The Washington Commanders will be without two of their playmakers, as both tight end Chig Okonkwo and linebacker Frankie Luvu have been ruled out for Sunday's game against the Dallas Cowboys.
Both players were on the field during Friday's practice, but neither was in uniform. They moved to the side field for rehab along with the rest of Washington's injured players after stretches. Head coach Dan Quinn said Wednesday that there was "some uncertainty" about both players' status for Sunday. Now, the Commanders must turn to other options to replace their production.
On offense, the Commanders have three other tight ends they can turn to. John Bates is known more for his abilities as a blocker but did have two catches during the Commanders' season opener against the Philadelphia Eagles. Bates only has 74 catches in his career, but he has been reliable when targeted with a catch rate of 69.2%. It could also mean more opportunities for Ben Sinnott, who coaches praised for the development he showed in training camp.
The Commanders could also rely more on their wealth of wide receivers to replace Okonkwo's size. Wideout Treylon Burks could be one such option. Burks was inactive for Week 1, but Burks has a similar frame (6-foot-2, 225 pounds) to Okonkwo (6-foot-3, 238 pounds) and made some impressive catches in the middle of the field during training camp. Burks being inactive in Week 1 had nothing to do with the team lacking faith in him; rather, it was more about the matchups they liked with more tight ends on the field against the Eagles.
"It's hard as the competitors," Quinn said. "In this game we had five receivers and four tight ends, and other games that may switch around ... Depending on the opponent, there could be some changes as that goes. But in this instance, this is a position that we're very deep in, and it was just by the game plan."
On defense, the Commanders could rely more on a mix of Leo Chenal and Sonny Styles to replace Luvu's production as a blitzer and play caller on the field. Styles wore the green dot once Luvu was taken out against the Eagles, and the rookie made a handful of impact plays with a sack and two tackles for a loss. It was the first time the Commanders unveiled their full plans to use Styles' athleticism and intelligence on the field and for the most part, Styles handled his role well.
"I think that's a sign of things to come for him," Quinn said. "He really is into his preparation to make sure he's detailed
and on it. But at the end of it, like I said, one of the things I liked about the defense was just their overall physicality, and Sonny was very much a part of that."
This story will be updated once the full injury report has been released.
