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The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly From Commanders Week 4 Loss Against Colts
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- The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly From Commanders Week 4 Loss Against Colts
After upsetting the Seattle Seahawks in Week 3 , the Washington Commanders traveled to London hoping to ride the momentum into another win . Unfortunately, everything that could go wrong for Washington, did go wrong. Injuries piled up, frustrating coaching decisions, and a lackluster performance on the field resulted in Commanders fans feeling like they wasted their Sunday morning.
The odds seemed stacked against the Commanders going into the day as they were without Terry McLaurin and Rachaad White . Washington dominated the first quarter but after that, nothing seemed to go their way.
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The Good
In relief of Marcus Mariota, Athan Kaliakmanis came into the game and did everything he could to keep the Commanders in the game. Throwing for 186 yards and one touchdown, he was serviceable at best. After being pummeled by DeForest Buckner within the first few snaps , he jumped right back up and was ready for the next play . Firing a 47-yard touchdown pass to Treylon Burks, Kaliakmanis' arm strength was on full display .
Returning for a second stint with the Commanders, Austin Ekeler made his 2026 debut . Rushing for 29 yards on four attempts, he seemed to be completely healed from his 2025 Achilles injury. If Rachaad White's shoulder injury proves to be worse than initially anticipated , Ekeler will be a suitable replacement for his role.
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The Bad
Dan Quinn entered the season on the hot seat and it only looks to be heating up after a handful of questionable coaching decisions. On a 4th and 1, on his own 46-yard line, he chose to run the ball up the middle with Craig Reynolds while having a plethora of other running backs on the sideline that were more than capable of reaching the line to gain . The Colts were easily able to march down the short field and put up their first points of the game.
Penalized 10 times for 84 yards, the officiating seemed to be in favor of the Colts for the entirety of the game. Procedural penalties on offense and miscommunication on special teams resulted in countless infractions that severely hindered any chance of success for the Commanders. While there were a handful of questionable calls on the Commanders and missed calls on the Colts, Washington needs to do a far better job of being more disciplined and cleaning up their mistakes.
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The Ugly
After two turnovers brought the Commanders into the red zone, they were unable to convert either time, resulting in field goals. Being unable to turn turnovers into touchdowns will hold back any team in the NFL and the Commanders were the latest victim.
The Colts dominated the second half scoring on every possession except for one . Regardless of the penalty controversy, the Commanders pass-rush and secondary were nearly non-existent allowing Daniel Jones and Jonathan Taylor to run rampant all over the defense.
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Being a first year play-caller with your third-string quarterback in the game and multiple other starters out is no easy task. However, David Blough did not give the team a fighting chance as he continued to call inside runs with a lackluster offensive line.
This story was originally published by Athlon Sports on Oct 5, 2026, where it first appeared in the NFL section. Add Athlon Sports as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
