RESOLVING THE LEDGER
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The Washington Commanders held the first of their two joint practices this summer, hosting the Miami Dolphins in Ashburn on Wednesday. The two teams face off in their first preseason game on Friday at Northwest Stadium.
It was a productive day for Washington , as quarterback Jayden Daniels continues to look more comfortable in David Blough's offense with each practice. Daniels continued his recent trend of terrific practices against the Dolphins, moving the ball up and down the field and finding multiple weapons. His accuracy this summer has been elite.
As for the Commanders' rebuilt defense, they smothered Miami's offense. It was almost unfair at times. They pressured Dolphins quarterback Malik Willis and covered up Miami's receivers. Of course, it's one practice, and against a rebuilding team. There were lots of good things, but some things that can be cleaned up, too.
Here are three areas of concern from Washington's joint practice. Hint: there are lots of questions about the offensive line.
Center position remains a major concern
There were concerns about the center position all offseason. Nick Allegretti is entering his eighth NFL season in 2026. He has plenty of experience, but most of that experience is at guard. We'll never know GM Adam Peters' thinking when releasing Tyler Biadasz before free agency. It sure seems like they were going all in on Tyler Linderbaum until the Raiders truly went all-in on the free-agent center. Allegretti was the backup plan.
On the first day of training camp, Allegretti strained his calf. Over two weeks later, he still hasn't returned. His two backups, Julian Good-Jones and rookie Matt Gulbin, have a combined two career NFL snaps. So, not only were there questions about Allegretti, but his backups were doing some on-the-job training. That's not to say they can't become quality centers, but depending on them, as they are always one snap away, is a bit frightening. The Commanders had their way on Wednesday, but Washington's center position had its struggles.
Laremy Tunsil's injury has only exacerbated the Commanders' center problem. The hope is Allegretti returns healthy next week, and there are no questions. But even then, he's never snapped long-term in the NFL.
Running game could struggle
We've seen Washington's defense swallow up the running game in practice often this summer. Miami handled the interior of the Commanders' offensive line on Wednesday, especially in run blocking. Left guard Chris Paul still has a ways to go as a run blocker. Right guard Sam Cosmi is just fine. Washington employing a zone blocking scheme should help things. For the most part, it's an athletic group. Again, so much depends on Allegretti working out. Peters made a huge gamble. We are going to find out if that gamble paid off.
David Blough's offense depends on a strong running game. There will be plenty of play action. If the Commanders are struggling to run, the pressure goes back to Daniel to be Superman. That's not what Washington wants.
Conerly struggled early
We've talked a lot about right tackle Josh Conerly Jr. having a breakout season in 2026. After a tough start to his NFL career last season, he was pretty good in the second half of the season. The in-season growth was encouraging. This offseason, he worked out with Tunsil, reshaping his body, and was expected to take a big leap. He didn't have the best day on Wednesday, getting beaten badly on one play and committing a penalty. He won some battles, lost some. That's typical for every position. But what the Commanders cannot afford is for Cosmi or Conerly to struggle. With the questions on the left side and at center, they need the Cosmi and Conerly duo to be a team strength.
There are no reasons to sound any alarm bells on Conerly. It was one practice, plus he made up for his rough start. It's still something to watch. Washington needs Conerly more than ever, with Tunsil out. The good news is Brandon Coleman looked really good for the most part.
This article originally appeared on Commanders Wire: 3 reasons for concern from Commanders' joint practice vs Dolphins
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