The hidden context behind the Commanders' offensive struggles vs. the Patriots

If you watched the Washington Commanders get dismantled 48-18 by the New England Patriots in Week 1 of the NFL Preseason, you may have felt you were watching a different team than you last saw just this February competing for a trip to the Super Bowl, and that’s because you were.

Shell of the Real Offense

Clearly, with quarterback Sam Hartman leading the offense, the Commanders are not the same team as they are with Jayden Daniels taking the snaps. But it goes further than that, and into an area of preseason football that we all know about, but sometimes lose sight of: the fact that offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury was utilizing a shell of his offense, not the full version of it.

Kingsbury’s system has often been called “Air Raid”, a spread system that relies on maximizing the entire field rather than just portions of it. This includes incorporating a dangerous Washington rushing attack, not just throwing the ball deep.

In 2024, Kingsbury relied heavily on Run-Pass Options (RPOs) according to Pro Football Focus, and a high percentage of play-action passes to keep defenses guessing and prevent them from locking in on strategies.

Frequent pre-snap motion was also used to create mismatches, while heavier offensive line groupings were employed as needed to help get the run game going.

All of this, along with a willingness to go for home runs on any given down and distance, created a potent offense that allowed Daniels to thrive within just his first NFL season.

Washington Commanders quarterback Sam Hartman (15). | Paul Rutherford-Imagn Images

By the Numbers: What Changed

Fast-forward to Friday night, where the offense Hartman operated was simplified by design. This is standard operating procedure in the preseason, where the goal is often personnel evaluation, not schematic complexity. In fact, teams go out of their way to not show as much of their real scheme as possible.

It’s a significant bit of context that has to be considered when judging the performances in the game, especially that of Hartman.

For one, the use of play-action from one year ago to Friday night was cut in half, and Washington used pre-snap motion on just 12.68% of its offensive plays compared to over 40% during the 2024 regular and postseasons combined.

There were no heavy lines used to help get the run game going, while the RPO game saw an increase, forcing Hartman to make more timely decisions than even Daniels had to in games last year, while having far less experience doing so at the NFL level.

When you combine these factors, a simplified scheme, new personnel, and a starting-caliber opponent, all of this created a challenging environment where struggles for consistency were predictable.

Context, Not Excuses

Does this excuse some of the simple mistakes made at times? No. And Hartman certainly didn’t want to hear any of it following the game himself, nor was he looking for ways to forgive his own play.

As outside observers, however, it’s important to contextualize everything we see and understand the framework in which it’s being seen.

Friday night, we saw an inexperienced offensive unit running a hollowed-out offense against a far more experienced defense.

Likely, we saw the same when the opposing units came onto the field as well.

“I would say there's really a standard that we want and when we nail it, I'll say it and you may not be able to control the outcome or the reps, but we can control our play style and I am certain that will look different,” head coach Dan Quinn said on Sunday, pointing to some of the parts of Friday night’s struggles that can’t be forgiven, only fixed.

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