Addressing key questions for Commanders ahead of rookie minicamp

Bohm and Harper lead the streaking Phillies to a sweep of the Nationals with 11-5 win

ASHBURN, Va. -- The Washington Commanders answered their biggest offseason question when they selected quarterback Jayden Daniels with the second pick in the draft. That, of course, led to another question: When will he start? And the Commanders have been clear that no timetable exists for that to happen. When he's ready, he'll start.

"It is not a given I'm a starter Week 1," Daniels said. "I've got to earn it."

That still leaves other on-field questions to be answered for Washington. Which is to be expected considering the Commanders finished 4-13 last season and changed coaches. Some uncertainties could be helped by rookies; others by the coaching change or by other players added.

Who starts at left tackle?

The Commanders released Charles Leno Jr., their starting left tackle the past three seasons, in March -- and he subsequently underwent hip surgery. But that left a void in the starting lineup at a key position. They re-signed veteran backup Cornelius Lucas, who has started 31 games for them the past four years. They have another veteran backup in Trent Scott, who has started 22 games in six seasons.

"I don't know if it's a hole in our view," new general manager Adam Peters said in March. "Those guys have started and have done pretty well."

Then they drafted Brandon Coleman in the third round; he was considered a prospect at either guard or tackle, but the Commanders view him as the latter. One NFL offensive coach said he thought Coleman could play either guard or left tackle because of his footwork and length. Of the 32 players at the scouting combine who were considered possible tackles, 26 were taller than Coleman -- but he ranked 10th in arm length.

Peters would say only that Coleman would "come in and compete" for a starting job.

"We certainly think he has what it takes to be a tackle in this league," Peters said. "He's got the feet, he's got the speed, he's got the strength, and he's got the intelligence and he's got the right mindset."

So, for now, Washington has one short-term solution in Lucas and perhaps a long-term one in Coleman. But what will happen this year? And will it be good enough to protect Daniels?

Coleman did not start playing football until his junior year of high school. He had primarily played basketball. He did start for three years at TCU, with 65% of his snaps at left tackle. His position coach, A.J. Ricker, said his best spot was left tackle.

"He's unbelievably strong and one of the most athletic guys I've been around and coached," Ricker said. "Watching him gain confidence is the biggest key. ... He's so athletic I think he'll be a great tackle."

But the question remains: When will he mature enough to start?

Washington allowed 65 sacks last season, though coaches said at the time around half could be blamed on quarterback Sam Howell's inexperience. The Commanders also attempted passes on 60% of their plays -- that doesn't include sacks or quarterback scrambles. With sacks, they would have attempted a pass 66% of the time. The Commanders signed a new starting center in Tyler Biadasz as well as a likely new starter at left guard in Nick Allegretti.

If the Commanders deem Coleman not ready or Lucas not a suitable starter, there aren't many options on the open market. At the league meetings, when asked if he was comfortable starting one of the veteran backups, Peters simply said, "Yeah."

Who will start at corner?

Washington appeared to be in a good spot entering last season, having added a first-round corner in Emmanuel Forbes to pair with two solid players at the position: Kendall Fuller and Benjamin St-Juste. But Forbes struggled, got hurt and later was benched; St-Juste did not play as well as in 2022, and Fuller was allowed to walk in free agency.

Opposing quarterbacks posted a 96.6 rating on throws of 20 air yards or more vs. Washington last season; only three teams fared worse. Also, the Commanders allowed an NFL-high 16 touchdowns on such throws; no one else allowed more than nine. That wasn't all on the corners as the safety play impacted that as well. But multiple players complained about confusion with various coverages, leading to those big plays.

Washington did add three veterans in free agency, though only one, Michael Davis, has been a full-time starter. The Commanders drafted slot corner Mike Sainristil in the second round.

"He'll be a great nickel," Peters said.

If that happens, it still leaves questions on the outside. At 6-foot-3, St-Juste has the length new coach Dan Quinn has liked in his past secondaries -- Davis has that as well at 6-2. But a big key will be if Forbes improves and becomes the ball hawk corner the previous staff envisioned when drafting him 16th overall.

Quinn said Forbes has "rare ball skills and return ability. That's his superpower. That's what makes him so unique."

The Commanders' coaches talked often last year about Forbes also needing to improve his coverage techniques. Their new defense likely will call for more man coverage, whether at the line or off. But they'll need Forbes to show what he did at Mississippi State when he intercepted 14 passes and returned an NCAA-record seven for touchdowns. He intercepted one pass last season.

"We had high grades on this guy; he has a high ceiling," said new secondary coach Tom Donatell, who scouted Forbes while with the Los Angeles Chargers. "This guy is a special athlete. ... You'll be able to find a place on our team if you can go get the ball."

How deep are they at receiver?

The Commanders allowed Curtis Samuel to leave via free agency after he had caught a combined 126 passes -- eight for touchdowns -- the past two seasons. They still have Terry McLaurin, who has surpassed 1,000 yards each of the past four years, and Jahan Dotson, the 16th overall pick in 2022. Dotson has caught 84 passes with 11 touchdowns in his two seasons.

The Commanders also have Dyami Brown, a third-round pick in 2021 who has caught just 29 passes in three years. Brown, McLaurin and Dotson all have good speed, and Washington's coaches all have said they want explosive downfield plays. It's an area Daniels excelled at in college.

They also signed Olamide Zaccheaus, who caught 40 passes two years ago in Atlanta but only 10 last season with Philadelphia, and re-signed veteran slot receiver/returner Jamison Crowder. Washington drafted Luke McCaffrey, Christian's brother, in the third round last month. The Commanders consider McCaffrey a slot receiver. He switched from quarterback to receiver in the spring of 2022.

"The whole first year that I switched to receiver I put so much emphasis on the fundamentals of the basics of route running and the basics of getting off press and doing that," McCaffrey said. "Then the second year I've kind of had the opportunity to put some things together."

To help the pass game Washington signed veteran tight end Zach Ertz and pass-catching back Austin Ekeler in free agency, providing underneath targets. The Commanders then drafted tight end Ben Sinnott in the third round. In offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury's final three seasons as Arizona's head coach, the Cardinals ran the seventh-most plays with two tight ends on the field. The Cardinals also ranked 11th during his four years in rush attempts, while Washington had the NFL's fewest rush attempts last season.

But to have a more explosive offense, they'll need Dotson to be more productive and receive solid contributions from McCaffrey. He offers good size inside at 6-2.

Peters said McCaffrey was skilled at "being able to get open and if he wasn't open, he was making contested catches. He moves so well. He moves like a guy who's maybe 5-10 in terms of his quickness. ... Seeing him get better and better throughout the process tells us that he's only going to get better."