Washington Commanders bold predictions for Week 15 vs. Saints

12/12/2024 09:34 PM

As their playoff chase intensifies, the Washington Commanders added a former Patriots receiver. They also got good news on Marshon Lattimore. With a Washington Commanders Week 15 game scheduled against the New Orleans Saints, it's an extremely important road battle. Ahead of the Commanders-Saints game, we'll be making our Commanders Week 15 predictions.

Washington enters the game with a record of 8-5. They currently hold the No. 7 spot in the NFC playoffs, and were one game ahead of the Rams — who took on the 49ers in a Thursday contest.

The Commanders boast the No. 5 offense in the NFL in terms of yards per game. They are third in the league with 156.9 rushing yards per contest.

Commanders RB Brian Robinson will rush for over 90 yards

This should be a good place for Robinson to excel with Austin Ekeler remaining on IR because of a concussion. Washington should feed the beast with Robinson playing the eating role.

Coming off a bye week makes things even more juicy for a refreshed Robinson and an energetic team. Head coach Dan Quinn said the Commanders are an eager bunch, according to commanders.com.

“There was a bounce and an energy with the guys to get going," Quinn said. "So, in December and January football, the line of scrimmage is really the thing that leads the way, both sides. And we’ve seen that all over the league for years and years and so that will be no different this year. And so, to have these guys trending this way, at this time of year, and feeling better, that’s a big deal.”

Plus, Quinn strives to keep his team above the playoff distractions.

“Honestly, for us as the team goes, we don’t really try to look too far down the line," Quinn said. "And we’ll leave that to you and everybody outside just to make sure that for us, the only fight that matters is the one we’re in. That’s what we do have control over.

“It’s honestly a big story, to make sure that we can have the discipline just to stay in it and just to New Orleans to go. Because as you know, it’s almost like so much talk externally about things four and five weeks down the road that I just don’t want to miss anything that’s in just this week."

Marshon Lattimore will play and get two passes defended

There's little doubt the Saints will try to attack Lattimore if he's out there. They won't want to give him a free pass. But Lattimore will be up to the task and take away a pair of opportunities. In seven starts with the Saints this season, Lattimore totaled only two passes defended. In his career, he has averaged just under one per game.

To get on the field, Lattimore will have to prove he's ready, said Quinn, according to washingtonpost.com.

"Just the markers of him being able to hit all the speeds, all the change of directions, and really all the things that will come up in practice for his position,” Quinn said. "We’ve put him through a lot of tests. All the strength, all the speed to go. And so, he’s hit all the markers up until now. And so, that process that we have is a strict one for that reason, to keep the players safe and healthy. He’s done a really good job of making sure he could hit them. And we’ll take that into practice now this week. Hopefully that’ll lead into a full week of practice and into the game. But until we get all the way to that spot, I’ll stay guarded."

Lattimore is a former first-round pick, grabbed at No. 11 overall in the 2017 NFL Draft. He earned AP defensive rookie of the year in 2017, which also produced the first of four Pro Bowl honors. However, over the last three seasons, injuries have derailed his progress. He played only seven games in 2022, 10 last year, and hasn't played this year since Oct. 27 against the Chargers.

Jayden Daniels will rush and pass for TDs

The Commanders' rookie has scored on the ground in each of the last two games, and should get another scoring scamper this week. He's also been hot with the passing game lately, totaling six touchdown tosses over his last three games. Daniels passed for three scores in the win over the Titans in the Commanders most recent game in Week 13.

Daniels has 3,409 total yards this season with 21 total touchdowns. And he has the full attention Saints head coach Darren Rizzi, according to neworleanssaints.com.

“Jayden Daniels is doing a heck of a job for Washington," Rizzi said. "Obviously, Dan Quinn has those guys rolling, right now. And maybe the most impressive thing that Jayden Daniels has done for a rookie quarterback is he’s looking at a 70 percent completion percentage. And a guy that doesn’t turn the ball over. That’s usually the two things that a rookie quarterback is known. A low completion percentage and turnovers. And so, they’ve done a phenomenal job.

"Kliff Kingsbury has done a really good job with their offense. They got it going right now. It’s going to be a heck of a challenge for us. Like I said, we got to regroup quickly. They’re coming off a bye. They’re going to be fresh. And they’re coming off of a win. Like it is every week in this league, we’re going to have a challenge in front of us. But certainly a very talented group coming in.”

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