Back in training camp, Washington Commanders defensive coordinator Voodoo Jack Del Rio outlined two goals for his 2023 defense.
“Two things, start fast,” Voodoo Jack said. “We want to make sure we’re doing that. Start the season fast, start series fast, start the games fast, so that’s the No. 1 emphasis.”
That hasn’t really worked out so far. I get they are 3-3 following their 24-16 win Sunday over the Atlanta Falcons — their best start under Ron Rivera since he arrived in Washington in 2020. It hasn’t happened because the Commanders have started fast in games. They’ve been behind in four of their six games at halftime.
The other thing? “Force more turnovers,” Voodoo Jack said. “So really, we’ve been, you know, since I’ve been here, we’ve been mostly in the top five or so in the league as far as stopping people from gaining yards. Third down, last year was really good. Those are important things that continue to do well, but we need to generate more turnovers for the health of the team. Another turnover here or there in several of the ball games could make the difference between four or five wins or not. And add four wins to what we had last year, we’d be in pretty good shape.”
That hasn’t really worked out so far, either. The Commanders were ranked 27th in the league last year in turnovers, at -5, and were near the bottom again this year at -5 again before Falcons quarterback Desmond Ridder heard Voodoo Jack’s call and threw three interceptions, handing the Commanders a much-needed victory.
Despite the three turnovers, it was hardly a defensive win. Atlanta had 402 total yards, while Washington had just 193. Despite a five-man front, the Falcons still managed 106 yards rushing. They controlled the ball for more than 36 minutes, compared to 23 minutes of possession for the Commanders.
Three turnovers delivered the win, but unless there is a dramatic change in the personality of this Commanders defense, this is not a unit that has shown the ability to become a turnover machine under Voodoo Jack.
That leaves the defensive coordinator’s defensive schemes to stop their opponents, and that’s not promising.
I call Del Rio “Voodoo Jack” because when he was running wild on social media during his Jan. 6 “dust-up days,” he was touting a doctor promoted by President Trump as a voice for COVID-19 treatment who had claimed alien DNA was being used in medical treatments.
Former Washington head coach Jay Gruden has a different nickname for Del Rio — Simple Jack.
“I feel like he’s Simple Jack,” Gruden told my podcast co-host, Kevin Sheehan, on the Kevin Sheehan Show. “He doesn’t do a whole lot defensively. They play limited coverages/fronts and expect their players to be in the right places. They play how they’re going to play and hope they are better than you.”
Simple Jack — ouch.
They weren’t necessarily better Sunday. They were just in the right place at the right time, delivering short fields to produce some touchdowns, thanks to Ridder’s three picks.
If Ridder had taken sacks, like Washington quarterback Sam Howell did (five of them, putting his season total at 34 and on pace to break David Carr’s single-season record of 76 sacks), the outcome could have been different. I think if we are looking at quarterback liabilities, sacks may be less damaging than interceptions.
That’s one thing Sam Howell doesn’t do — throw to the other team, save for the Buffalo Bills’ 37-3 disaster and his four interceptions (he only has two more in five other games. He finds his receivers and gets them the ball — 14 of 23 for 151 yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions. He is proving to be a legitimate NFL starting quarterback — if he can survive.
Defensively, the Commanders continue to be an underachieving, disappointing unit that seems lost without gifts like they received Sunday in Atlanta. Fortunately for Washington, they play a New York Giants team next week that likes gift-giving, right behind Washington in handing over the ball.
⦁ You can hear Thom Loverro on The Kevin Sheehan Show podcast.
• Thom Loverro can be reached at tloverro@washingtontimes.com.
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