Commander Country

Commanders Need Rookie to Step Up vs. Buccaneers

The Washington Commanders are relying on one of their recent draft picks to shine against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Jeremy Brener

Dec 22, 2024; Landover, Maryland, USA; Washington Commanders cornerback Mike Sainristil (0) celebrates after the Commanders' game against the Philadelphia Eagles at Northwest Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-Imagn Images
Dec 22, 2024; Landover, Maryland, USA; Washington Commanders cornerback Mike Sainristil (0) celebrates after the Commanders' game against the Philadelphia Eagles at Northwest Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-Imagn Images / Geoff Burke-Imagn Images
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The Washington Commanders will need their rookie class to have an impact in their Wild Card matchup against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and that goes beyond first-round quarterback Jayden Daniels.

Second-round cornerback Mike Sainristil has slowly made himself a big part of the Commanders defense this season, and head coach Dan Quinn is counting on him to play his best against the Bucs.

“I see improvement, number one. And I thought we would see that, if you remember, I can't remember the game, maybe it was three or four games in when we moved him full time to outside corner and would we stay that, we were kind of just still learning our way about where we would feature some of the players. And he was one that I thought he would just put the work in and figure it out. And sometimes that's what problem solving is, right? You just figure it out. And he is somebody that's capable of that," Quinn said.

Sainristil and trade deadline acquisition Marshon Lattimore will be tasked with defending Mike Evans and rookie Jalen McMillan in an attempt to slow down Tampa's offense. If they can contain them, the Commanders could very well have a shot at winning on the road.

Kickoff between the Commanders and Buccaneers is set for 8 p.m. ET.

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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Jeremy Brener
JEREMY BRENER

Jeremy Brener is an editor, writer and social media manager for several On SI sites. His work has also been featured in 247 Sports and SB Nation as a writer and podcaster. Brener grew up in Houston, going to Astros, Rockets and Texans games as a kid and resides in Central Florida. He graduated from the University of Central Florida with a Bachelor's degree in Broadcast Journalism minoring in Sport Business Management. Brener can be followed on Twitter @JeremyBrener. For more inquiries, please email jeremybrenerchs@gmail.com.

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