0-8 Start? NFL Network Analyst Predicts Tough Washington Commanders Season

Yikes.

Jeremy Brener | Jul 9, 2022

The Washington Commanders have the easiest strength of schedule heading into the NFL this season, but NFL Network analyst Adam Rank still believes the team will struggle. In a game-by-game breakdown of the team's schedule, Rank does not view the Commanders in a favorable light.

Despite facing the two worst teams in the NFL from a year ago in the first two weeks (Jacksonville Jaguars and Detroit Lions), Rank has Washington falling to 0-2 to start the season. Those two losses trickle into eight straight to begin the season.

Week 9 is when Rank believes the Commanders snap their losing streak, pulling out a win against the Minnesota Vikings.

To round out the season, Rank predicts just two more wins for the Commanders in Weeks 12 & 13 against the Atlanta Falcons and New York Giants, but has the team ending the year on a four-game losing streak to finish 3-14.

Rank's predictions eerily mirror the team's 2019 season, where the team started 0-5, fired head coach Jay Gruden, won in Weeks 12 & 13, only to lose the final four games of the season.

It's hard to see Washington fall into that path again with a better quarterback (Carson Wentz over Case Keenum), better defense (Chase Young over Matt Ioannidis) and better coaching.

A three-win campaign would be the worst of Ron Rivera's career and likely would put his job in extreme jeopardy. It would also signal to the franchise the need to truly hit the reset button and find a franchise quarterback in the 2023 NFL Draft.

Published Jul 9, 2022

JEREMY BRENER

Jeremy Brener is an editor, writer and social media manager for several Fan Nation websites. His work has also been featured in 247 Sports and SB Nation as a writer and podcaster. Brener has been with Fan Nation since 2021. Brener grew up in Houston, going to Astros, Rockets and Texans games as a kid. He moved to Orlando in 2016 to go to college and pursue a degree. He hosts "The Dream Take" podcast covering the Rockets, which has produced over 350 episodes since March 2020. Brener graduated in May 2020 from the University of Central Florida with a Bachelor's degree in Broadcast Journalism minoring in Sport Business Management. While at UCF, Brener worked for the school's newspaper NSM.today and "Hitting the Field," a student-run sports talk show and network. He was the executive producer for "Hitting the Field" from 2019-20. During his professional career, Brener has covered a number of major sporting events including the Pro Bowl, March Madness and several NBA and NFL games. As a fan, Brener has been to the 2005 World Series, 2010 FIFA World Cup and the 2016 NCAA National Championship between the Villanova Wildcats and North Carolina Tar Heels. Now, Brener still resides in the Central Florida area and enjoys writing, watching TV, hanging out with friends and going to the gym. Brener can be followed on Twitter @JeremyBrener. For more inquiries, please email jeremybrenerchs@gmail.com.