Last week we noted that Jayden Daniels played Superman again, leading the Washington Commanders past the Philadelphia Eagles. I suspect this week it would be a bit too easy to just say “ditto.”

To put it bluntly, the biggest story in most of the Commanders’ games this season is the rookie quarterback. But now that Dan Quinn’s squad has secured a spot in the playoffs, let’s focus on the biggest issue facing the team right now.

If they don’t fix this issue before the Wild Card playoff game, their first postseason since 2020 will be very short.

This problem isn’t the defense’s inability to stop the run, which was evident in the first half against the Atlanta Falcons. Nor is it the sudden flood of penalties that has hurt both sides of the ball. It’s not the dwindling number of offensive linemen, wide receivers and defensive backs – although all of those things could be crucial in the future.

The fact is that the amazingly resilient commanders have found ways to overcome all of these challenges.

The run defense came through hard. The punishments didn’t disappear completely, but they at least slowed down. Players like Olamide Zaccheaus, Michael Deiter and Quan Martin stepped up in a big way to fill the gap for missing teammates.

Commanders must find ways to build momentum on the ground

These problems remain, but they are not the biggest ones now facing Washington.

The biggest problem right now is the offense’s inability to run the ball consistently. More specifically, the running backs can’t gain yards consistently.

In sheer numbers, Washington’s running attack looks great. The Commanders totaled over 200 yards on the ground against the Falcons. They averaged an outstanding 6.0 yards per carry and dominated the possession battle. How could the ground game be an issue with these numbers?

That’s because Washington’s yardage was almost entirely dependent on Daniels for most of the second half of the season. This can’t continue when the postseason comes.

Consider these numbers from five games prior to the Falcons’ contest. I’m ruling out the win over the Tennessee Titans. Admittedly, this was an outstanding performance from the entire Commanders run game staff. But in the five other games since Nov. 10, Washington’s running backs have carried the ball 96 times for 290 yards. That works out to an average of 3.0 yards per carry.

The Commanders’ overall rushing numbers don’t look too bad, as Daniels has rushed 27 times for 243 yards in those games – an average of 9.0 yards per carry.

Daniels’ numbers are outstanding. In his rookie season on the primetime stage, he broke Robert Griffin III’s record for most rushing yards by a quarterback. But it won’t be sustainable in the playoffs. Washington desperately needs to find the balanced running attack it displayed in the first half of the season.

Washington’s running backs are not responsible for this problem. Brian Robinson Jr., Jeremy McNichols. Chris Rodriguez Jr. and pre-concussion Austin Ekeler have made tough runs all year. The problem in the second half of the season is that they constantly get hit in the backfield before they even have a chance to find a hole.

Robinson often has to make multiple tackles to simply gain two or three yards. Rodriguez was hit in the backfield on his touchdown run, but was able to break through the attempted tackle.

The next time Washington was down near the goal line against the Falcons and had a chance to put the game on ice, a straight dive by Robinson behind the line of scrimmage was wiped out. He lost a yard and after a holding penalty against Sam Cosmi, the Commanders had to settle for a field goal.

Winning teams must be able to inbound the ball from the one-yard line. At least they can’t lose yards on running plays in this situation.

Washington was better in the second half when Robinson had several nice holes to run through. But there is no consistency. The Commanders can look strong for a few plays and then return to the type of running back play we saw in the first half.

Offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury only had eight offensive runs in the half. On five of those plays they managed two yards or less. The score was increased by Daniels’ 25-yard dash. But a running game in which more than half of the plays are stuffed at the line for no more than two yards results in an offense that is constantly playing behind the chains.

The Commanders could have lost this game if first-round quarterback Michael Penix Jr., making just his second NFL start, didn’t miss at least five throws to open receivers. They could have lost if Atlanta’s starting kicker Younghoe Koo was healthy. They could have lost if the coin toss had gone the other way in overtime.

Of course they didn’t.

They won the game and deserve praise for their remarkable resilience. But there is still work to be done, and it starts with managing the ongoing game.

It can be hard to tell whether the high number of plays at the line is due to a flawed plan, flawed execution, or simply a lack of physicality. It’s probably a combination of all three factors.

Whatever the reason, Kingsbury and run game coordinator Anthony Lynn need to fix the problem soon. Although it may not seem like it at times, there is a limit to how often Daniels can bail this team out.

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