Why the Commanders Defense Is Keeping Us UP AT NIGHT

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No matter how obvious the regression case was for last year's Washington Commanders, the quickness with which everything went sour was something of a surprise. That'll happen when your budding superstar at quarterback gets hurt. Jayden Daniels is healthy as the new season dawns, but he's seemingly one of the few things this team can chalk up as something of a sure thing this season. Robert Mays, Derrik Klassen and Dave Helman preview the 2026 Commanders on this episode of The Athletic Football Show.

0:00 Welcome to the show
0:12 Offseason in 60 seconds
0:45 What are you most excited to watch?
0:55 "Chicken salad out of chicken shit"
1:13 Jayden Daniels & Terry McLaurin
1:50 Stefon Diggs
4:14 Sonny Styles
5:34 What are you monitoring during the first month?
5:44 David Blough's offense
12:00 Offensive line
14:31 What’s keeping you up at night?
14:45 Commanders defense = Cowboys defense?
18:55 Nick Cross
21:21 What does success look like for this team?

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