The Washington Commanders were easily the biggest surprise of the 2024 NFL season. Expectations weren't very high a year after drafting second overall, but the Commanders ended up in the NFC Championship Game, in no small part due to who they selected with that No. 2 pick.
Jayden Daniels ran away with Rookie of the Year honors. Now, he is slated for the MVP debate in year two. One naturally worries that we might be getting carried away with the expectations for Daniels, but the production last season was off the charts. The Athletic ranks Daniels as the sixth-best QB in the NFL, trailing only the "Big Four" of Joe Burrow, Lamar Jackson, Josh Allen and Patrick Mahomes plus a favorite of all football sickos in Matthew Stafford.
This Commanders team is viewed by some as the primary challenger to the Philadelphia Eagles in the NFC. So, that's why their 48-18 loss to the New England Patriots in the preseason opener was such a shock. It left a lot of fans, both in Washington and around the league, a bit confused. Daniels did not suit up and we shouldn't really take stock of preseason outcomes, but Washington's primary weakness was laid bare.
Commanders need to target Amari Cooper for emergency WR help
Washington's receiving corps needs a lot of work. Daniels is spectacular, but quarterbacks are only as good as their supporting casts, at least to a certain extent. Daniels is a meticulous and efficient signal-caller with a unique ability to improvise on the move, but the Commanders will fall short of Super Bowl-level expectations if the wide receiver room isn't up to snuff.
The lackluster WR play in Washington has been a common theme throughout training camp. With All-Pro wideout Terry McLaurin engaged in a hold-in (and a trade request), the Commanders are left thin in the pass-catching department. Newcomer Deebo Samuel has generated positive reviews out of camp, but there's very little around him. Washington has a lot riding on the development of unproven youngsters like Luke McCaffrey and Jaylin Lane.
While there are better than even odds that McLaurin and Washington eventually settle on a new deal, there is enough uncertainty to merit the pursuit of an established free agent like Amari Cooper. Even if he ends up as WR3 or WR4, that is a significant boon for the Commanders. Cooper's prime has long since passed, but he put up 547 yards and four touchdowns last season between Cleveland and Buffalo, averaging 12.4 yards per catch. There's still something left in the tank.
Commanders need experienced WRs around Jayden Daniels
For all his innate talent and supernatural poise, Daniels is still a young quarterback learning the ropes at the NFL level. His partnership with McLaurin last season was essential to Washington's offensive explosion. The veteran wideout notched 1,096 yards (his fifth straight season with 1,000-plus yards) and 13 touchdowns. McLaurin's age has been a contentious topic as Washington mulls a potential long-term extension, but age is a valuable commodity, even if the Commanders need to worry about an imminent decline.
McLaurin has been around the block. He's a polished route-runner who knows the ins and outs of NFL defenses like the back of his hand. That dependability made it easy for a young Daniels to step in and operate with confidence, knowing that McLaurin will always be in the right spot. Cooper, again, is on the decline, but he's a sharp, well-learned NFL star. He can bring a similar sense of certainty to the Commanders wide receiver room.
Samuel is a utility wideout at this point in his career. He will line up all over the field and run a variety of routes (or even designed runs), but he's not a workhorse, No. 1 target. McLaurin still is, assuming he sticks around. But adding Cooper for cheap as another vertical threat opposite McLaurin — with younger receivers on the come up, learning from a trio of highly accomplished vets — feels like the ideal setup for this Commanders offense as it attempts to level up.