Commanders stock report following preseason opener vs Panthers

The Washington Commanders nearly won their first preseason game on Saturday as Sam Howell helped stage a fourth quarter comeback. It wasn’t pleasing on the eye by any stretch of the imagination, but that’s what preseason is all about; working out the rust of a long offseason and letting young players take centerstage.

That pretty much summed up the Commanders’ afternoon. They started out sluggish before settling in and several young players popped.

There were several standout performers and multiple players who fell below expectations, so let’s delve into a Commanders stock report.

Commanders stock report after preseason opener vs Panthers

Stock up: Brian Robinson

No surprises here. After Antonio Gibson fumbled on his second carry, Robinson ran with the first-team offense and was everything fans could’ve hoped for. His first two touches were an 11-yard run and a nine-yard catch. He was as elusive as he was hard to tackle and put the finishing touches on the Commanders’ third drive with a touchdown. Fans were likely upset after he got pulled, but perhaps the coaching staff saw all they needed to see from the third-round rookie.

Stock down: Antonio Gibson

Gibson fumbled on his second carry of the game after he led all running backs with six fumbles (four lost) last year. Those six fumbles were more than what some starting quarterbacks totaled, which is pretty bad. In his third season as Washington’s lead back, Gibson needs to nip his ball security issues in the bud now that the team has a capable backup in Robinson waiting in the wings. Ron Rivera wasn’t afraid to bench Gibson last year. We imagine he’ll be on a shorter leash with Robinson in town.

Stock up: Carson Wentz

Look, it was the first preseason game and Wentz’s Commanders debut so the bar was admittedly pretty low to begin with. As long as he looked in command of the offense, executed plays and avoided mistakes it’d be considered a job well done. That’s exactly what Wentz did, finishing 10-of-13 for 74 yards. Our only qualm is he only averaged 5.5 yards per attempt, but there’s plenty of time for that to improve.