5 Takeaways From The Commanders Joint Practice Versus The Miami Dolphins

The Washington Commanders welcomed the Miami Dolphins to Ashburn for a joint practice on Wednesday Aug. 12, providing the team with their first official test of training camp. It also marked the team's first joint practice ever held at Washington's Ashburn facility.

For Washington, the joint session carried more significance than Friday's preseason opener as both teams had their healthy starters participate. However, their presence on Wednesday doesn't mean they'll see the field in Friday's preseason opener.

It's safe to say that the Commanders had the better day of action in several key areas, making it an encouraging day against their first opponent of the season.

Here are five takeaways from Washington's joint practice performance:

1. Jayden Daniels Remained Poised And Stellar

Quarterback Jayden Daniels was nothing short of poised and stellar in Wednesday's joint practice, continuing what has been a great offseason for the young quarterback.

Daniels has been on mission throughout the offseason to get Washington back to their winning ways that the team had experienced in 2024. After a diffcult 5-12 season, the third-year quarterback has spent most of the offseason focused on growth and development under new offensive coordinator David Blough's scheme. That work appears to be paying off.

In Wednesday's joint practice, Daniels displayed tremendous accuracy, strong pocket movement, and improved ball security while consistently connecting with various offensive targets. His command of the offense and ability to make plays with confidence stood out throughout the joint session.

Daniels may be an obvious standout to take note of, but seeing the work he has put into developing his game throughout the offseason and seeing that growth translate on the field in real time has been exciting to watch.

2. Wide Receivers Put On A Show, Depth Continues To Emerge

Washington's receiver room had their most impressive showing of training camp so far in Wednesday's joint practice. Several pass-catchers made tremendous strides and energized the crowd.

Terry McLaurin and Stefon Diggs dominated one-on-one reps against Miami's defensive backs, winning every rep they took. Diggs, however, stood out with his precise route-running that allowed constant separation for playmaking. Later on in team drills, he connected with Jayden Daniels for a touchdown near the back of the end zone during red-zone work.

McLaurin and Diggs give Washington an established pair of playmakers to lead their receievers core. But Wednesday's joint practice provided an encouraging sign that the depth behind them is emerging as strong and versatile targets.

Treylon Burks had a solid day, showcasing his deep threat capability with a 70-yard touchdown reception from Daniels. He broke free from double coverage to make the explosive play and continues to turn heads, making a strong case for the third or fourth wide receiver spot.

Antonio Williams proved to be a challenging matchup for defenders in the joint practice. The rookie's sharp change in direction and quickness repeatedly shook up Dolphins defenders. In team drills, he added to his dominant day with a red-zone touchdown reception from Marcus Mariota. Throughout training camp, Williams has consistently made the most of every opportunity, finding ways to turn touches into explosive plays making a strong presence in Washington's receiver room.

Van Jefferson is receiver that turned heads on Wednesday as his pass connection with Daniels was on full display. He solidified his presence with strong work along the sideline, supporting Head Coach Dan Quinn's consistent praise of him throughout the offseason.

In team drills, Mariota finished the red-zone period strong, finding receivers who have been looking for camp-defining moments. First, he connected with Jaden Bradley and on the next play, he found Nick Nash. Both receivers scored touchdowns adding to the standout day of the wide receiver room.

3. Offensive Line Struggled In Run Game, Solid In Pass Protection

If there was one area of concern for the Commanders coming out of joint practice, it was definitely the offensive line. And rightfully so, as the Commanders are still working to solidify their footing along the line itself without starting left tackle Laremy Tunsil and center Nick Allegretti.

While Coach Quinn said on Monday that Allegretti would miss the joint practice and preseason opener, the veteran lineman is expected to return on Sunday. Tunsil, however, faces a far more uncertain timeline. After suffering a torn triceps that will require surgery, the starting left tackle could be sidelined for months and potentially miss the entire season.

In the meantime, Brandon Coleman is someone Coach Quinn has identified as a potential replacement at left tackle, and we've seen him rotate at the position with Andrew Wylie and Josh Conerly Jr. in the joint practice. However, with not having Tunsil and Allegretti on Wednesday, the offensive line struggled to create that push in the run game. That created some difficulty for running back Jacory "Bill" Croskey-Merritt who looks for the blocking to effectively get through the lane.

The offensive line overall had a relatively solid day in pass protection, but the struggles in the run game are definitely worth keeping an eye on. Running the football is a major part of offensive coordinator David Blough's scheme, and the line itself will need to consistently create that push if Washington wants to fully maximize that part of the offense.

4. Washington's Defense Dominated Miami's Offense

Washington's defense consisently overwhelemed Miami's offense for most of the joint session. It became difficult at times to keep up with how pressures, tackles for loss, and amount of dominant plays there were due to that fact there were just so many to keep track of.

Outside linebacker Odafe Oweh and K'Lavon Chaisson were relentless hunting down Dolphins quarterback Malik Willis for most of the session. Chaisson finished the day with mutiple takeaways that would be considered sacks in a live game, while repeatedly beating Miami's blockers to disrupt various plays. Defensive tackle Daron Payne also showed tremendous force in the backfield putting intense pressure on Willis.

Outside linebacker Joshua Josephs remained a problem for Miami's offense. He blew through the line and was constantly see almost face-to-face with Quinn Ewers that would have resulted in sack if the play were in live game action. Josephs continued to make a dominant impact against the Dolphins, playing in the style that we have seen early on in training camp. This is a major suggestion that Josephs performance in camp so far has been nothing short of legitimate.

Cornerback Mike Sainristil delivered the most momentum-shifting play for the defense of the entire joint session. Sainristil managed to secure a pick-six off of Willis which stunned the Dolphins who were already struggling with offensive production. Amik Robertson added to the chaos by blitzing in the backfield and tackled the running back for a loss in the 11-on-11 period.

5. Kicker Competition Continues To Heat Up

The kicker competition was on full display in Washington's joint practice. Both Jake Moody and Drew Stevens finished the day going 6-for-6, a huge bounce back from what was seen in Monday's practice. The two kickers were able to connect fields ranging between 30-60 yards. The 60-yarder marked the longer both kickers have faced in training camp so far.

Stevens remains to edge in this competition so far based on the overall performance. The young kicker has shown legitmate foot strength and accuracy improvement. Meanwhile Moody came into this competition with high-level experience and solid accuracy. Wednesday's practice serves as a strong response for Moody's case, indicating an ongoing competition until the final day of 53-man roster decisions.