The Washington Commanders travel to Arlington to face the Dallas Cowboys at the AT&T Stadium in Week 4. The Commanders are coming off an ugly 24-8 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles last week after failing to score a single point until the fourth quarter. Here are our Washington Commanders Week 4 predictions as they take on the Cowboys.
The Commanders will play a Cowboys unit that is now 2-0 this season sans Dak Prescott after a 23-16 victory over the New York Giants on Monday Night Football.
Honestly, it's difficult to enjoy watching Washington after how horrible they looked over the weekend, especially on the road. Dallas is far from flawless, of course, but the attack appears adequate with Rush at the helm, and their defense allows just 17.3 points per game. That is the eighth-fewest in NFL.
With that in mind, here are our four bold predictions for the Washington Commanders in their Week 4 game against the Cowboys.
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β Washington Commanders (@Commanders) September 29, 2022
4. Commanders offensive line allows five sacks
In a loss to the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 3, the Commanders experienced so many things go wrong. The most major one was probably because of their offensive line. Washington's o-line allowed 20 pressures, nine sacks, and eight quarterback hurries against a tough Eagles pass rush. They also had the second-lowest Pass Blocking Efficiency rating (74.5) from Pro Football Focus.
Unsurprisingly, it had a significant influence on the way QB Carson Wentz played against his former team. He only completed 25-of-43 attempts, finishing with an 11.4 QB rating, and his lone touchdown drive came in garbage time. Dallas, on the other hand, is coming off a strong performance on Monday Night Football in which their defense generated 25 pressures, 12 quarterback hits, and five sacks.
It presents a formidable test for Washington's front five in Week 4. In pass protection, Samuel Cosmi has been incredibly erratic, surrendering three total pressures in his first two games and six in Week 3. Trai Turner isn't faring any better at right guard, and the lone bright spot on this unit is left tackle Charles Leno Jr. If Washington can't improve its pass protection, particularly on the right side, Wentz needs to be ready for a bunch more sacks this weekend.
3. Terry McLaurin hauls in 4 catches for 80+ yards
Consider what Trevon Diggs accomplished in two games versus Washington last season. According to Pro Football Focus, Diggs allowed only four catches in 79 pass coverage attempts. This will be a difficult draw for Terry McLaurin, especially since Diggs appears to be playing in a more disciplined way this season. Last year, McLaurin had three receptions for 40 yards against the Cowboys' defense in two games, so it's logical to anticipate him to struggle on Sunday.
Washington, on the other hand, has a more varied receiving corps. Curtis Samuel is back and looking like the offensive weapon Ron Rivera depended on during his time with the Carolina Panthers. Meanwhile, youngster Jahan Dotson continues to impress on a weekly basis. It should help the Commanders' passing offense when Wentz has time to throw, but our focus will stay on McLaurin against Diggs.
The variety of weapons in the Commanders' receiving corps may also force Dallas' safeties to do zone coverage, which can potentially open the field up for McLaurin. We expect that McLaurin will be steady but not spectacular. He should get around four catches for 80+ yards.
2. Commanders secondary will allow 250+ passing yards and 3 TDs
The Washington secondary has a 59.5 percent completion rate against opposing quarterbacks entering Week 4. It appears to be a positive figure, but it loses meaning when you consider that this secondary has allowed the fourth-highest quarterback rating (104.6), the third-highest yards per attempt (7.8), and the third-highest touchdown rate (7.2 percent) so far this season.
On Sunday, the Cowboys might also welcome back Michael Gallup, giving QB Cooper Rush a trustworthy receiving combination of Gallup, CeeDee Lamb, and Noah Brown. What concerns Washington the most is that Kendall Fuller (134.7 QB rating allowed when targeted) and William Jackson III (152.1 QB rating allowed in coverage) have been liabilities this month.
If the Commanders can't stop Rush from passing for 250 yards and netting several touchdowns, it may be the end for defensive coordinator Jack Del Rio this season. To be honest, that looks quite likely.
1. Carson Wentz rebounds with 270+ yards and 2 passing TDs
Carson Wentz did not have his greatest game on Sunday. He was 25-for-43 for 211 yards and had one turnover. We already discussed his disgusting sack total, too.
Still, head coach Ron Rivera is unconcerned by Wentz's performance as they prepare to face the Cowboys in Week 4.
βI'm not worried about Carson,β Rivera told NBC Sports Washington. βCarson's going to bounce back. He's a very resilient young man. And I loved his press conference, accepting responsibility. He put it on himself and he tried to make sure everybody understood that this is a team game, we're all culpable. And I don't disagree with him. We are all culpable, myself included.β
Of course, Wentz has had some nice moments this season, but he was helpless against the Eagles pass rush. Looking ahead, the Cowboys have a similar stout front, so things might get nasty again this weekend.
In addition to how he played against the Eagles, Wentz had 337 yards, three touchdowns, and one interception against the Lions, and 275 yards, one score, and one interception against the Jaguars. He has also been sacked 15 times in three games, which ties him for the most in the NFL with Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow.
As such, we can expect he'll throw for 270+ yards in this game to go along with two passing touchdowns. Of course, he'll get sacked a bunch as well. It won't be pretty, that's for sure.
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