The Commanders barely had time to shake off the preseason rust before rushing headfirst into their first short week of the young NFL season. Coach Dan Quinn’s squad will have no days off between last Sunday’s season-opening win and Thursday’s matchup with the Packers in Green Bay.
Quinn said his players are ready to ride the momentum forward.
“There is [an advantage],” Quinn said of the quick turnaround early in the season. “Because you have a little bit more time on the preparation side for both the coaching staffs. There is more time; you can think a little more clearly during that early week between the opening game and this game.”
Washington’s coaching staff started shaping the game plan for Green Bay last week, before hosting the New York Giants. They introduced the players to it on Monday and brought the plan to a padless practice on Tuesday.
Though they worked without helmets on Tuesday, the Commanders started to prepare for a hostile environment at Lambeau Field. They pumped crowd noise — including chants of “Go Pack Go!” — through speakers around the practice field.
But a trip to Green Bay to face a competitive Packers team sounds enticing to Quinn and the Commanders. They wouldn’t have it any other way.
“We got a lot left in the tank. [We had] a tough division game, just like they did. And they’ve got to deal with us, too,” Quinn said. “It’s a tough matchup on both sides, exactly the type of environment that you want to play in. We’re really pumped to get rolling.”
Rest has been an emphasis from Quinn this week.
The Commanders are still recovering from the season opener. Quarterback Jayden Daniels was listed in the injury report with a wrist issue, though Quinn said he has no concerns about his second-year signal-caller.
“These Thursday night games, it’s like, ’All right. Let’s go again. Let’s fire it back up,” said punter Tress Way, who left Sunday’s game with a back injury. “And adrenaline is a beautiful thing. Once you get out there, it’s like, ’Here we go.’”
Several Commanders, including Way, pointed out that the Packers have to deal with the same timetable.
The players from Green Bay won’t have to hop on a plane after their Wednesday practice, though. They beat the Detroit Lions at home on Sunday and won’t travel until Week 3.
The Packers are also the youngest team in the league. The Commanders are the oldest.
“There’s definitely benefits to it, having guys who have done this time and time again, know what it feels like to have these short weeks,” second-year cornerback Mike Sainristil said.
Several Commanders noted that they were glad to have the Thursday matchup early in the season, before the wear and tear of an NFL campaign could build it up.
“For the most part, everybody’s been out pretty clean,” wide receiver Terry McLaurin said. No Commanders are expected to miss Sunday’s game. “So this is just about getting back to work and trying to fix the things that we did from last week.”
It won’t be their last dalliance with strange scheduling. The Commanders will have a pair of shortened weeks in December before a Saturday game against the Philadelphia Eagles and a subsequent Thursday game on Christmas Day against the Dallas Cowboys.
The Commanders aren’t looking that far ahead. They’re intensely preparing to face Green Bay and the newly acquired Micah Parsons, who recorded a sack in his Packers debut.
“He’s an unbelievable football player,” McLaurin said. “I have great trust in our O-line; they’re going to handle him. We have a gameplan to know where he’s at, but he’s a very dynamic football player and he definitely changes the game when he’s in there.”
Quinn had an easy idea for how to limit Parsons.
“I’d sit him this week,” he said cheekily.
After Thursday’s matchup with the Packers, the Commanders will have 10 days to recover before hosting the Las Vegas Raiders on Sept. 21.