Best quotes from Commanders first training camp practices

Training camp is underway in Ashburn. There’s only a couple weeks until the Washington Commanders‘ first preseason game, so the importance of these initial practices cannot be understated. Full contact won’t be allowed until Aug. 1, so don’t expect the first couple sessions to feature a ton of intensity.

As is tradition at camp, players and coaches addressed the media before and after practice. The list included Ron Rivera, Carson Wentz and Jonathan Allen, while other players, including Terry McLaurin, Chase Young and Jahan Dotson, among others, made time for one-on-one interviews with team reporters.

With so many quotes being provided, we thought it’d be a good idea to make a compilation of the most notable ones we’ve heard thus far.

Best quotes from Commanders first training camp practices

Carson Wentz 

In fitting fashion, we’ll start with Wentz. Questions about the QB’s leadership have followed him since the end of his Eagles tenure. On his third team in as many seasons, Wentz isn’t pressing to build relationships with his new teammates.

"“You try not to do anything out of the ordinary,” Wentz said Wednesday. “You just let those relationships naturally build. You know, you come in for me, this is year seven, things are different. I’m a little older, a little different perspective and relatively younger team, younger locker room. And so just how do you build relationships? It looks different every year. Every locker room looks different, but you just have to be intentional and build that chemistry and that relationship in time. And it’s a lot of good dudes in there, and it’s been fun getting to know them.”"

It might take time for Wentz to get in-sync with his receivers, but his authentic approach to forming bonds in the locker room isn’t lost on his teammates. Just ask Jonathan Allen, who once again defended QB1 to the media.

Jonathan Allen

Back in June, Allen said he didn’t understand the “terrible reputation” that’s followed Wentz since his fallout with former Eagles head coach Doug Pederson and that he doesn’t “see where all the negative press comes from.”

Following practice Wednesday, Allen once again went to bat for Wentz.

"I’m worried about what I see with my own eyes and he’s given me no reason to doubt him at all. What he does on a day-to-day basis will tell me everything I need to know about him. He came in, he worked, he involved himself with the team and he’s exactly what we want from a quarterback. So, I have no questions. I know a lot of the times the media doesn’t really get the full story, only the story that some people portray. I’m not worried about what the media says. I’m worried about what I see with my own eyes. He’s given me no reason to doubt him at all."

That should ease the minds of fans who are skeptical of Wentz presiding over Washington’s offense. It’s apparent Allen couldn’t care less about the outside narrative and he’s loved what he’s seen from Wentz in the early goings.