Commanders Mailbag: The Bigger Concern With Jayden Daniels’ Return

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The Commanders will play host to the New York Giants this week at Northwest Stadium in Landover, Maryland. This week’s mailbag questions focus on protecting Jayden Daniels as he returns from his elbow injury and what Daronte Jones can change to fix Washington’s second-half defensive struggles.

With Jayden Daniels coming back from the elbow injury, should the Commanders cut back on his designed runs against the Giants?

Question via Stanley M on Facebook

It's important to understand the difference between designed runs and scrambling when needed. Washington was already using less of the read option with Daniels than you saw with Marcus Mariota. What makes that hard to see is that when plays broke down, Daniels was moving around to extend the pocket, and yes, taking off when needed. But that's different from what Kliff Kingsbury was doing with Daniels in the shotgun and no-huddle. David Blough has him running a more traditional offense that allows for him to move once the play breaks down.

With that in mind, he was running with the ball more than I would have liked before the injury, but he was also doing things to protect himself: mainly sliding, going out of bounds when necessary, and avoiding hits at all costs. He was injured on a freak no-contact play when he came from under center after guard Chris Paul stepped on his foot. He wasn't playing with no regard to getting injured; it just happened.

What worries me more with Daniels is other teams targeting the arm as the pocket collapses. We already know he will leave the pocket, injury or not; the question is how well he can hold onto the ball and still protect himself outside the pocket. He looked a bit uncomfortable handing the ball off in practice with that brace on, but I don't think it will change much about how they use him otherwise. Blough said Thursday, "He’s full go."

Jayden Daniels in action. Note: he did catch the ball with two hands later. Also took snaps again. As he has been doing since last week. pic.twitter.com/pQsD8Gm5L8
— John Keim (@john_keim) October 9, 2026

Why does Washington’s defense keep struggling after halftime, and what can Daronte Jones change to fix it?

Question via Cindy C. on X

Seems like a question we've been asking for years about several different defensive coordinators. Joe Gibbs mastered the second-half adjustment; Ron Rivera stunk at it. Let's hope Daronte Jones finds the end of the stick that doesn't get him fired, since there are multiple paths to fix issues depending on what team you're playing.

First things first, that unit is giving up 17.8 second-half points per game, which is currently tied for worst in the league. Jones pointed to conditioning and focus when asked about the second-half struggles Thursday. He used the example of a player expecting to play 25 snaps and ending up playing 40. “We can't let things out of our control be a determining factor,” Jones said.

He has his work cut out for him, with missed tackles and assignment mistakes plaguing the defense through the first four weeks. If an opponent keeps winning the same matchup after halftime, Jones needs to change the coverage or give that defender safety help. The players still have to execute those changes on the field. Even the right defensive call won't get Washington off the field if someone misses a tackle or blows an assignment.

I expect Jones to send the house at Jameis Winston this weekend. The test comes when New York adjusts to that pressure. Jones has to give Winston a different look, and the players have to handle their assignments even if they're playing more snaps than expected. Making Winston uncomfortable early won't mean much if Washington falls apart after halftime.

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