Ref the District

In what is the last day for fans to attend training camp in Ashburn, Virginia, the team practiced without pads.  The offense was sluggish as Sam Howell threw multiple interceptions and the receivers dropped double digit passes.  On the other side of the ball, Emmanuel Forbes was all over the field and continues to impress.

On the injury front, Logan Thomas, Danny Johnson, Chase Young, Andrew Wylie, Saahdiq Charles, Charles Leno, Jonathan Allen Phidarian Mathis, Kendall Fuller and Dax Milne are all dealing with various injuries although none of them seem serious.

After practice, Sam Cosmi had some choice words for the Ravens 24 game winning streak.

All of that and more on the Daily Commanders Update for 19 August, 2023.  Let’s gooooooo!

To the surprise of absolutely nobody, Ron Rivera named Sam Howell as the starter for the 2023 season.  We break down what Ron said and why it’s significant. Sam said in a press conference how the O-line is coming together and we commented on just how poised he is off the field as well as on it.

Charles Leno, Logan Thomas, Danny Johnson, and Chase Young all did not practice today. Cole Turner also left practice with an injured finger. We talk about how significant these injuries are and if they will have long term affects.

We also watched some clips of Sam Howell to Terry McLaurin.  The video runs on a loop in all our heads!  And what’s up with the Sam Howell tracker?

All of that and more on the Daily Commanders Update for August 18th, 2023.  Let’s gooooooo!

However, there’s always news surrounding the organization.  The team announced the return of Anheuser-Busch as the teams’s exclusive beer partner.  The beer company famously quit their partnership almost exactly 1 year ago as corporate sponsors were running away from previous owner Dan Snyder.  This follows the announcement of Verizon as a partner earlier this week as Josh Harris and his team have been building positive business relationships with the organization.

The team also announced their jersey color for their home games this year to include the final 2 preseason games.  They will wear burgundy 5 times, white 3 times and black twice.  Will be interesting to see if they mix and match pant colors this year which they did not do last year.

And finally there’s still questions as to why Ron Rivera has not announced Sam Howell as the starter for the season. We look into the psychology of why that is and if it’s possible that will happen this weekend.

All of that and more on the Daily Commanders Update for 17 August, 2023.  Let’s goooooo!

Cool Down: If joint practice isn't enough to get you going, the Ref the District team goes over what we can expect from the Washington Commanders on Monday Night Football against the Baltimore Ravens. This second preseason game will be the biggest test for the team before they start to settle the roster.

Game: These joint practices have been full of everything. You have Terry McLaurin and Jahan Dotson cooking the Ravens' defensive backs, Emmanuel Forbes looking like the real deal, and Sam Howell further cementing himself as QB1. Don't forget the brawls! These teams are feisty. Ref the District has all the happenings for you right here.

Warm-up: Ref the District gives the latest on the Washington Commanders injuries and news. They breakdown how they feel those injuries will impact the team's success.

In a testament that the team is buying into the coaching and leadership of the organization, the Washington Commanders were ready as soon as practices started.  Sam Howell was sharp early and the receivers were cooking the Ravens secondary.  Terry McLaurin, Jahan Dotson and Curtis Samuel took turns abusing their defenders as Sam Howell continually fed them on time and accurate throws

A few surprises as Efe Obada took first team reps at defensive end in place of Chase Young who sat out as a precautionary measure.

There were more than a couple fights as things got feisty as practice continued in the 90+ degree heat and humidity as cooler heads prevailed as both head coaches were very satisfied with the practices between the teams.

Before getting to the bulk of today’s practices, we looked back at the number of drop backs Sam Howell had against the Cleveland Browns. He ended with the most of any presumptive starter in the entire slate of games.

Once practice got underway, a few players got nicked up as Antonio Gibson and Sam Cosmi dealt with minor injuries while Logan Thomas, Phidarian Mathis and Benjamin St. Juste all sat out practice with injuries.

We checked out some video from today’s practice while also breaking down what we expect to see against the Ravens in the 2 joint practices starting tomorrow.

All of that and much more on the Daily Commanders Update for 14 August.  Let’s goooooo!

In the jog-through, Jamin Davis and Jahan Dotson shined pretty heavily. Well as much as you can with such an easy practice.

On the injury front, Saahdiq Charles returned to practice while Logan Thomas did not.  Also, Chase Young and Phidarian Mathis both started in team drills before shutting it down out of an abundance of caution.

After another practice on Monday, the team heads to Baltimore for 2 days against the Ravens.  We preview what to expect and why these types of practices are so important.

There were many positives, regardless of the score.  After a rough start, the first team offense got their act together and put together an impressive scoring drive capped off by a touchdown pass by 2nd year quarterback Sam Howell to 2nd year receiver Jahan Dotson.

The 1st team defense bent bud did not break on their only series as they stopped the Browns on 4th and goal from the 1.

Overall we should be pretty pleased.  Owner Josh Harris stood in the rain with fans to watch the game and Head Coach Ron Rivera rewarded him with a game ball in the locker room after the game.

We break it all down on the Day After Reckoning.  Let’s goooooo!