.

Williams told Esquire he was “so beat up mentally, physically [and] spiritually” by the late-season losses.

“When I got home, I got in my bed, I just dropped a few tears,” he said.

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Podcasts & videos

Field Talk: Washington Commanders GM Adam Peters

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Washington Commanders “Biggest” Hits of The 2024-25 NFL Season

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NFC East links

ESPN

Eagles current state of affairs: Free agency moves, draft prospects

The pain has been felt over the last handful of weeks through the departure of a number of veteran contributors. The Eagles traded starting safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson to the Houston Texans, released Pro Bowl cornerback Darius Slay Jr., and let defensive tackle Milton Williams, guard Mekhi Becton and edge rusher Josh Sweat, among others, walk in free agency.

Meanwhile, league sources confirmed tight end Dallas Goedert has been the subject of trade talks. The combination of his age (30), injury history and average salary of $14 million per season has the Eagles considering moving on from their leading receiver from this past postseason.

There also have been some additions, such as the signings of edge rushers Azeez Ojulari and Joshua Uche, cornerback Adoree’ Jackson and running back AJ Dillon to one-year deals. But it’s pretty clear heading into the draft that the Eagles have taken a step back from a talent standpoint so far this offseason, leading to a number of important questions for the defending champs, none bigger than: Do they remain in good position for a repeat?

Why are they parting with so many good players?

Budgeting for those future salaries meant making some tough decisions on players who helped deliver a Lombardi Trophy such as Sweat (four years, $76 million with the Cardinals) and Williams (four years, $104 million with the Patriots), who signed large contracts in March.

“If you look at our drafts from 2022 to 2024, we had eight starters in the Super Bowl from those drafts and zero of them have long-term contracts,” general manager Howie Roseman said. “As we stand right now, we have 20 picks in the 2025 and 2026 drafts. So, we are going to need some of those roster spots for younger players. We’re trying to balance having the best possible team we can have this year and also acknowledging that there is a transition with the middle to back of our roster and that we are going to have some younger players here.”

The Eagles currently have eight 2025 draft picks, including four selections in the fifth round.

They are projected to have 12 picks in 2026, including three in the third round, in part because of compensation picks expected to be awarded for the departures of Williams, Sweat and Becton.

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NFL league links

Articles

NFL.com

Buccaneers GM Jason Licht: ‘Leveled-out’ nature of 2025 draft class could lead to fewer trades

Tampa Bay Buccaneers general manager Jason Licht believes there could be less action this year.

“You can’t walk into it saying, ‘I am definitely looking to trade back,’ because you don’t know what’s going to fall to you. I do think this year is going to be — I could be wrong — you’re going to see maybe a little less people maybe wanting to move up and offering enough to make it worth your while just because the draft is pretty leveled-out at a certain point,” Licht said, via the team’s official transcript. “You might be able to get the same level of player in the second round as you can in the fourth round at certain positions, so I think you’ll maybe see a little bit less of that.”

Fewer high-end quarterbacks in this class might immediately curtail trades — will teams attempt to trade back into the end of the first round for a potential borderline signal-caller? Viewed as a meat-and-potatoes draft, clubs could have vastly different boards than other years.

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Front Office Sports

NFL’s Helmet Evolution Continues: Several More Models Are Banned

The league saw a historic reduction in on-field concussions last season. Accelerating improvements in helmet technology are seen as a critical step to maintain that momentum in player safety.

The league released the results of its annual helmet performance and safety study Friday, conducted with the NFL Players Association, and is banning seven additional models for next season. Three others have been moved to a “not recommended” category, but notably, all 10 models in question were deemed top performers by the league as recently as 2022.

Taking their place are a series of upgraded helmets that include more force absorption and additional customization for individual positions. Ten recommended helmet models now perform well enough that they are considered “Guardian Cap optional,” exempting players with those helmets from also using the caps during training camp and practice.

The results arrive as the league saw during the 2024 season its lowest recorded number of concussions, with a 17% reduction from 2023. The NFL’s move last season to the dynamic kickoff, made permanent at last week’s annual league meeting, and the reduced speed of player impacts in that play is a significant factor in the reduction of concussions. So, too, is the accelerating pace of helmet technology, as well as the increasing acceptance of the use of Guardian Caps.

“While we’re thrilled that we saw the fewest number of concussions ever in the NFL last year, we believe that based on equipment alone, we can see an enhanced ability to protect players this season,” Miller said.

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Discussion topics

Commanders Wire

Could the Saints call the Commanders after recent quarterback injury news?

If Carr can’t play in 2025, the Saints need a veteran quickly. Might they go after Aaron Rodgers as a one-year plug-in? Rodgers can still play, and the Saints might be interested, but do we know if Rodgers wants to play in New Orleans?

If the Saints are unable to get Rodgers, would they make an offer to the Commanders for Marcus Mariota? Mariota displayed last season that he can still play. He made several big plays in the win over the Panthers. In addition, Mariota frankly rescued the Commanders from an embarrassing offensive performance in the season finale against the Cowboys.

The Saints own the No. 9 overall pick in this upcoming draft. Perhaps the Carr injury forces the Saints to feel they need to select Colorado QB Shedeur Sanders with that pick? But would it be wise to give the team to Sanders in 2025? Is he ready to jump right in and start?

The Saints need a veteran quarterback unless they tank the season in hopes of landing a much better quarterback next offseason. Meanwhile, Mariota can still play, the Saints know it, and they might give Commanders GM Adam Peters a call. Peters might say, “What are you willing to offer me?”

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All aTwitter

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