This was the last chance saloon for the Washington Commanders if they wanted to keep their slim hopes of reaching the playoffs alive. Not for the first time this season, their Week 9 beatdown by the Seattle Seahawks was an unmitigated disaster from start to finish.
More injuries — one to Washington's franchise quarterback Jayden Daniels — will generate the headlines. But the simple fact of the matter is that the Commanders were not ready to play. They were sluggish, mistake-ridden, and unable to cope with the Seahawks' firepower on both sides of the football.
That's a dangerous mix, and the Commanders are 3-6 for a reason. This is not the same team that took the NFL by storm in 2024. Everything is different, and it now looks like last season's meteoric rise was an anomaly rather than the start of a profitable new era.
General manager Adam Peters has some big decisions to make over the next couple of days before the 2025 trade deadline. After this latest capitulation, don't be surprised if the Commanders look to sell off deadwood in their quest to put themselves in a better position when the offseason arrives.
That's for the not-too-distant future. For now, here are two winners and five losers from the Commanders' embarrassing blowout to the Seahawks.
Winners and losers from the Commanders' disaster against the Seahawks
Loser No. 1
Quan Martin - Commanders S
Fans were expecting Quan Martin to have a breakout campaign in 2025. He was the alpha dog in the safety room after the Washington Commanders let Jeremy Chinn walk for the Las Vegas Raiders in free agency. There is enough of a sample size to suggest that this notion will fall way short of the mark.
Martin isn't a breakout star; he's a complete liability on the backend. His positional sense in coverage support isn't up to the required standard. The former Illinois star is an abysmal tackler, with poor angles and even worse technique, resulting in frustrating errors that cannot be ignored any longer.
If the Commanders want to get serious, Martin's role needs to diminish moving forward. The defensive back lacks the confidence to impose himself firmly. He's not the only one in Washington's secondary fluffing their lines, but this was the year when he was expected to arrive.
He's further behind than ever. Martin has all the athleticism in the world, but the tape doesn't lie: he was an undeniable weak link the Seattle Seahawks picked apart at will.