Commanders embrace chippiness as tempers flare in practice

ASHBURN — Terry McLaurin had enough. On a day when the defense’s trash talk was nonstop and tempers flared all over practice, cornerback Benjamin St-Juste’s taunt over tight end Cole Turner was the tipping point for the Washington Commanders wide receiver. 

Nearby, offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy barked for players to get back into the huddle and focus. McLaurin wasn’t going to let St-Juste’s actions slide. 

“He can’t do that [expletive] to your own teammate, bro!” McLaurin yelled. 

“I respect that,” St-Juste would later say. 

Friday’s practice was the most heated yet for the Commanders during this year’s training camp. In the sequence that led up to McLaurin’s outburst, guard Sam Cosmi body-slammed defensive tackle Phidarian Mathis, St-Juste delivered a hard hit on Turner and defensive end Chase Young could be consistently heard egging on teammates during a dominant day for the defense. After the session, coach Ron Rivera talked to players for about three minutes — longer than his normal post-practice breakdown. 

Speaking to reporters, however, Rivera said he didn’t mind the chippiness. In fact, he said, he would have been “disappointed” if he hadn’t seen that intensity on the field. But the coach also made clear that he wanted to see players do a better job of maintaining their composure in certain situations. 

“I would have been disappointed if we didn’t get on each other’s [butts] out there,” Rivera said. “This is our ninth practice, our fifth one in a row. And they’re a little sour right now. They really are. …You get fired up and you get excited. It’s like I got hot sauce in my bag, I mean let’s pull it out and spray on each other and get a little excited about it. And that’s exactly what happened.

“I’m glad it did because this is about building the grit and the toughness. We lost our poise for a little bit, our immaturity showed and we’ve got to learn to handle that.” 

Perhaps more concerning for Washington is that its offense continues to struggle. Rivera has downplayed those concerns by telling reporters the unit isn’t focused on game planning for opponents and that the defense has more experience playing together compared to a unit that has a new quarterback (Sam Howell), a remade offensive line and a new scheme under Bieniemy. 

But Friday was the most obvious example of the offense’s inconsistency. Even during an installation period, when no defenders were around, officials threw two separate flags for ineligible men downfield and Howell overthrew a wide-open receiver. When team drills began, Howell, backup Jacoby Brissett and third-stringer Jake Fromm all failed to string together consistent drives. They missed receivers and were under near-constant duress from a suffocating defensive line. 

As the offense’s problems mounted, tensions between the two units increased. After one play, Cosmi gave Mathis a hard shove to the ground and then when the second-year defensive lineman got up to fight, Cosmi slammed him again — causing a fracas to ensue. 

An irate Bieniemy urged players to “shut the [expletive] up” and to “stop with the dumb [stuff].” That’s when McLaurin chimed in. Rivera said McLaurin’s words had an impact on the group, adding that when the wideout speaks, teammates listen. 

The trash-talking cooled after that. As he made his way off the practice field, Cosmi told reporters that they would move on quickly — noting teammates usually hash things out in the locker room with a handshake.

“I mean, we work hard, do our stuff, but at the same time we’re not going to take any crap from anyone,” Cosmi said. “Be smart, but we ain’t taking crap from no one.”