Commanders Veteran Guards 'Continue to Work' Before Season Opener

Andrew Norwell and Trai Turner are expected to make their Commanders debuts in Week 1.

Jeremy Brener | Sep 2, 2022

Commanders Veteran Guards 'Continue to Work' Before Season Opener /

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Washington Commanders

The Washington Commanders are set to debut a pair of new guards this season, but both of them have been around the block before.

Andrew Norwell and Trai Turner signed with the Commanders in free agency and are expected to be the team's starting guards. This isn't the first time the pair have had their career's paths cross.

Head coach Ron Rivera helped draft Turner in the third round of the 2014 NFL Draft while he was with the Carolina Panthers. Later that weekend, Norwell joined the team as an undrafted free agent.

Both players found success in Carolina. Turner made five Pro Bowls with the Panthers, while Norwell was named an All-Pro in 2017. Eventually, Norwell left in free agency to join the Jacksonville Jaguars, but the two find themselves as teammates once again.

The chemistry is down, the trust is there with Rivera, so there isn't much that needs to be built. However, both players were sidelined for part of training camp due to injury. Luckily for the Commanders, Rivera expects both of them to be back for next Sunday's season opener against the Jaguars.

“I think just continue to work, continue to get your conditioning in more so than anything else," Rivera said. "It's really just about the reps now just to get the conditioning aspect of it now.”

Norwell and Turner will hope to improve their conditioning and reps in the days leading up to their Commanders debuts.

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Published Sep 2, 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.