Washington Commanders Notebook: Kingsbury's Offense and Jeff Driskel Goes Deep

Notes from Day 15 of Washington Commanders training camp.

Jul 26, 2024; Ashburn, VA, USA; Washington Commanders quarterback Jeff Driskel (16) passes the ball on day three of training camp at Commanders Park. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports / Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports

ASHBURN, Va. -- Talk around the Washington Commanders lately has been varied, widespread, and in some cases a little overblown.

Take, for example, the concerns over whether or not Commanders rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels will slide when running in the NFL or take hits like he did in college. Of course, the answer is, both.

However, Washington offensive coordinator has already confirmed they coaching staff has focused on that point with Daniels, head coach Dan Quinn has spoken about it, and the quarterback himself has stated he understands the need to make smart decisions.

In practice we've seen Daniels practice being smart, by running out of bounds in situations defenders might hit him in a real game. But that's not all we see at practice that many on the outside aren't absorbing at this stage of the preseason.

READ MORE: Washington Commanders Rookie OT Named Team's 'X-Factor'

Jul 26, 2024; Ashburn, VA, USA; Washington Commanders quarterback Jeff Driskel (16) passes the ball on day three of training camp at Commanders Park. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports / Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports

QUICK TO JUDGE

It's no secret that media covering anything, but especially a professional sport, can be quick to judge. That rapid judgement doesn't always come in the form of negativity, but in the case of judging Kingsbury's offensive strategies two games into a preseason with a brand new rookie quarterback, that's exactly what's taken place.

https://t.co/njK1rQNOOO pic.twitter.com/z6DEAxLH6j

— Ian Hartitz (@Ihartitz) August 20, 2024

The conversation around how much Kingsbury is and isn't using motion and the variance in receiver Terry McLaurin's formation usage is catching on with some, and most of them are forgetting it's preseason and what you see is only what the coaches are willing to let you see.

On the practice field - where we're not permitted to chart and report these types of figures or fully describe formation usage - we can tell you that McLaurin is moving around, as is the offensive formation, enough that it shouldn't be considered something that just isn't going to happen in the regular season.

We won't go as far as to predict record-breaking numbers in motion usage or to say that McLaurin won't be the X receiver more times than not. But any claim to what Kingsbury's offense will be in 2024 is at best premature and comes across as a desire to have a 'told you so' ready to go should the coordinator's numbers reflect his past.

EYE ON THE TIGER: DAY 15

Jayden Daniels completed 67 percent of his passes on Wednesday and as he rejoined tight end Zach Ertz who didn't take the trip to Miami last week he looked for his veteran target early and often.

He also tucked the ball and ran multiple times while falling victim to practice sacks on a couple of other occassions as well.

Today, the completion percentage more closely mirrored the actual performance as he was inaccurate on some passes and nearly threw an interception that safety Jeremy Chinn is going to hate watching on tape later.

In his first practice after being officially declared the starting quarterback, his demeanor and deliberate nature didn't change, however, as the team prepares for it's last preseason game of the year.

PLAY OF THE DAY

The Play of the Day Saturday night against the Miami Dolphins was recorded by backup quarterback Jeff Driskel and in practice on Wednesday it was the same.

Although, this time Driskel did it with his arm and not his leg, connecting on a deep shot with receiver Bryon Pringle who had gotten behind cornerback Tariq Castro-Fiels for a big connection and what would have been a touchdown.

Driskel has had a strong camp as a lesser-known backup quarterback and has only seemed to improve while getting second-team reps with veteran Marcus Mariota still on the mend from a soft-tissue issue that isn't much of one, according to Quinn.

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READ MORE: Jayden Daniels Reacts to Being Named Washington Commanders Starting Quarterback

Stick with CommanderGameday and the Locked On Commanders podcast for more FREE coverage of the Washington Commanders throughout the 2024 season.

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