Story by
Commanders' $96M edge criticized by NFL analyst after lackluster Week 1 debut
- Story by
- Commanders' $96M edge criticized by NFL analyst after lackluster Week 1 debut
Commanders' $96M edge criticized by NFL analyst after lackluster Week 1 debut originally appeared on The Sporting News . Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here .
The Washington Commanders lost to the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 1, 24-22. But it wasn't all bad, as Jayden Daniels didn't look bad, Antonio Williams broke out already, and Stefon Diggs looked good.
Advertisement
Sonny Styles also flashed a lot of potential as well. Unfortunately, the same could not be said for the Commanders' top offseason pickup in $96 million free-agent signing Odafe Oweh .
The Athletic's Daniel Popper criticized Oweh for his Week 1 performance that didn't live up to the billing of a No. 1 edge rusher based on his lofty pay. Oweh will need to turn things around, otherwise this deal will look like a major overpay by Washington.
Odafe Oweh called out by NFL analyst for underwhelming Week 1 outing
"The Commanders need Oweh to play like a No. 1 edge," Popper writes. "He did not perform at that level in a Week 1 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles ."
Advertisement
While Oweh had a sack, it wasn't a quick one, nor anything impressive. It's the kind of sack any edge rusher could've made.
"But he was not impactful on a down-to-down basis. He had trouble getting loose from Eagles tackles Jordan Mailata and Lane Johnson . Among 96 players with at least 20 pass-rush snaps in Week 1, Oweh ranked 8th in pressure rate, according to TruMedia," Popper writes.
It wasn't an easy matchup for Oweh, facing a mobile quarterback like Jalen Hurts and two good offensive tackles in Johnson and Mailata.
MORE: Packers $92M contract extension with Tucker Kraft can make NFL history
Advertisement
But, it doesn't take away from the fact that, for someone making $96 million over the next four years, this was an incredibly underwhelming Week 1 performance.
It's possible he rebounds and plays as he did with the Los Angeles Chargers last season across 12 games, where he had 7.5 sacks.
But it's also possible that was a bit of a mirage, and he's not actually worthy of being paid like a No. 1 edge rusher, as he currently is by the Commanders.
This Week 1 performance was concerning, and if he can't turn things up in Week 2 against the Dallas Cowboys , the concern will only grow for a key offseason pickup.
Advertisement
